“But God, dear Lord, I only have eyes for you. Since I’ve run for dear life to you, take good care of me.” Psalm 141.8
Every year, the corporation asks me to place a bet on the table. The money piece is usually in the financial and budget reviews. Another component is my unit costs and quality. In addition, I cannot forget the milestones to the strategic initiatives (I am still not sure how to define what these two words mean). To new participants in the process, the December request to put all the bets on a single page often comes as a shock. They never saw it coming! This year the number of people surprised is at record levels!
Daily I fight the practice of separating my life into individual compartments. I find myself boxing work into the big trunk, social experiences in a small handbag, immediate family in another suitcase, and extended family in the soft-sided bag. I take the options for each area and keep them separate, perhaps out of fear of someone might actually understand the complete me. The reality is that I am hedging my bet with God! I take on certain areas as “my” responsibility, others I leave to God. I want to bet both sides of the table.
I look at the different sides of David, Shepherd, warrior, refugee, King, father, husband, successful, failure, happy, angry, depressed, and joyful. David had all these sides and more, yet God calls him a “man of God”. David failed in extreme ways yet God saw him as being on His side.
Why? There is a simple answer. David eyes only looked towards God. David placed his bet, in every face of his life, on a relationship with God. God was his life’s focus, period.
Do I want a relationship with God? If so, it is an all or none bet. I cannot hedge the bet because a hedge is a total bet against God, my God works as wasted time and energy. The odds may seem long but God has already won!
