Don't Break the Ice

I remember playing countless games as I grew up. Hide & Seek, Dodge Ball, Foxes Cross the River and King of the Hill consumed a great deal of after school and weekend time with friends.  My friends and I also played a number of board games and completed puzzles to pass the time.

Don’t Break The Ice was a game that I played often, although I never realized the premise of the game had such powerful meaning for life.  Several plastic ice cubes are placed in a frame with a bear on ice ‘skating’ in the center.  I remember the anxiety as I tapped each piece of ice, just hoping the rest of the cubes would stay in place. You want that bear to remain right where he is, skating in the center. One bad hit, and it is gonna come . . .that bear goes down! Once the bear falls, it is game over and you loose.

Here are a few lessons I learned from this childhood game:

• The ice is going to break.  This is real life and real things happen to real people. It is important to plan ahead, and be as prepared as possible for difficult times.
• Pick up the pieces and regroup.  When some things fall apart, we tend to spend a great deal of time agonizing over what has been lost. This could be a perfect time to pick up the pieces and start afresh, with a brand new perspective.
• Don’t be afraid to start over.  Fear has a way of paralyzing progress. The good news:  we can start over and move forward to accomplish great things even though we are fearful. There are times when we just have to ‘do it afraid’. We never have to do anything alone.  God is always right there, in the  middle of our circumstance. Friends and family will also be around to cheer us on.

Today’s challenge: Move forward and take chances, in life.  Don’t be afraid of failure, rather look to your future with confidence knowing that a second chance is waiting behind every mistake.