16. Life’s a Game of Hopscotch

I have played the game of Hopscotch and I loved it. I have also watched the game being played by some very serious players – mostly children. It reminds me how I have played the game of life.

I vaguely remember the rules of the game of Hopscotch. I remember jumping over the pebbles in certain blocks. Some jumps were easier than others. If I made a mistake and landed in one of the blocks that was occupied, I had to start all over. If I lost my balance as I leaned over to pick up my pebble and stepped on the lines or out of bounds, I had to begin again.

Each time I started over, the game became easier. I learned to avoid the pebbles. As I played, I began to relate the rules of the game with my development in life.

Jesus often taught in parables and stories. He did this to make sure we understood the teaching – to make it clear. I find myself teaching Love All People students in a similar manner, as evidenced in this lecture and others.

When one starts out in life, he does not know from day to day what events will occur that might change the entire course of his life. As we set our goals in life, we often find it’s like the game of hopscotch reaching those goals.

When obstacles are thrown in our way, we have to jump over, around and beside them. Many times as we attempt to jump, we slip and fall, landing on on the line or on someone else’s spot. That means we must start over again.

We learn by our mistakes and jump over the hurdles. We hop all the way to the top, turn around and come back down, facing new challenges. We find different directions and greater goals, and then start the game all over again.

Each time we play, we become stronger and get closer to fulfillment – toward finding our purpose in life, which is the same as God’s purpose for us.

Some people choose to quit playing the game of Hopscotch rather than starting over and growing from their experiences – learning more each day about themselves.

My saying is, “I am not a mistake. I am a miracle, full of mysteries to be unraveled.” I find it challenging each day to make new and exciting discoveries about myself. I find that I am getting stronger, that I am finding out about my talents.

I am ambitious and excited about life. I find that I am loved, if not by my brother or sister, then certainly by God. In knowing this, I am already a winner.