Wednesday, July 16, 2014

No Useful Moves Detected

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Since receiving my iPhone, one of the ways I choose to pass the time if I absolutely have nothing else to do is play Solitaire. Solitaire holds a special place in my heart - it is one of the games that I mastered prior to using the mouse. When we were newlyweds, my husband and I used to see who could win a game in the least amount of time - without a mouse. The challenge of Solitaire is to stack the suits in the least amount of time with the least amount of moves. Fast forward to today where there really is an app for just about anything, I now have a new relationship with this game.

In solitaire, as in life, every hand is not a winning hand - some games just cannot be won. On the other hand, even if you have a winning hand, if you don't play your cards right you won't win. Sometimes you can get a hint that would allow you to keep on playing. In a losing hand the hints don't necessarily help, but in a winning hand they do. Once hints are exhausted, "no useful moves detected."

"No useful moves detected" equates to starting over. At this point there's nothing else to do - either start the same game (and come to the same result) or start a new game.
Have you ever felt that way in life - that you've exhausted all your options and no useful moves are detected? Ever felt the need to start all over? I have, and the only reason I do it is because of the Hope within me.
"Hope is produced by endurance through suffering (Romans 5:2-5) and is the inspiration behind endurance (1 Thessalonians 1:3;Hebrews 6:11).Trustworthy promises from God give us hope (Hebrews 6:18-19), and we may boast in this hope (Hebrews 3:6) and exhibit great boldness in our faith (2 Corinthians 3:12). By contrast, those who do not place their trust in God are said to be without hope (Ephesians 2:12,1 Thessalonians 4:13)." Source - http://www.gotquestions.org/hope-Bible.html#ixzz37adyB2lM

If you have no source and are trying to do things on your own, you will take hints from the wrong people and resources until you are a point where you don't know which way to turn.
But even as a believer you may reach this point. You may become dejected by how things are looking, or how things aren't going to plan or how it seems that nothing good ever happens to you. Don't give up, instead look up. The next time you feel, "no useful moves detected," start all over with God.

Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.” Matthew 19:26 (NLT)

How do you deal, when no useful moves are detected in your life?

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3 comments:

  1. love how a simple game like solitaire can have this profound message...when i have no useful moves i turn to the Lord and prayer...only way for me to get back in the game. Great analogy.

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  2. For me, prayer is key. Whenever I feel stuck or feel like I don't know what my next move is, I get stressed out. Like, really stressed. But prayer helps me to stay centered and grounded and focus on a small step that'll be effective.

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  3. Still not playing Solitaire on your mobile? Download SOLITAIRE (Available for iOS or Android)

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