Hold Em or Fold Em

I wrote this a loooonnnggg time ago and never posted it.  I added a little bit to it ;-)


I am slowly being sucked into an interest for poker (thanks to my wonderful fiance lol).  The game is all about strategy- knowing when to play a hand by calculating risk, knowing your opponent, anticipating what cards will come on the flop (Yes, I'm getting pretty good at my poker lingo).  The more I learn about it- the more I see poker can be related to the choices we make in our lives. 

In Texas Hold Em- each player is dealt 2 cards.  Some players end up with better cards than others.   In a deck of cards, there are far more weak cards (numbered cards) than strong cards (face cards).  Similar to life, where very few of us our dealt face cards in the very beginning.  Some of us were born in poverty, while others were born into wealth.

But whether you were dealt a horrible hand or a great hand, winning the game is about patience, risk, and knowing when to hold onto the cards that you need, and when to throw away the cards that you don't need.  If we all had the ability to throw away the memories that hold us back, and keep the ones that made us stronger, we would all be in a place of peace and continuous positive growth.

I'm challenging you to think about the situations and/or the people that hurt you in the past.  Ask yourself why it bothers you so much, what is it exactly that hurt you so much.  If you need to scream while you're doing this, then do it, if you need to cry while you're doing this, then do that, but what I don't want you to do, is feel sorry for yourself.  As you stir up these emotions, thank God for them.  I know that may sound crazy, but those people who hurt you, those situations that almost got the best of you, were all placed there to push you toward your destiny.

If you're familiar with the story of Judas, then you know that Judas betrayed Jesus, and this betrayal pushed Jesus toward His destiny.  Jesus had to face rejection in order for you and I to be saved.  What makes us better than Jesus?  Who said we wouldn't have to face it ourselves at some point, no matter how painful? 

In other words, we all need a Judas... or 2 ... or 3 ... maybe even 4!  Those people drive us toward the greatness we have within.  So get out all those past emotions that still bring tears to your eyes, that still make your heart ache, don't hold onto them, put closure on those situations by yelling or writing out exactly what you want those people to know.  Then rip up the paper... let it go... fold the memories of betrayal, throw those cards back, and hold onto the cards that will increase your chip count (in life terms, increase your peace).  Focus on your VICTORY!