Today’s reading: Ezekiel 1:1–7:27

We start a new book, Ezekiel, today. I don’t know about you, but I find It quite depressing to read the first seven chapters. Ezekiel is sent to the exile along with people of Israel; among many words of God, in essence, he is to speak Word of God to them, regardless whether they will listen or not. What an awesome but heavy responsibility! But, Ezekiel is not the only one; we all get unique responsibility from God, if we choose to accept it.

Last week, I attended Celebrate Recovery Summit 2012 in Lake Forest, California. Among many sessions, this particular session by Pastor Rick Warren was impressive:

Life is a game of poker. You are “dealt” with five cards, no matter who you are, as long as you are a player. We all got five cards to play in life:

1. My chemistry: my body, actual physical composition;
2. My connection: my relationship, my social ties in family, friends and co-workers, etc.;
3. My circumstances: my situation in life including which country I was born or what family I was born into;
4. My consciousness: my thought process, my autopilot response, habits or my view/perspective of the world; and
5. My CHOICES – HOW DO I RESPOND TO THE FIRST 4 CARDS? This is my WILD CARD in life.

Like a poker, depending on how you use your Wildcard, you can win or lose in life.

It was such a cool way to look at my life. What kind of choices are you making today in the circumstances you are in?