The Gambler

When I was a kid, there was this song by country-music legend Kenny Rogers called "The Gambler." The song is a story about a late-night train ride where a down-on-his-luck traveler encounters a career gambler who deals advice like he would a new deck of cards.

The oft-repeated chorus encapsulates his poker-based ideology:

You got to know when to hold 'em
Know when to fold 'em
Know when to walk away
And know when to run

You never count your money
While you're sittin' at the table
There'll be time enough for countin'
When the dealin's done

For just a few minutes, let's set aside the undeniable truth that only Kenny Rogers could pull off a song like this... And then let me share with you the amazing truth I see in the old-man's half-drunk diatribe.

It seems to me that success--in life, in ministry, in business... wherever--is not the avoidance of challenges and setbacks, but rather the wise navigation through the troubled waters that are both inherent and inevitable.

Truly... The game of life must be played with the hand we've been dealt. More often than not, the hand we get is less than desirable. It does no good to wish for another, better hand when the one we've got is staring us in the face. Only a fool would do so. Another hand will surely come once this one has played out, unless the holder gets up from the table.

Interestingly, it's not really the cards themselves that determine whether or not the hand is a good one... It is how we play the hand we're holding.

The wonderful thing about poker (if you will excuse my almost-sinful analogy) is that a hand of cards with absolutely no power or potential in and of themselves can bring down even the most-powerful hand of an opponent if it is played correctly.

The same is true in life, and therein lies the wonderful thing about it: it ain't what you play, it's how you play it. From beginning to end, one hand at a time, one card at a time, until the game is over.

I can almost hear that old gambler now, "You've got to play the hand you've been dealt."

How true.