The Gamble

I live in Las Vegas which, you may have heard, is like the gambling capital of the world. If you asked me if I’ve gambled much since moving to Vegas I’d tell you no. And I’d be lying.

I don’t gamble in casinos, or online, or with chips or money. Every day I make a wager with my life. And so do you. Thomas Merton wrote, in his book Thoughts In Solitude,

And sooner or later, if we follow Christ we have to risk everything in order to gain everything. We have to gamble on the invisible and risk all that we can see and taste and feel. But we know the risk is worth it, because there is nothing more insecure than the transient world. For this world as we see it is passing away.

It may be the most difficult thing about being a Christian. When you look at the evidence, it’s pretty easy to believe in God and Jesus. Not too many people object strenuously to having to be more loving. But choosing to live for the invisible rather than what you can see and taste and feel. Making your greatest treasure something you can’t have now, and being willing to give up what you have now to get it … later. That’s challenging. But it’s worth it. We “know the risk is worth it, because there is nothing more insecure than the transient world” and what we choose to live for is ultimate and eternal.