Yes, that is me, on Wheel of Fortune. Sorry if you missed it! It aired on January 2, 2020. The process to get on the show was so much fun. It was something I had wanted to do for a very long time! I put together a short video, sent it in, and waited for a call.
The try-outs went well. I was called back for a second round, and a few weeks later, I received a call to tape my show!
I was in the last of six groups to tape their episode, so I had all day to mentally prepare myself. I practiced my puzzle-solving skills in my head with each trio of players who went before me. I pictured myself in the final round winning the big money. Alas, the wheel didn’t spin my way that afternoon. I did solve a couple of puzzles, and I had an awesome time. In the end, I walked away with $6,000 worth of cash and prizes.
Well…I actually didn’t walk away with my earnings. We were told we wouldn’t receive our prizes until 120 days after the show had aired. I would be seeing my gifts around May 2. That was about six months from the taping of the show.
That didn’t stop me from looking at the Furniture of America website (my prize award). I have a new chair and possible lamp all picked out for my newly renovated living room. We have made plans to use the cash for either some continued projects in the house or for a fun vacation—maybe both! You see, I am assured that the money and prize are coming! I am looking forward to it with anticipation. I have an empty place in my living room right now, but I am not in despair. I know that I know that I know it will be filled with my “Wheel of Fortune” chair in the future. I am pressing on toward the day it will arrive.
I’m pretty sure this is a glimpse of what our attitude should be like as we anticipate our Heavenly home. We are aliens on this earth, pilgrims passing through. We have been promised a beautiful mansion and a city with streets paved in gold. We will be in the constant presence of God our Father, Jesus, the Son, and the Holy Spirit! We will have no more crying or pain, no more sorrow or fears, no more Corona virus. I know that I know that I know that God is preparing this place for me, right NOW!
I can live in anticipation of this reward every day. I don’t have to pine over the fact that it is not here now. I may have to endure an empty place in the living room, but I know it is a temporary state. The hole in my heart due to grief, loss, or disease is also temporary. I can look ahead and rejoice in what is to come because I have the assurance that the prize is
coming.
Remember how I said the process of getting to the Wheel was fun? It was part of the prize for me! The process of waiting on God's future eternal promise is also part of the reward. I live in the reality that things aren’t perfect right now, but I do not need to despair. I just need to “…press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me Heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14).