Have you ever played dominoes? In my boyhood days it was a favorite indoor pastime. Some time ago while visiting a family, I saw a young boy and his grandfather playing the game. A flood of memories surged over me as I remembered my own boyhood days.

The unusual thing about dominoes is that you win by losing. To win, you must lose your blocks. Whoever gets rid of all his dominoes first wins the game. You must give to get—lose to gain—be reduced to nothing to get to the top. It is not like baseball or tennis or other games where the highest number of runs, points, or scores determines the winner. No! With dominoes it is the one who can reach nothing first who succeeds.

The rule of the natural man is: "Get all you can." The rule of the spiritual man should be: "Give all you can." In the spiritual realm, only that which we give away will we keep forever. In the Christian life, we must be reduced to nothing before we become something. Seed kept in the granary will mold and decay, but "thrown away" into the ground it increases 30-, 60-, and 100-fold. "Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone" (John 12:24).

Remember, Jesus gave His all. He is our example.    — M.R. De Haan