The Parable of the Wii

As promised, here is the paraphrased version of my friend's lesson. It is a true story. The only qualification is that I can't quote him exactly.

Back in June of 2008, Kevin's son made a deal with his parents and his piano instructor. He would practice piano one hour per day for a total of 30 days. Each day he practiced he would have someone sign off that he had done so. After he had 30 days signed off, his parents would give him a new game for the Nintendo Game Cube. Now he could receive his reward after just 30 days, or it could take as long as needed to finish 30 total.

Now what his son didn't know, is that the parents had something else in mind. After he practiced 30 days, they would give him the game he requested, but not for the Game Cube. Instead, they would give him the version for the Nintendo Wii system, which is much newer. They would also buy the Wii and keep it hidden in Kevin's office. After he opened the game and realized it didn't work for the Game Cube, they would give him the Wii too. It's a much more interactive system that the whole family could play together.

July passed, so did August, September, October and November. Early in December Kevin's wife asked if maybe they should just give the family the the new system for Christmas, but Kevin thought he would hold out for his son to fulfill his committment. The day finally came (just before Christmas actually). As predicted, the son noticed the game was the Wii version right away. For a moment he was actually very dissappointed. Then Kevin brought out the Wii and the whole family cheered. He said they actually started chanting "Dad is Great!".

Now this experience is fun, and it made me smile...but there's a deeper lesson to be learned. Our Heavenly Father wants us to be happy. When we make committments to follow Him and keep His commandments, He promises to bless our lives. Some of the blessings are obvious, but some are greater than we know. If Kevin's son had known that there was a Wii waiting for him, I'm sure he would have finished the required practices months ago. In the same way, if we knew the blessings God had in store for us, I think we would all be more dilligent in following His will.