Puzzle Success


My husband has been teaching me how to do that numbered box game known as Sudoku.  When he has finishes his crossword puzzle from the Sunday newspaper, I often find him hovering over the numbers’ puzzle. He does it very well, so I figured I would humble myself and ask him to teach me.

What a learning experience this has been!

In my first several attempts I became quite frustrated.  This is a game that lets you think you are doing well, until, well, you aren't.  Then you have to erase everything and start over, or, as we are prone to do, just put a big X over the unfinished puzzle and start a different one.

My husband told me the other day that it is not uncommon to get to the very last number and discover you’ve made a mistake!

The puzzles are rated with stars, with the number one being the easiest.  So finally, after a few weeks of attempting to do it, I  finished the easiest one! 

Yay for me, right?

The thing about these puzzles is that they require some abstract thinking. I’m pretty good with abstract thinking, being a contemplative and all.  But this is different.  You get to a certain point and you have to go through a process of elimination, which sometimes requires you to hold a few different possible number combinations in your head.  That’s where I usually get into trouble.

But my husband has been a good teacher, and I consider myself a superb student, so things have been going pretty well so far, I mean, I did finish that one all by myself didn't I?

I was thinking about all of this and how necessary it was for my husband to be able to communicate to me his thought process for solving the puzzles, when I read the gospel reading for today from Mark 7.  It’s the one about Jesus opening the ears of a deaf man who had a speech impediment.

The passage indicates the connection between hearing and speech.  As soon as the man’s ears were opened by Jesus, his speech impediment was removed.

And what does Jesus say to him, now that the man can hear and speak so others can understand him?

Don’t tell anyone.

As you can imagine this went over very well, and the man and the other people who were present, went and told everyone!

After I successfully completed my first (and so far only) Sudoku puzzle, I was so excited.  And while I realize that my miracle doesn’t rise to the level of Jesus’ opening the ears of the deaf man and removing his speech impediment, all I can say is, I did have the same response as the man—I am telling everyone.

So now that YOU know, it is your turn to go out and tell everyone.

And while you are spreading my good news, don’t forget to mention Jesus and his miracle, because that was pretty cool, too.  You can read more about him if you click here.

💘 

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.blogspot.com
janetcassidy.blubrry.net

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