There are 43 quintillion possible configurations of the Rubik’s Cube. That’s 43 with eighteen zeros attached to it. That means you can have the same cube look different in 43 quintillion ways, and yet it is still the same cube.
However, did you know that the fastest “cubers” can solve a randomized cube in under 10 seconds? A couple of people have even solved it in 5 seconds... FIVE!
Sound impossible? Well get this, any cube can be solved with just 20 moves! You can look it up. It only took mathematicians about 30 years to figure it out.
So, this year we got one of our sons, Samuel, a Rubik’s Cube for his birthday. None of us had ever solved one, so it didn’t take long before we bought two more—one for me (Jack) and another for Russell. We thought it would be fun to learn how to solve it together.
At first I was intrigued, learning about how Erno Rubik created the game “on accident” when trying to create a new puzzle back in 1974. Then I was determined.
We successfully searched the World Wide Web for some insights and lessons and spent one of my “off” days watching YouTube videos. We learned a few classic strategies, memorized about 5 algorithms, and eventually solved our first Cube. What an accomplishment! I don’t remember what it felt like when I first learned how to ride a bike, but I bet it’s similar.
Samuel’s gotten pretty good at it. He can solve his in just over 2 minutes now. That’s not too bad for beginners like us! Still, we would have to learn a hundred more algorithms before we could solve one in under 30 seconds. Not a current goal of mine.
But what would be worth the time it takes to become great?
Many accomplishments take hundreds and even thousands of hours to achieve. When it came to the Cube, my ultimate aim was doing something fun together, which often feels like a more difficult puzzle to solve.
I am in a season of parenting young children right now, and different seasons require extra effort and intentionality. Some seasons may feel like a giant puzzle that you’re trying to solve.
Maybe you feel like you are just turning a bunch of pieces and not seeing any results. And if you’ve ever played with a Rubik’s Cube, you know what I mean. But persevering in whatever calling God has given you is worth the intentionality and effort. It may have 43 quintillion different variations, and sometimes it seems impossible to “solve,” but we can trust Him to guide us and turn the pieces of our lives.
Galatians 6:9,
Pastor Jack