March 18, 2002
COMMENTARY: The chess game
___By Kaitlyn Drinkwater
___"Trust in the Lord with all your strength and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." (Proverbs 3:56)
___ There is a faint rustle of feathers and brush of wings as the angels re-arrange themselves to allow a newcomer to join their ranks. The door brushes shut, squeaking on its hinges. Feet step in front of it, and the tense silence, broken only by the occasional weary shuffle of feet, is resumed.
___ The demons and the angels stand on their respective sides of the room, which is badly lit. Save for the single, bare bulb hanging over the room's only table and the dim, red neon sign on the far wall reading, 'Welcome to The Game.' Below the bulb a chessboard is laid out, and a game is in progress. At one side sits God, at the other Lucifer.
___ Quietly the Lord bends down and whispers to one of his pieces, which then moves a few spaces to the right. The angels let out the air they hadn't been aware they were holding in until that moment in a simultaneous sigh. Now it was Satan's turn. He reaches out with a long, thin finger and pushes one of his pieces into a position to take one of his opponent's men. The demons at his back quietly snort and snicker appreciatively.
___ The pieces they were playing with weren't your normal Kings, Queens, Bishops, Rooks, Knights and Pawns. They were people. All shapes, sizes, colors and nationalities. And they were playing on the game board of life.
___ The angels drew a sharp breath as the Lord bent down and asked one of his pieces to move in a direction that would take it out of harm's way. The room was silent. No one breathed, and everyone present distinctly heard the piece's response to it's master: "No. I don't understand. I don't see why you want me to go there, so I'm not going." Quietly, God leaned back. The neon sign flickered as Satan took the piece and a faint scream was heard throughout the room …
___ I hope you see the relevance in my story. The pieces of God are Christians. The pieces of Satan are everyone else.
___When he created us, God gave us free will. He doesn't just "move" his pieces like Satan; he asks us to move.
___We need to trust God and realize that when he asks us to do something, he knows what he is doing, and it is for our own greater good.
___When the piece was taken, it was not symbolic of us being stolen by Satan, because we are bound to God by unbreakable bonds forever and ever, so much so that we become a part of his body. Rather, this piece shows how easy it is for us to fall into sin.
___But to God be the glory! For even through all our stubbornness and blind disbelief, he will triumph in the end, and the game of life will be won at last!
___Kaitlyn Drinkwater, 13, lives in Alba, Texas.
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