Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Blog Bit: Checkmate

I've had a lot on my mind and my plate lately, and I've used that as an excuse for not writing as much.  Well, no more!  I'm simply going to include more "Blog Bits" - short, sweet posts that may or may not reveal the innermost workings of my mind...but hopefully you'll enjoy them anyway!
My pastor tells this story at least twice a year, and it's one of my favorites. 

"There was a world-class chess master who visited an art museum.  He perused the ancient statues, the tapestries, the sculpture, and finally came to the modern art section.  In it, there was a magnificent painting of a chess match in which it appeared one agonized player had lost.  The title was "Checkmate".  The chess master summoned a security guard and asked to speak with the curator.  The curator, pleased and impressed that such a famous individual should ask after him, appeared at once.  "There's a problem here," said the chess master.  Expecting to hear about a problem with the service or the facility, the curator immediately apologized and asked what the problem was.  "This painting is not accurate," replied the chess master.  "Look."  He pointed to the chessboard and indicated a possible move that the losing player could still make.  "'Checkmate' means that the game has ended.  But this game is not over.  The king has one more move."

The reason I love this story is that it is so encouraging.  No matter how agonizing our situation, how depressing or seemingly hopeless, we must remind ourselves that our King, Jesus, always has one more move.  The devil thought He was done for on the cross, but Christ had one more move to play - and with it, He redeemed us all.  Even now, when we are in the blackness of a dark hour or an impossible situation, we must take heart in the fact that the game isn't over yet!

No comments:

Post a Comment