GAME OVER

Some say that life is just a “game,” enjoyable, even competitive, but with no other purpose. Are we then simply objects on the stage of life, moved by some giant chess master until life ends?  I don’t think so.

Games have time limits; they don’t go on forever. Baseball is generally 9 innings, football 4 quarters, and hockey 3 periods. They end on time unless there is a draw, in which case special rules come into effect to specify how the game will end. Games also allow for “time out” if there are injuries, bad weather, fouls, disruptive fans or unruly players. The games end, and so do our lives.

There are also penalties if the game is not played according to the rules. In football a player may be disqualified for “targeting” another player (trying to hit them in the head with their helmet); a hockey player can be sent to the penalty box, also called the “sin bin,” for slashing, high sticking, and other violations. Players (or coaches) are also fined large sums of money for indiscreet actions, like stealing signals in baseball, or elbowing an opposing player in the jaw in basketball. In a game, playing according to the rules invokes no penalty, but playing outside the rules is usually a sure way to be disciplined.

Yogi Berra, a famous New York Yankees baseball player, once remarked, quite understandably, that “It ain’t over till it’s over.” In other words, don’t quit too soon.

But a game (and life) does end, and there are losers and winners. The losers have put their faith in human achievements and believe that God (if they believe in him) will somehow reward them for their fine efforts. The winners are those who have put their faith in Jesus and his victory over death. It is not by their own efforts.

For most humans, we don’t choose when the game of life is over, although suicide or euthanasia are bizarre options.

I played varsity baseball in high school and college. I was on teams when we won, and I was on teams that lost. We were told to be “good losers,” but that was not fun, even in a game. Likewise in life, and there are no good losers if people reject the offering of Jesus that can indeed make us, instead, “good winners.”

God is in control of the Christian’s life, and he has purpose for it. It is not simply a game! We ask God to show us what our purpose is in life and how we can serve him in whatever we do. It is not something we should simply “play at,” like a game, although there will be joy and teamwork throughout our lives.

I learned that a good coach makes all the difference in playing the game. A good coach encourages the player and not only analyzes their strengths and weakness as an athlete but also gets to know them as individuals. I like to think of Jesus as my coach.

When I was young and just starting varsity baseball in high school, I was small and, in the tradition of the unknown, I was put in right field. It was the position where the player would, assumedly, do the least damage. In my first or second game, a sharp liner was hit towards me, but low. Somehow, I managed to catch it and the coach immediately assumed that I was a good fielder. And I became one because of the confidence that was placed in me. The game wasn’t over for me—it was just starting.

I studied anthropology at Cornell University (many years ago) and was introduced to “game theory,” which focuses on conflict and cooperation. In this model, the choices of the cultural agents are strategic and interdependent, and success (winning) depends on those choices. 

For example, among the Maasai (of Africa) researchers used game theory to understand the “umbilical cord" custom, where pastoralists provide resources to others without expecting immediate return. It was “a mechanism that helps sustain relationships and enhance survival during hardship.”

Some Highland groups of Papua New Guinea engage in the elaborate exchange of pork and other items in a kind of competitive game to see who can give away the most. This seems similar to the Potlatch, a ceremonial practice of Native American people in the northwest. It was a strategic way to demonstrate power and gain control over another group.

Churches can be accused of similar kinds of games when they demonstrate their “power and prestige” by citing membership numbers and budget figures.

However, life isn’t a game. When the coach is Jesus and when we know each other, he uses our God-given talents, and great things can happen. For the Christian, life is lived with purpose, and therefore it is never simply a “game.”

Life, which is not a game, will be over when God calls us “home.” In the meantime, “Have no fear of sudden disaster or of the ruin that overtakes the wicked, for the Lord will be at your side and will keep your foot from being snared.” (Proverbs 3.25-26, NIV)

Karl Franklin