There are many times in our lives when we face what seems to be a hopeless situation. Perhaps you are facing one of those right now. This theme is repeated over and over in literature, and in history. We remember Sam’s speech to Frodo about how even when it seems that darkness has overtaken the world, there is still hope. We see this in the “Hero’s Journey” with the “Belly of the whale” motif. One can imagine what it must have been like to live in London during World War II, as the NAZIs bombed your homeland.
In the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, when seven Arab nations joined hands to destroy the newly independent nation of Israel, top military experts expected Israel to be wiped out of existence within weeks. These were Holocaust survivors up against multiple enemies with advanced military weaponry, and against all odds, Israel survived.
But one very strange illustration comes to mind. It is a bit hard to explain, but I will do my best.
When I was in my early twenties, I used to play Magic The Gathering with a friend. (A game which I have both criticism and praise for, and am not necessarily endorsing here.)
During the game, each player brings various soldiers and creatures onto the battlefield and uses them to attack the opposing army, and ultimately, the opposing player.
My friend and I would play, and he would bring my life points from 20 down to 1. On several occasions, this happened, and I was one turn away from losing. Then I would draw a card called “Angel of Glory Rise.” This card would bring all of my humans out of the grave and back to life, and in combination with other cards, would restore my life points again.
My deck was part of the Avacyn series, which had a story that was semi-based on the Christian narrative, including the hope for the future resurrection. Avacyn, the lead angel in this series, was trapped in a cave by her evil counterpart. The dark creatures of the world, such as vampires and werewolves, push their attack and begin to take over. But in the third installment of the series, Avacyn is freed and begins to take back the world. (Sound familiar?)
I am probably oversimplifying here, but you get the idea.
Back to the time with my friend…
I had all but lost the game with my friend, but thanks to Angel of Glory Rise (a separate angel from Avacyn), everything was turned around in one turn. This theme of resurrection and hope with good triumphing over evil was very widespread in the Avacyn series.
I went from being one point away from being destroyed, with my army wiped out, to gaining all of my life points back (and more) and turning on my opponent with my newly resurrected army.
Whatever criticisms I may have for the Magic The Gathering franchise, I very much appreciate this concept that even a hopeless situation can be changed.
While Magic The Gathering is a work of fiction, good fiction reflects real life. In this case, fiction reflected the Christian Gospel. I’ve seen many times in my life when I believed there was no hope. Yet, in the end, God has always come through for me.
Since my time playing Magic The Gathering with my friend, I have gone on to earn a bachelor’s and a master’s. Yet I came from a family with no money to send me to school, and I have a list of learning disabilities as long as my arm.
The Bible teaches that evil will often seem, in the short term, to conquer the good. But Christians also believe that there will be a day when God brings our physical bodies back to life. Those who are God’s children will enter into eternal paradise, and those who hate God will enter into eternal torment.
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