Revisiting your Sunday School days

Like many people this January, I have consumed the impressive Netflix series, ‘The Queen’s Gambit,” the story of a young, socially-awkward orphaned girl who ascends through the maze of 1960s chess culture to face a Russian Grandmaster.

The message is simple; chess is about knowing the plan, understanding the moves and gaining control of the board that drives your opponent to checkmate.

It was tense viewing.

On the theme of a grand plan. Can I take you back to your Sunday School days?

No doubt you remember your family loading into the station wagon or those unforgettable brown minivans.

Off to church you went, after the morning scraps over the bathroom, the house resounding with unreligious yells.

Your parents waved you off with a “be on your best behaviour” as they went into their seat in the adult service.

Sitting on the burgundy floral carpet, the flannelgraph board came to life with bible characters moving around at the hands of your Sunday School teacher.

Stories of the Red Sea parting, manna dropping, and Jericho falling.

Visual, colourful stories that filled the imagination.

My most memorable stories were from the book of Daniel and his visit to the lions’ den or the three friends who were thrown into the fiery furnace.

The book of Daniel is about four young men deported from their home to the metropolitan city of Babylon (605BC), Proud Babylon, with 250 towers, gardens and high temples.

How would these young companions survive the turmoil and change? A new language, a new religion, and a new culture, the world was upside down. We are in danger of missing the great truths of Daniel when we remember kind lions.

Daniel powerfully reveals to us that, in tough times, His people can be faithful to God as God is faithful to us.

There is much chatter about what the church will look like after COVID-19; will there even be a church?

As the book of Daniel clarifies to us with its many colourful imaginings, we can have a very different perspective.

We can trust God through difficult times. Daniel shows us that Kings and rulers think they are in control. Only God controls the future. He is the one who moves the chess pieces around the board. He is the one who knows the plan and future.

The three friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “Your threat means nothing to us.

If you throw us in the fire, the God we serve can rescue us from your roaring furnace…, O king.

But even if he doesn’t, it wouldn’t make a bit of difference, O king. We still wouldn’t serve your gods or worship the gold statue you set up.”

The Grandmaster has His plan, fear not.

Checkmate.