Seeing God through the lens of Minecraft

This past week has been a very challenging one for me. It was full of anxiety and worry. All of that lead me to spending a great amount of time in the Bible. Reading and studying and praying. It makes me feel a little uncomfortable sharing that with you, but I'm learning to be a little bit more open about some of my struggles and thoughts with the hope that they might help someone else.

During this time, I came to an odd conclusion and that is what I want to share with you today. You may have heard of a game called Minecraft. Maybe you've played it (winky face). Maybe you just have kids that have played it. If you have no idea what I am talking about, here is a quick overview of the concept... Your character is placed in a world and you have to find resources, build things, and if you are like the few that want to "beat" the game, you ultimately end up building this portal that takes you to the "underworld" where you hunt for more resources, build more things, and the goal there is to beat the end boss. All the while, monsters spawn and try to destroy you and the things you've built.

Pic Credit : Mojang.com

While thinking about the things I was going through, I had a thought - Our journey in dealing with this world as described by the Bible, is a lot like playing a game of Minecraft. Bare with me as I describe how I see some of the similarities.

"In this world you will have trouble..."(John 16:33). As you set the game up, you have the option of difficulty. But in order to progress or get the "achievements" the game has to be set to "Survivor." This means that there will be monsters. So in order to progress in the game and "win" you have to have it set to Survivor. So you are guaranteed some trouble in your journey on this world.

After you are placed in the world, you have nothing and you must immediately begin to collect resources in order to survive. You have to get a lot - and I mean a lot - of resources to get anywhere in the game. Arguably one of the easiest things to come by is wood. Wood comes from the trees and as you chop down trees, you get food (apples *coming back to this one*) and seeds to plant more trees, thus giving you more wood.

Wood is then used to make just about every type of tool you need and even some armor. The wood, can be burned and turned into charcoal and then with the wood and the charcoal you make torches. These are super valuable. You need them to keep the monsters away. "Light everything" (Matthew 5:14) is what you'll read in almost every guide to the game. Monsters can't spawn when there is light present. That doesn't mean they won't but it greatly diminishes their numbers and their chances of getting close to you. I see the wood as the Word. The word becomes a lamp (Psalm 119:105).

There are Mountains and Valleys in the game. In the Valleys the monsters spawn easier because they are farther from the sun. You have to travel down into the valleys and mines to get the resources you need to beat the game. All throughout the Bible there are depictions of being in the valleys and the mountains. "I look to the mountains, where does my help come from?" (Psalm 121:1). "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death..." (Psalm 23:4). Mountains and valleys refer to the highs and lows we experience in life. I once heard a pastor discuss how it is in the valleys that we get closest to God. We learn to rely on Him and search for Him there. Not that we can't or don't do this on the mountains, we're human - when things are good, we tend to lean more on our own abilities than that of God's.

If you've ever played Minecraft, you know that you can be running along, and all of sudden, you fall in a hole in the ground. It hurts, sometimes you survive, sometimes you don't, but all in all the point is the same. You are in the bottom of the biggest, darkest hole in the ground. And now, you have to figure out how to get out. You need your tools and torches in order to survive - all of which came from the wood (Ephesians 6:10-18). You also need the food (remember apples from earlier) in order to maintain your stamina to get back out (1 Timothy 4:6).

Going down in the valley or mines is imperative to the game because there are resources we get from being down there that we can't get anywhere else in the game. The low times are important for us as humans too. We learn to trust God, He gives us just what we need, and should we not survive we know the game isn't over. We also learn the value of the mountains. Without the bad stuff in life, we can't truly be grateful for the good stuff.

Whenever the Hubs plays, he always builds his "house" as high up as he can possibly get. He knows that monsters can't spawn, he can always look up and find his home, and he is protected there. Are you seeing the connection yet?

I know some of these are a stretch. These are not the only connections I noticed either. I am no theologian, and I will never claim to be. I just spent a lot of time searching for God this week and this was one of the ways he revealed himself to me. If we truly seek Him, you will find Him (Jeremiah 29:13). Sometimes God uses really unique things to display His love and give us understanding to His promises and His word. At the place I was at, it was just what I needed and I thank Him for showing up and showing off as He did and will continue to do in the future.

Jess