It’s Game 5 tonight — the Lakers vs. the Nuggets — in the NBA’s Western Conference Finals.
In a few hours I’ll have an opportunity to watch a game of considerable import here on the Mesa, and I’ll also witness a theological truth.
The above statement, I know, sounds strange, but hear me out. To me, the NBA has brought clarity to one of God’s imponderables: why humans undergo pain and death. It would be so much easier if life were but a cheerful romp! But, alas, we realize that’s not the case.
In his book, “A Grief Observed,” Christian apologist C.S. Lewis — who’d just experienced a season of severe pain — says life has meaning because death and suffering also have meaning.
I tend to wear my faith on my sleeve. Over the years, countless friends have informed me that they choose not to be believers because they can’t accept a god who would allow human suffering. Lewis likens life to a bridge game. Players won’t take seriously a game without betting. “It (won’t) be serious if nothing much is staked on it,” he rightly observes. Life is nothing if not serious.
I, too, am vexed by suffering and pain, but I accept it as a precondition for my existence. Our creator established life’s parameters — including free will and consequences for actions. Lest I be misinterpreted, I don’t mean to imply he intentionally inflicts misery and calamity. We’re capable of doing that ourselves. But the author of life permits it, and often uses tragedy to reach out to us.
A dozen years ago, I heard a pastor draw a comparison between life and an NBA basketball game. I’m a simple man, and the analogy made sense.
What makes NBA basketball such a wonderful game? Talented players? Brilliant strategy? Last-second shots? The game is what it is because of a single overriding factor — a time clock. Players have a finite timeframe — 48 minutes — in which to perform.
We live finite lives: three score and 10, if we’re lucky.
