Chess move by move

There were times when I knew things were beyond my control when I played sports/games, especially Chess. So I would go to Church to pray. Usually during Mass, I would make sure I confessed all my sins, and asked God to bestow his favor and grace upon me or my team so that we would win whatever game(s) we had. There were also times when I prayed during the game itself. Most of the time, my prayers were answered in the affirmative. I would then thank God quickly (as usual!) and move on to the next thing.

I was meditating on this, and I wondered, what if all these people that I competed against prayed too? Did they reach a conclusion that God does not answer (sports) prayers? Was I an exception? Of course, there were a couple of things that worked in my favor: I worked hard, I was somewhat good at basketball, soccer, and volleyball, and I was pretty good at Chess. How about the times I prayed for an exam to be easy enough for me to get an A? May be I was somewhat smart enough?! Anyway, let’s stick to sports.

Why would God answer my prayer and not the other guy’s? Is it because I have more faith? Why doesn’t He spread out the love? This guy wins today, the other wins tomorrow? Does He get involved? Why would He get involved in sports? For people who play any game, they usually end up saying: it’s only a game! So if it’s just a game, why would God be involved? How about people who play these games as professionals? It ceases to be a game, I believe. It is work. It is livelihood. Is it okay if they pray? Is it okay if God answers only those prayers by professionals? What if professionals of different teams are praying to win? Does He offer a draw (based on faith)? It must be tough to be God! May be not. I don’t know.

I believe God answered my sports prayers. I don’t know why He did it. I don’t believe He owes me an explanation. I am glad he answered my prayers the way He did; both when He said “No” and when He said “Yes”.

Will I pray again? Yes! For sports? Yes! Will answer my prayer? I don’t know!

What are your thoughts on God and sports prayers?