When I discovered that the game Elder Sign
Before this devolves into a vein attempt to make myself feel superior as a grand board gaming purest, I will say that there is nothing wrong with the digital version. It is a delightful game that both celebrates the best elements of its physical counterpart while creating its own mechanics that only the digital medium could pull off so well. And yet, no matter how many times I toss the digital dice across the screen, I have yet to duplicate the same experience.
At first I thought I had found myself in the aforementioned “Board gamez needs boardz” argument, but that did not seem accurate. I had played Settlers of Catan and Dominion in a strictly electronic format and found them to be reasonable facsimiles of the physical games. So what was it about Elder Sign that did not bridge well between the mediums? I stared at the main menu as if one of the ancient old ones would reach out with some form of terrible knowledge and make it all clear to me. While the King in Yellow was not involved, the answer did come to me after a moment.
The digital game is single player.
Elder Sign can be played as a solo experience. It is, after all, a series of dice rolls, lending itself to the less-than-kind nickname of Cthulhu Yahtzee. Yet the game’s mechanics almost demand to be played with a number of players. The sheer presence of even one other player turns an exercise in matching pictures into a series of successes and failures that have weight – even if that weight is just securing that you don’t get mocked by the other player for not rolling that last lore you needed to succeed.
When I was young in the faith, I remember seeing belief in God as an almost lonely 
experience. Songs we’d sing in church were filled with the first person singular to the detriment of the people singing the same words to the left and right of me. A never-ending parade of little knickknacks and Christian book store posters explained that if I had nothing or no one in my life but God I’d be okay. While I do believe the veracity of the statement, I think there is an aspect of it that we overlook. If I had nothing and no one but myself and God – I’d be . . . okay.
Okay. Not bad. Sufficient. Adequate. These are all words that would accurately be represented in this sentiment. This is not a slight on the Almighty, but rather a misunderstanding of how He has provided for us. God has prepared so much more than just getting by and surviving. He has set us to have an abundant life. And whether your community is large or small does not matter – but we were simply not meant to do this on our own. For when we look at Scripture as a whole, it is impossible to avoid the number of times that the Bible not only suggests but commands those who claim faith in Christ should be about the business of community.
The author of Hebrews reminds the letter’s recipients that there is value in gathering together to build each other up, and encourages them to not take this aspect of their faith for granted (Hebrews 10: 24-25). In Ecclesiastes we have the well known and oft quoted threefold cord that the Preacher uses to exemplify the need to surround yourself with those who will help you go through life successfully lest you fall alone (Ecclesiastes 4: 7-12). Paul is quick to use the illustration of the body to show that all of us in and of ourselves is only a part of the larger body that is the Church.
But really I can’t help but go back to the beginning. The Bible says that in the garden, Adam walked with God. Sin had not yet entered the world and there was nothing standing between the two. Adam’s relationship with God was as good as one’s relationship with his omnipotent creator could be. And yet, God still looked down at the man He had created and said that it was not good for man to be alone. For a moment, stop and think about that. Before sin twisted the world – before the chasm had opened up between us and God – it was still not good that we were alone.
How much more, then, do we need each other living in a world that has been tainted by our sin?
Much like that game of Elder Sign, I believe you can get by in the Christian life strivining to draw closer to God and disregarding His people. This is mostly because I believe that God is capable of providing for us and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit is not tied to whether or not you have met with your weekly Bible study or not. However, this is not an issue of being lost or found. This is settling for the demo version of a game that does not have all its features put into place yet instead of reveling in the full release version with the gorgeous components and interesting game play.
Sure you can do it. But why would you want to?
On the home page of this site, you’ve probably seen the link to The Tavern. At its core, this is just a place where people who support InnRoads can hang out on social media and share links. But there is a reason that I often refer to it as my favorite part of what we do. A thread that runs through the emails, chats, and personal conversations at conventions is that at some point we have all felt that we were the only one. Whether you just want someone to be as excited as you are about a gaming experience, grew up in the church and are starting to think the faith is something you did instead of something you are, or are looking to join with us to share the love of God one game at a time . . . you’ve got a place at the tavern.