This is a question that I keep getting as my rating inches higher and higher. Now my USCF is mid-2300s and still going up (as far as I can tell) and my FIDE is going to be up near 2200 and probably still has some catching up to do. Anyway, the question I keep getting is 'What are you going to do when you become a pastor?'
Well, the truth is I don't know. Come May I will graduate and hopefully get a call to some church somewhere, sometime soon. Who knows... and once that happens my time to continue on playing chess will be much more constrained. But here's the other part of this: I've never really traveled to play chess. I basically only play in Minnesota and occasionally adjacent areas. I feel like if I took some time off to intentionally play chess and attempt to make FM or even go after IM norms or something like that I would have a fair amount of success. Could I make IM in a year working toward it? I think I'd have a shot.
But the question I keep coming back to is: Why? Why do I care if I'm an FM, IM, GM, or just a good chess player? It'd be nice to have those titles, but it's not what I want to define myself as. I don't care if I'm remembered as a chess master, but I do think I can do some good for some people in the vocation that I am called to.
Can a person be called to be a chess player? Yes, I think so. But it's not me.
I love chess, love playing it, and I don't think I'm going to love it less even when work and family end up getting more in the way in the future. I'll still play, and I look forward to it more and more all the time. And I'm ok being "National Master" or just chess player or just Frank. Whatever. It's about the challenge, but I am always going to be a big amateur...
And that's just great.
Do you think that traveling to play Chess on the International circuit could help you become a better Pastor?
ReplyDeleteI think any experience with people would help me become a better pastor, but I don't think there's any particular connection with chess and pastor-ing. Chess is a great challenge in a different way than leading a church; it certainly has more easily quantifiable results. It will be part of who I am, but I don't see myself being defined in those terms.
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