DON'T  GIVE  UP!
Morris Chalfant from the Advocate

    There is a painting that shows the devil at a chessboard with a young man.  The devil has just made his move, and the young man's queen is checkmated.  On his face is written defeat and despair. 

    One day, the great chess genius, Paul Morphy, stood looking at that painting.  He studied it carefully the position of the board.  Suddenly his face lit up and he shouted to the young man in the painting, "you still have a move - don't give up, you still have a move!"

We come to those moments when it seem we are checkmated.  We see no winning move we can make.  Then the great Master of all life comes closer to us.  He remembers one day when He prayed to be spared from the cross: "Let this cup pass from me," he pleaded.  The cross seemed the end of His world.  But there was yet another move.  Beyond the cross was an empty tomb - and victory.  That same Christ can see beyond your cross to some triumph.  "Don't give up, you still have one move," He says.