Let me tell you a little story of how God reached me in a rather special way 
So, video games. Possibly a somewhat controversial topic in more conservative circles. Nevertheless, I really like spending a bit of time playing various games. It is not uncommon that I even get an answer to a question I prayed about through those. After all, God can use anything to speak to us, beyond the bible that is. But this is not about that. This story goes beyond it. It is very personal and very dear to me, but I somehow feel inspired to share it. So buckle in, this will take a while
You may be familiar with The Legend of Zelda, which is a game series exclusive to Nintendo consoles. They are probably as cliché and inoffensive as it gets with a great evil threatening the land and the hero goes out to administer some justice in a pseudo-medieval fantasy setting, heavily inspired by Irish folklore. It is usually very colourful and never delves into deep issues, as the game is supposed to be a family friendly activity that all can enjoy.
However, the is a black sheep in that family of games, namely The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. It is an odd one for many reasons. It had a very rushed and short development cycle and was probably made to cash in on the recent success of its predecessor and the new 3D technology. It is also the only game in the series that has not been rehashed. In fact, in the beginning, it did not receive much attention (which changed drastically over time, partially fo reasons detailed below.
However, that faithful day, someone poured his heart into this. In fact, a lot of people did, for it is not only the most emotion-driven game in the series, but probably one of the most emotional there is, if you are willing to dig deeper.
I played it as a kid when it first came out in 2000. Back then, I saw it as just a weirder version of the pervious Zelda game and had loads fun with, but little else. However, something compelled me to replay it more than a decade later. This is where I discovered the amazing depth hidden within and even something more personal.
Right, where to start? The premise is rather different from the usual fantasy-trope. There is not the usual recurring villain of the series. There was an imp, who thought he was abandonned by his friends. These thoughts had driven him to pranks, which escalated into darker acts. Through aquiring an evil artifact by robbery, he caused great pain in the lands and eventually causing an impending cataclysm by letting the moon crash into the center on it.
An in the middle of it, a town caught between it all. Some people are in denial about their impending doom, others proclaim great courage, only to cower in the corner when the end comes. Others are in panic and try to protect loved ones. Beyond that, a swamp, where one is about to be executed for a crime he did not commit. A sea, where a fallen musician can only lament his failure. A mountain, where a leader is powerless to save his people. A valley, where the ghosts of the past still fight a war that has long since ended.
It deals with issues of anger, loneliness, depression, hopelessness, fear of death and resignation to ones predicament.
And yet, if I were to pick a theme for the game, I would say 'self-sacrifice'. In fact, beyond its dark facade, it is probably one of the greatest message for hope that I know. This is best seen by the recuring protagonist of the series. In previous games he was always openly proclaimed as the chosen one an a great hero, who always came out on top. Not here. Here, anyone barely even notices the his presence. No glory or fame is ever attributed to him. That is precisely the point.
You see, the powerless leader or the dying and hopeless musician, they tried to revert the evils that the imp caused to save their loved ones and failed. Now they are moments from death (or dead in the case of the leader), but are unable to rest, for their failure to protect haunts them. They are probably the only ones acknowledging your presence and they plead with you to somehow bring them peace.
You were taught a mystical tune in the beginning, which I will talk about later, for it is probably the one thing my experience in centered on. This tune allowed you to bring them peace by separating them them their sorrows. Their souls could rest. However, they left behind all their pain and sorrow behind in a earthly shell, in form of a mask. If you wear said masks, you transform into them to finish their tasks.
As a kid, I always wondered why the protagonist looked in massive pain when transforming. This is something I understood later. All this pain the respective people left behind. You take it on yourself. You endure it to finish their task, to bring them peace and to save those close to them. All without any gain for yourself. No one would ever know what you did.
This is what really hit me. You see, I feel drawn to pain and suffering, because deep within I have the feeling that I can take it and that I can help to ease it. One of my greatest wishes is to suffer so that others would not. This representation of taking the pain upon yourself for the good of others touched me on a deeper level. Despite it being nothing but a game, one that I have replayed multiple times by now, I can not do so without crying.
There have been multiple occasions where I have been called by God to deny myself. However, none were as profound as this. I discovered a lot about myself through this game and it is the reason why I changed my career path after finding my way to God.
And at the center of it, is the aforementioned tune. It is called the Song of Healing. It is very a very simple melody. You can listen to it here. In the game, this is the tune that is used to heal those with troubled souls and that plays in the background when it happens. This tune has a very distinct effect on me. It is neither sadness, nor is it happiness that I feel. The tears that flow are both tears of sadness and joy, as well of none of those. It is a strange emotion that goes beyond the realm of what I experienced. But in the center of it all is peace. The message given to me by God defacto rests in this melody. Whenever I listen to it, I can feel myself drawing closer to Him. The flesh seems to lose its power when I listen to it and all worldly desires seem to vanish. The self dies a little bit each time I listen to it. All that remains is the desire to draw closer to God, to be a good son out of love for Him, to seek out those who are lost and bring them out of the darkness, to find those who are sick and heal them. Even when I am crushed and hopeless, this tune gently lifts me up. In those moments, when I close my eyes, I see myself crying in a dark corner, but Jesus comes to me and offers his hand. I take it and he beckons me forward.
I have been plagued by loneliness and the occasional episode of hopelessness as well as anger in recent times, due to my current predicament. However, whenever I am reminded of this story by the song, it all vanishes and the suffering becomes the greatest joy, for I know why I am doing it. No matter how down I think I am, I get back up and walk with seemigly endless resolve and unwavering peace within me. It is so hard to describe. This, I even hesistate to call it a feeling, that builds up inside of me seems so much stronger and yet so much simpler than what I usually experience and I would not be able to overpower it, even if I wanted. It is as if I was shattered from within and rebuild anew. As if all the twisted things inside are being straightened and the mess is being cleaned up. This is the best I can describe it.
So, this is my story. There is far more to it, all those individual moments within the game that become a total. All those different tunes that touched me in different ways. But this is basically the gist of it. It was a bit long but I hope you enjoyed it. A lesson from God and how He inspires me to abandon self for others and ultimately the kingdom of heaven.
I am far from perfect in doing that and sometimes the ideal scenario seems so far away and unreachable. But I know that I never walk alone. I know that if I fall down in the attempt, I will be raised up. I know that my own strength is insignificant next to the strength I have been granted by God. And I know Jesus is with, walking right beside me, until the end of all time. May He guide us all in our efforts to resist the evils of this world and seek the kingdom of heaven with all our being.
Amen :')
So, video games. Possibly a somewhat controversial topic in more conservative circles. Nevertheless, I really like spending a bit of time playing various games. It is not uncommon that I even get an answer to a question I prayed about through those. After all, God can use anything to speak to us, beyond the bible that is. But this is not about that. This story goes beyond it. It is very personal and very dear to me, but I somehow feel inspired to share it. So buckle in, this will take a while
You may be familiar with The Legend of Zelda, which is a game series exclusive to Nintendo consoles. They are probably as cliché and inoffensive as it gets with a great evil threatening the land and the hero goes out to administer some justice in a pseudo-medieval fantasy setting, heavily inspired by Irish folklore. It is usually very colourful and never delves into deep issues, as the game is supposed to be a family friendly activity that all can enjoy.
However, the is a black sheep in that family of games, namely The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask. It is an odd one for many reasons. It had a very rushed and short development cycle and was probably made to cash in on the recent success of its predecessor and the new 3D technology. It is also the only game in the series that has not been rehashed. In fact, in the beginning, it did not receive much attention (which changed drastically over time, partially fo reasons detailed below.
However, that faithful day, someone poured his heart into this. In fact, a lot of people did, for it is not only the most emotion-driven game in the series, but probably one of the most emotional there is, if you are willing to dig deeper.
I played it as a kid when it first came out in 2000. Back then, I saw it as just a weirder version of the pervious Zelda game and had loads fun with, but little else. However, something compelled me to replay it more than a decade later. This is where I discovered the amazing depth hidden within and even something more personal.
Right, where to start? The premise is rather different from the usual fantasy-trope. There is not the usual recurring villain of the series. There was an imp, who thought he was abandonned by his friends. These thoughts had driven him to pranks, which escalated into darker acts. Through aquiring an evil artifact by robbery, he caused great pain in the lands and eventually causing an impending cataclysm by letting the moon crash into the center on it.
An in the middle of it, a town caught between it all. Some people are in denial about their impending doom, others proclaim great courage, only to cower in the corner when the end comes. Others are in panic and try to protect loved ones. Beyond that, a swamp, where one is about to be executed for a crime he did not commit. A sea, where a fallen musician can only lament his failure. A mountain, where a leader is powerless to save his people. A valley, where the ghosts of the past still fight a war that has long since ended.
It deals with issues of anger, loneliness, depression, hopelessness, fear of death and resignation to ones predicament.
And yet, if I were to pick a theme for the game, I would say 'self-sacrifice'. In fact, beyond its dark facade, it is probably one of the greatest message for hope that I know. This is best seen by the recuring protagonist of the series. In previous games he was always openly proclaimed as the chosen one an a great hero, who always came out on top. Not here. Here, anyone barely even notices the his presence. No glory or fame is ever attributed to him. That is precisely the point.
You see, the powerless leader or the dying and hopeless musician, they tried to revert the evils that the imp caused to save their loved ones and failed. Now they are moments from death (or dead in the case of the leader), but are unable to rest, for their failure to protect haunts them. They are probably the only ones acknowledging your presence and they plead with you to somehow bring them peace.
You were taught a mystical tune in the beginning, which I will talk about later, for it is probably the one thing my experience in centered on. This tune allowed you to bring them peace by separating them them their sorrows. Their souls could rest. However, they left behind all their pain and sorrow behind in a earthly shell, in form of a mask. If you wear said masks, you transform into them to finish their tasks.
As a kid, I always wondered why the protagonist looked in massive pain when transforming. This is something I understood later. All this pain the respective people left behind. You take it on yourself. You endure it to finish their task, to bring them peace and to save those close to them. All without any gain for yourself. No one would ever know what you did.
This is what really hit me. You see, I feel drawn to pain and suffering, because deep within I have the feeling that I can take it and that I can help to ease it. One of my greatest wishes is to suffer so that others would not. This representation of taking the pain upon yourself for the good of others touched me on a deeper level. Despite it being nothing but a game, one that I have replayed multiple times by now, I can not do so without crying.
There have been multiple occasions where I have been called by God to deny myself. However, none were as profound as this. I discovered a lot about myself through this game and it is the reason why I changed my career path after finding my way to God.
And at the center of it, is the aforementioned tune. It is called the Song of Healing. It is very a very simple melody. You can listen to it here. In the game, this is the tune that is used to heal those with troubled souls and that plays in the background when it happens. This tune has a very distinct effect on me. It is neither sadness, nor is it happiness that I feel. The tears that flow are both tears of sadness and joy, as well of none of those. It is a strange emotion that goes beyond the realm of what I experienced. But in the center of it all is peace. The message given to me by God defacto rests in this melody. Whenever I listen to it, I can feel myself drawing closer to Him. The flesh seems to lose its power when I listen to it and all worldly desires seem to vanish. The self dies a little bit each time I listen to it. All that remains is the desire to draw closer to God, to be a good son out of love for Him, to seek out those who are lost and bring them out of the darkness, to find those who are sick and heal them. Even when I am crushed and hopeless, this tune gently lifts me up. In those moments, when I close my eyes, I see myself crying in a dark corner, but Jesus comes to me and offers his hand. I take it and he beckons me forward.
I have been plagued by loneliness and the occasional episode of hopelessness as well as anger in recent times, due to my current predicament. However, whenever I am reminded of this story by the song, it all vanishes and the suffering becomes the greatest joy, for I know why I am doing it. No matter how down I think I am, I get back up and walk with seemigly endless resolve and unwavering peace within me. It is so hard to describe. This, I even hesistate to call it a feeling, that builds up inside of me seems so much stronger and yet so much simpler than what I usually experience and I would not be able to overpower it, even if I wanted. It is as if I was shattered from within and rebuild anew. As if all the twisted things inside are being straightened and the mess is being cleaned up. This is the best I can describe it.
So, this is my story. There is far more to it, all those individual moments within the game that become a total. All those different tunes that touched me in different ways. But this is basically the gist of it. It was a bit long
but I hope you enjoyed it. A lesson from God and how He inspires me to abandon self for others and ultimately the kingdom of heaven. I am far from perfect in doing that and sometimes the ideal scenario seems so far away and unreachable. But I know that I never walk alone. I know that if I fall down in the attempt, I will be raised up. I know that my own strength is insignificant next to the strength I have been granted by God. And I know Jesus is with, walking right beside me, until the end of all time. May He guide us all in our efforts to resist the evils of this world and seek the kingdom of heaven with all our being.
Amen :')
