Corrie’s Chess Game
How surprised we are sometimes when we discover a special kindness was extended to us and we weren’t even aware of it. That’s what happened to a friend of mine, an American doctor, and the Dutch evangelist-writer Corrie ten Boom. Here’s a story I wrote about them in my book, “Listen, God is Speaking to You.”
Corrie had led Dr. Mike Ewing and his wife, Frances, to the Lord. During their sixteen years of friendship, she spent many of her working vacations with them, whether they lived in Virginia, Georgia, or Florida. Eight of those years Corrie’s nurse-companion Ellen joined her at the Ewing home.
After Corrie put in eight hours of work–writing her books and answering her mail–with a lunch break and a ten to twenty minute nap sandwiched in between, she’d go hunt down Mike for a game of chess.
Mike believed Corrie liked to play chess to unwind after being on the road speaking and as an opportunity to spend quiet time with a trusted friend. Corrie, on the other hand, used Mike’s interest in chess as a way to encourage him to talk.
“I’m writing a chapter on suffering, Mike. What do you think the purpose of suffering is?” she asked one day.
“Oh, I don’t know that much about suffering,” he answered, evading her.
Actually both had suffered much. Corrie in a Nazi prison for hiding Jews in her family’s home during World War II; Mike when polio left his legs and one arm paralyzed when he was just thirty-two and a doctor in the US Army. He learned to play chess while in therapy in Warm Springs, Georgia and never played again until Corrie came along.
Mike, every bit the independent thinking intellectual, would sit for hours in the evenings listening to Corrie share about the Bible– while they played chess. At first Mike won nearly every game. Finally he asked Frances to pray with him that God would handicap him in his chess game because he knew Corrie was too smart for him to let her deliberately win. Almost immediately, to Corrie’s delight, they begin swapping wins, game for game.
“Mike I like to play chess with you better than anyone in the world, because we are exactly the same,” she told him once.
In time her health deteriorated, and she was confined to her bed in California. Ellen in the meantime married a university chaplain and they had two children. Once in the Fall, Ellen came back to visit the Ewing’s in Florida. One day Fran and Ellen began to reminisce about the days when Corrie was here with them.
“Remember how Corrie loved to play chess with Mike? She’d beg for just one more game. Mike wasn’t that enthusiastic about playing chess. He only played to please her.” Fran said.
“To please Corrie?” Ellen said with surprise. “Fran, Corrie didn’t play so much chess with Mike just because she liked the game. God told Corrie years ago to try to draw Mike out of himself.
Chess was just one way she could do it. In the early years, you know he kept his personal thoughts and feelings to himself. Sitting across a chessboard gave her an opportunity to get Mike to talk and share biblical truths.”
Fran couldn’t believe it. Corrie and Mike who had played chess together for almost sixteen years, had done it for each other. Mike and Fran had prayed for God to handicap him so Corrie would have fun playing. Corrie had prayed and played so she could get Mike to come out of his shell.
Both prayers were wonderfully answered. While Corrie and Mike were moving chess pieces on their board, God was moving Mike and Fran into positions where He could use them to teach Bible studies, which they did for many years. (My husband and I attended those studies for ten years).1
Corrie was born in Holland in 1892 and died April 15, 1983, on her ninety-first birthday. She had her framed tapestry, “Jesus Is Victor” –which she designed and stitched herself– sent to Mike after her death. Mike, even in his late 70s was still getting around in his wheelchair, teaching Bible studies and playing chess occasionally with his grandson.
Prayer: Lord, thank You for bringing people into our life to help, encourage and teach us even when we don’t realize it is by Your design and plan. Thank You for Jesus, our greatest encourager. Amen.
Scripture: Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, just as you also are doing. (I Thess. 5:11 NASB)
Footnote: 1. Quin Sherrer, “Listen, God Is Speaking To You,” (Ann Arbor, Michigan, Servant Publications, 1999), 180-183.
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