gam-bit
n.
- An Opening in chess in which a minor piece, or pieces, usually a pawn, is offered in exchange for a favorable position.
- A maneuver, strategem, or ploy, especially one used at an initial stage.
- A remark intended to open a conversation.
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[Ultimately from Spanish gambito, from Italian gambetto, act of tripping someone up in wrestling, from gamba, leg, from Old Italian. See gambol.]
Usage Note: Critics familar with the nature of chess gambits have sometimes maintained that the word should not be used in an extended sense except to refer to maneuvers that involve a tactical sacrifice or loss for some advantage. But gambit is well established in the general sense of "maneuver" and in the related sense of "a remark intended to open a conversation," which usually carries no implication of sacrifice.
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yup, its my blog... welcome to my head...
feel free to browse, comment, reflect and escape.
WHY??? .... The Gambit?
Fitting I think... it just sort of hit me while staring off into my pile of books on the shelf. ya see... I enjoy playing chess. I also enjoy reading. So, naturally, I have a few books on chess... a strategy that I often find exciting to play in chess is a gambit. A gambit will usually offer a piece (pawn) in exchange for favorable position. In chess, position is everything. If you control the center of the board. 99.9% of the time you will control the outcome of the game. Its a fight for ground, for real estate, for property. constantly weighing timing, position and strategy. The gambit is a form of sacrifice to gain the upper-hand, a few moves later, in position over the center of the board.
Thus the reason for the title... The Gambit
a sacrafice to gain an advantage...
So now... to complete the circle... to who's advantage... that is the razor's edge that I find myself walking every day.
do I sacrifice so that I may gain the advantage or that others may gain the advantage. I believe it is at this point that i struggle, and will continue to struggle for a lifetime... It all started in the garden. The lie. who is it that we/I serve? myself or God.
You see... the key word is sacrifice.
That is the ultimate form of love isn't it? but who is it that we love... ourselves or others? The constant battle between selfishness and serving/loving others! So where is the motivation of my gambit? My hope is that when I come to die, i can rest knowing that my gambits have served to further Gods kingdom. To further His advantage rather than my own. And it is my prayer that like Him I can be conformed unto his death (Phil 3:10) learning to sacrifice as he did for me.
God is the greatest chess player ever, better than Fisher (though i believe there was devine gifts granted to that amazing man,) better than Karpov, better than Kasparov... heck, He created them. We are His pieces... His pieces... Thus make my life a gambit... and further Your kingdom.
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Funny notes: when I looked up the definitions of gambit.... I learned that it also meant a maneuver used at an initial stage... thus the beginning... fitting since i'm beginning my blog. also... it means a remark to open a conversation.... again, fitting! and last.... the address for this site... Gambetto: Italian for the act of tripping someone up in wrestling... this is my wrestle, and like when jacob wrestled God, the Almighty tripped him up... and won... this is my wrestling match. my life, struggles, joys, thoughts, prayers, tidbits, rants, raves and all the things in between... but always it gets pulled into the ring with God.
LET THE GAMBIT BEGIN!!!!