In the gaming community there are two phrases heard quite often. "The game must go on" and "Once a gamer, always a gamer." The former quote refers to a player who leaves the gaming table and hangs up his dice bag for good. The rest of the group, thought they "mourn" the lost, they continue the game either with a replacement or not; hence "the game must go on." The other quote refers to the gamer that left. Although he is not at the table he still has a fondness for the game whether it is teaching new people to the game or reliving former adventures or maybe finding a new gaming outlet for his skills.

I personally fall under both quotes. My fellow gamers have continued without me and I still have the desire the gaming on the computer or reading game-related material. The problem that I faced as well as other is that when the general public learns we’re gamers, especially of Dungeons and Dragons, they will give us a wide berth expecting unusual circumstances to occur. We’re not out to summon the dark forces of ever or brainwashing innocent kids into "selling their souls". We are imaginative people looking for a place to use our talents. And we are simply misunderstood.

In the Bible, Jesus was an individual who was misunderstood. Matt. 12: 22-28 tells of Jesus’ healing a man who was demon-possessed, blind and mute. The Pharisees claimed he obtained his powers from Beelzebub (v. 24). Another example is found in John 2: 13-21 when Jesus cleansed the temple of merchants that Jews demanded a sign for the authority that He did these things (v. 18) Verse 19-21 has the answer: "Jesus answered and said unto them, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. 20. The Jews therefore said, Forty and six years was this temple in building, and wilt thou raise it up in three days? 21. But he spake of the temple of his body."

The main problem they had is that Jesus was one of their own. The son of a simple carpenter who one day stood before the assembly, read a portion of scripture and then announced the scripture had bee fulfilled by His (Jesus) presence (Luke 4: 16-24). All the Pharisees knew that prophets foretold the coming of a Messiah who would show them the way. They just didn’t expect it to be a man of a poverty-stricken family.

So since I’ve given up role-playing and became a Christian has it changed the views of the general public? No!!! Now I’m misunderstood by a different group of people. The denominational group look at me strange when I tell them I’m a Christian. They want to know what kind, as in Lutheran Christian, Protestant Christian, Methodist Christian, etc. Generally I say I’m a New Testament Christian and a member of the Lord’s Church. In Acts 11: 26, which says, "and when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that even for a whole year they were gathered together with the church, and taught much people, and that the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch." They were called Christians and nothing else was added. Why? There was no need. If you can’t find it in the Bible, why use it? Romans 16:16 is the only reference in the Bible, which refers to the Lord’s church as the church of Christ.

If you call yourself something in addition to Christian, then you are not a true Christian. If you’re not a member of the church of Christ then you are not a member of the Lord’s church.