Dark Knights
As I prayed and reflected on the idea of Dark Horses, an image kept coming to mind: the knight on a chessboard.
At first it made sense simply because it’s a horse. But the more I thought about it, the more the symbol began to grow on me.
I’m not much of a chess player, though I enjoy the occasional game with my grandson, Finn. One thing about the knight fascinates me. It doesn’t move like any other piece on the board. While the others move in straight lines, the knight jumps in an L-shape. It can leap over obstacles. It approaches the board from strange angles. Its moves are often unexpected, surprising opponents who thought they understood the game.
That feels like a fitting picture of the Dark Horses.
Sometimes the institutional church model has a way of stifling creativity. Not always out of bad intentions—sometimes just for the sake of control or efficiency. Straight lines are easier to manage. Predictable paths are easier to organize.
But the God we serve is anything but predictable. He is wildly creative. He is the author of diversity and paradox.
And Jesus was maybe the most unconventional leader the world has ever seen. When others enforced rigid lines and guarded boundaries, Jesus kept moving toward the margins—toward surprising places and surprising people.
If you’re reading this, chances are you’ve already made at least one unconventional move. Maybe you stepped away from something that once felt necessary to follow Jesus more freely.
I want to celebrate that.
My hope is that among the Dark Horses we can become the kind of community that cheers one another on – people who say to each other, “Yes. Follow Jesus down that unusual path.”
OK, you’re turn. Engage with us. Here are some questions. We’d love for you to share your thoughts!
- When have you felt like a “knight move” follower of Jesus—taking an unexpected path that didn’t look like the conventional Christian route? What led you there?
2. What are some ways the institutional church can unintentionally discourage creativity or unconventional Kingdom ideas? Have you experienced this personally?
3. Looking at the life of Jesus, where do you see Him making “knight moves”—going in unexpected directions or reaching unexpected people?
4. What obstacles or fears make it hard for people to follow Jesus in unconventional ways, even when they feel called to?
5. How could a community of “Dark Horses” encourage one another to pursue creative, Spirit-led Kingdom ideas instead of pressuring people back into predictable paths?
