That never happens.
At least had not happened before that. A show that the network canceled, after poor promotion, horrible time slot, and was aired out of sequence and not even all the episodes saw the air. So with a track record like that, why on earth would a major studio shell out millions to make a movie?
Faith.
Someone had faith in the writer, the actors, all the crew, and the fans. (The writer/director is a certain Joss Whedon, who now is becoming a household name instead of just a geekdom known name, thanks to the success of the Avengers.)
If you're wondering what in the world this has to do with being a follower of Christ...I'm getting there. One of the best scenes from the show involves a young girl named River who was tested on by the government, but was already beyond genius intelligence. She is very logical and scientific. Kind of like Spock, but with no filter. She was kinda crazy. The other character in the scene is a man named Book. He is a "shepherd," in the world of this story he's a missionary of sorts. A man of faith.
The scene plays out when Book walks into the dinning room and begins speaking to River. He isn't looking at her so he doesn't see her leaning over a book at the table.
Book: What are we up to, sweetheart?This isn't about River tearing up a Bible. I was shocked a bit when I saw it the first time. But the way the rest of that conversation play out just took my breath away. Now, I believe without a doubt that the Bible is the Word of God and is true.
River Tam: Fixing your Bible.
Book: I, um...[alarmed] What?
River Tam: Bible's broken. Contradictions, false logistics - doesn't make sense.
[she's marked up the bible, crossed out passages and torn out pages]
Book: No, no. You-you-you can't...
(next portion skipped for time...feel free to read it all or watch the episode: Jaynestown.)
Book: River, you don't fix the Bible.
River: It's broken. It doesn't make sense.
Book: It's not about making sense. It's about believing in something, and letting that belief be real enough to change your life. It's about faith. You don't fix faith, River. It fixes you.
What really gets me is how Book responds. Instead of getting all angry he remains calm, and deals with grace, wisdom and discernment. "You don't fix faith, it fixes you."
Jesus sent his disciples out to make more disciples. Not to debate with people until they convert. Faith isn't an argument to win. We can share it, show it, live it. When was the last time you won someone over to the love of Jesus by arguing Creation vs. Evolution? I know I haven't.
Faith isn't just a program to install. It's not about 'knowing,' or having empirical evidence. That's why it is called faith.
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.Hebrews 11 is commonly called the "Faith Chapter." It describes stories and people who were known for their faith. Able. Enoch. Noah. Abraham. Isaac. Jacob. Joseph. Moses. Rahab. The writer of Hebrews lists more that they don't have the time to describe.
They also write this: By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. It is by faith we understand this. By faith we understand the sacrifice that Jesus made, and who he is.
It's faith that allows us to believe in Jesus. Faith is what fixes us. You have to let it in. As you let it transform you, let Him transform you, you'll be able to share that with others. And seeing your faith, can learn what faith is, and eventually have faith themselves.
You can't fix faith. It doesn't need fixed. Read those stories mentioned in Hebrews 11. Learn about what faith fixed in them, and how it can fix you...and let it.
grace, peace + hope
-Jesse
beautiful post, jess. as you know, i too am a movie freak/fanatic/fan. bet most people don't know that i even go by myself sometimes, if no one else is really into it. i don't really care what people think about that, cuz here's the thing: i almost always come away with something that makes me think...something that makes me look through the lens of a different character to see things as THEY see them, not as i see them. it keeps me in touch with what the world really thinks about important things such as love, life, relationships, compassion for mankind (or the lack thereof), and yes...faith. most often it's a very different view than the one i was raised with, or the one that i currently hold, but in the end, it makes me realize that now, more than ever before, i must be ready to share my faith - and the story about how it fixed (and still fixes) me when i exercise it the way that my Creator intended me to.
ReplyDeletein an increasingly faithless world, it's important that we, as followers of Jesus Christ, are willing to look through the eyes of those who are different and think differently than we do, so that we can share our story about how faith in the One who gave His all for us truly did 'fix' us...and will continue to do so until we are with Him.
good stuff! thanks for the discussion starter :)
Thanks for the reply! I'm at the movies by myself more often than not. There is nothing weird about it. I'd rather go alone to something I know any companions wouldn't be interested in. (If you're around Camp Hill/Harrisburg, hit me up for a movie viewing sometime.)
ReplyDeleteYou hit it right on the head. I agree with all of what you said about being able to see the world through other lenses. I think that is important, especially the more isolated we make our selves.
Thanks again!
I agree with RhoMo...great discussion starter! Thanks Jesse!
ReplyDelete