At the Movies Review – Week 3
It’s Friday, which means time for our review of last week’s At the Movies Sermon. I wish the movie had been “Fast and Furious” because my day is haywire already and I am going to have to type fast and edit as I go.
Pray for me.
Actually the movie was “Inside Out” and if you have never seen this one, find a way to do so. It is hilarious and poignant in all the right ways.
Super quick summary, a Pixar effort, the story follows a little girl named Riley from birth to a major move and shift for the family in her adolescence. The dad takes a job in San Francisco so they load up and head to an apartment after having a home in Minnesota.
The main focus of the story involves the emotions that vie for control as Riley wrestles with fear, disgust, anger, joy and sadness.
Having that to go on, Brian’s sermon centered around our personal battles with letting our emotions rule over us, as well as the need for all of the emotions we have been given blending as we mature.
I saw this movie with our kids when they were in their early adult years. They wanted me to watch and knew I would love it. I can remember ugly crying and laughing throughout the movie and it was one of those times when I felt such a great awareness of things I have grappled with but didn’t have a picture or words to explain.
As the daughter of a military family, I could relate to the move and leaving such happy memories behind. I also could identify strongly with the truth that our memories are sometimes/often a blend of several and the ability to recognize this and embrace the way your heart gets stretched is part of the fullness of life we have been offered in Christ.
But it is the character Fear that grabbed me the first time and reminded me that this fellow is always creating havoc at my control panel too.
As he would fly into the command center with stacks of things that could go wrong, I laughed and thought…well, hello old friend.
Any one emotion taking charge all the time or all of them running rogue on a person can cause much dysfunction. Yet, each of the emotions are valid and given to us by God for a full and compassionate and purposeful life path.
But how do we do this?
Brian reminded us through a variety of Scriptures that our emotions, a gift from God, need to come under the authority of Christ.
Emotions make us human and dynamic and weave all the beautiful and intricate patterns that make our existence meaningful. But they also must not rule us.
Our passions, our desires, our feelings, our emotions and our thoughts running the show is never a good idea. We are fallen and broken and we have only partial information. I am thankful as the years progress that more and more often, Christ seems to have his nail-scarred hand of my control panel as I see my choices and actions and thoughts progressively influenced by His wisdom.
Trust me, and my friends and family would give a hearty amen, I still have days and moments and even seasons where the ship runs amok, but we are all a work in progress. And for the most part, I am growing up over the years.
God bless you and have a mostly happy, but emotionally balanced weekend….
Peace out and I will see you Monday <3