Be-Film Worthy

I’m kind of a sucker for inspirational movies. Movies based on a true story that depict a life of tragedy turned to triumph, someone who has moved a metaphorical or literal boulder up a hill to an objective that previously seemed impossible. I enjoyed one such movie recently. The storyline didn’t seem too noteworthy to me initially but I was on a flight and a captive audience with a few hours of time on my hands so I gave it a shot. The movie is called The King’s Speech, and without ruining the entire movie for those of you haven’t seen it yet, the main character, played by Colin Firth, will soon be the future King of England during a historically pivotal time for his country and arguably the world in the late 1930s. Poised to go to war against the Nazi regime, the (almost) King George knows that the odds are not in their favor and his people will need to be led in a strong and confident way. One major obstacle stands between him and effectively leading his country into battle against their enemy - he has a major speech impediment. George’s distracting stutter often conveyed fear and a lack of confidence, not the desired outcome when facing a formidable enemy in a life and death situation. I promise I won’t say anything more about this story but if you find yourself in a seat a few miles up in the air, hopefully with an intact fuselage, I recommend taking a few hours of your time to enjoy learning more about King George’s story.

Ok, this may seem like a bit of a diversion from our devotionals because we typically don’t do any film reviews. So what’s the point? I’m glad you asked! Here’s the so what:

I’m guessing King George wasn’t thinking that someday people would be watching a movie about leading a country into war. He was focused on doing his job, and doing it well to hopefully slow down the advance of the Nazi juggernaut and save his people and possibly the world. What he did was extraordinary and potentially changed the course of history. The link here is that we are called to be extraordinary, to be bold, and to be film-worthy in our faith, even though most likely the outcomes we help to create will likely never be depicted on the silver screen- but we will see them again, in heaven. 

2 Corinthians 4:6-10 ““For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness”; has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.””

These verses are an encouragement to have faith, in the face of doubt, fear, and even with the knowledge of our own limitations. David, when facing the Philistine giant, (1 Sam 17:45), states,”You come against me with sword and spear, and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Isreal…” This is a great example of extraordinary faith that had nothing to do with David’s power or might but his confidence and faith in his Lord. And what God did through David is something for the history books.

I do want to emphasize that the point here is not about extraordinary ends, it’s about extraordinary faith. Faith, not founded in our own gifts and abilities, but founded and grounded in Jesus. He is the treasure in our jars which allows each of us to bring life into the boring, usher hope into difficult, and lift up praise to the King for moments that call for rejoicing. Being film-worthy for those around us means that we say yes to Jesus daily and let his light shine in us and through us. We literally get to watch as he transforms lives and brings hope to the hopeless, joy to the broken, and excitement to the bored. Thankfully we aren’t the lead character, even in our own stories, because what we do and say points to the “surpassing power that belongs to God and not to us”. This is not a call to do more, to be more, or to try harder. This is simply a reminder to continue to say yes to Jesus, each day, every day. Let him do the rest in us and through us which will make us all film-worthy, just maybe not in the Hollywood way.