Tag Archives: Paul

Superman III (1983)

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600full-superman-iii-posterRoger Ebert called Superman III a “cinematic comic book,” and he didn’t necessarily mean that in a good way. Richard Lester’s direction took the film series from complex, thoughtful elements to more campy, silly moments. Ebert is correct in his assessment: this third film is not nearly as good as the first two. On one hand, Superman III can stand alone and can be watched without the foundation of the first two films. Yet, it does nothing to support the story-line that the first two films worked so hard to develop. Perhaps this is the cost the studio had to pay when they shifted direction in the second film from Richard Donner to Richard Lester (who directed Superman III as well).

One of the areas in which there is a disconnect from the first two films and the third, is the complex relationship between Kent/Superman and Lois Lane (Margot Kidder). Lois leaves for a vacation at the beginning of the film, and it is clear that Clark didn’t know anything about her plans. Clark, meanwhile, heads back home to Smallville for his high school reunion and to cover a story about small town life. It is at the reunion that he begins to spend time with Lana Lang (Annette O’Toole), his high school crush. And so begins a relationship between Clark and Lana that includes picnics.

Richard Pryor plays the brilliant, yet befuddled, Gus Gorman. At first, this may seem like a brilliant casting move in 1983. And it is. But Lester doesn’t seem to tap into the smartness of Pryor. Pryor seems limited and reserved. He pretends to be a liquor salesmen and General, which Pryor does well, but seems so out-of-character for Gus. When we first meet Gus, he is in the unemployment line to get his check for the week. But he is denied because the thirty-two weeks are up. When he asks someone for a light for his cigarette, the matchbook is from the company owned by Ross Webster (Robert Vaughan). He suddenly feels that he can be a computer programmer, even though he could not keep a job at a fast food restaurant and other such places. And he gets the job.

It is his job that introduces Gus’ secret gifts to Webster, who wants to use them to gain power and control of the earth’s resources. First, he sets his sights on coffee, and then on oil. There is only one problem: Superman (Christopher Reeve). Webster and his colleagues recall that there is one thing that will destroy Superman, kryptonite. That small, green rock that can bring the Man of Steel down. But they have no such rock. Webster has Gus use a weather satellite to scan kryptonite that is floating through space to see what it is made of. One of the elements is “Unknown.” Gus, worried to submit such a report to his boss, fills in “Tar” for “Unknown.”

The tar-laced kryptonite results in Superman becoming a big ole meanie. At first, it appears that Superman is being selfish, wanting to spend more time with Lana Lang, and arriving at an accident too late. “If only you had gotten here sooner,” the rescue workers say to him when he finally arrives. We watch as the transformation happens. Superman’s tidy hair and clean shaven look disappear. Even his uniform appears darker and dirtier than it usually does. It is obvious that even Superman is not exempt from the struggles of this world.

It gets so bad, that in one scene a crowd that includes young Ricky, Lana’s son, is gathering outside a bar, watching Superman get drunk and smash bottles with peanuts. Ricky is the only one who can see Superman beyond the meanie he is acting like. In a pivotal scene to the messy plot-line, Superman lands in a salvage yard. He begins to destroy junk, frustrated that he is behaving the way he is. In the midst of destroying junk, Clark Kent emerges from meanie Superman. The two then fight. The scene is filled with very little dialogue, which at first may seem odd, but is actually quite brilliant. It is not a fight between meanie Superman and good Superman, it is between meanie Superman and Clark Kent—the humanity of the Man of Steel.

The scene captures well the struggle that Paul describes in Romans, “I do the things I know I should not do, and I do not do the things that I know I should do.” Oftentimes when we struggle with making good choices or bad choices, we too struggle with ourselves. The scene depicts what many of us feel when this struggle takes place; the struggle between living in the Light and dwelling in the Darkness; the struggle between holiness and sin. The dark, dirty look the film gives meanie Superman reminds us of the ways in which sin leaves us dark and dirty, while the clean, bright Superman reminds us of how grace leaves our dark and dirtiness bright and clean.

Eventually Clark defeats meanie Superman, and things go back to normal. He works to fix all the destruction he made when he was meanie Superman. And he prevents the world from being destroyed and controlled by the Big Bad of this film: Ross Webster. In doing so, Superman fulfills his calling as the messiah from another world.

HIMYM 8.16

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“Bad Crazy” just confirms that Ted is his own worse enemy. The only thing holding him back from a committed relationship and finally finding “your mother” is himself. Saturday Night Live‘s Abby Elliot guest stars as Jeanette, who turns out is a police officer and slightly crazy. And it doesn’t look like this is the last time we’ll see her either. The guys tell Ted he should break up with her. Lily finally tells him to stay with her. Because Ted’s in a crazy stage right now. “And when it all comes down in flames,” Lily tells him, “and it will, we’ll be here for you.”

This is what the show has always been about. It is the essence of what community is. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 12:16, that when one suffers, we all suffer. When one cries, we all cry. When one rejoices, we all rejoice. This is Paul’s image of the Body of Christ – the faith community. This is what the HIMYM gang not only tell us, about show us. When it all comes down in flames – and we all know that it will one day – we have a community who is there for us. Who is your community?

The other story line in this episode was about Robin’s discomfort in holding little Marvin. It has been eight months and Robin has successfully avoided holding the baby. When she and Lily are out one day, Lily leaves Marvin with Robin alone. Marvin starts to cry and Robin isn’t sure what to do. She relies on the kindness of a stranger to help her. It takes Robin seventeen years to tell Lily the whole story, including that the kind “old woman” was really Mike Tyson. The episode ends with Lily handing Marvin off to Robin while Robin is talking, and it takes a few seconds before Robin realizes that she is holding the baby. A first for her. And one that was not as scary as she thought it would be.

Robin is like so many of us, the less we focus on the scary, the less scary it is.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines (2003)

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In the third installment of the Terminator films, we find a John Connor (Nick Stahl) who is no longer 13, and “lives off the grid.”  John is a young adult living on the streets, no phone, no home, nothing. He is working in manual labor, recalling the past through a voice over narration. “They tried to kill me,” he says, “before I was born, and again when I was 13.”

“I feel the weight of the future,” John narrates at the beginning of the film. “So I keep running.” He is running from the vocation that has chosen him and from the terminators that may be coming to kill him. We see him next as he is breaking into a veterinarian’s office in the hopes of finding drugs. Evidence of how far he is willing to go to relieve some of the weight he is experiencing.

In the meantime, a T-X has been sent from the future. The T-X is even more deadly and destructive than the T1000 in T2. The T-X has arrived to kill not John Connor, but other resistance leaders of the future. SkyNet has taken a different approach. John Connor is no longer a priority, it is the other young adults who are his followers who will be leaders of the movement.

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One of these leaders is Kate Brewster played expectantly well by Claire Danes. Kate is getting married and has a somewhat estranged relationship her father. She is a vet, who answers an emergency call in the middle of the night. When she arrives at the clinic she finds a high John, whom she locks into a dog kennel. While attempting to calm a distressed cat owner, Kate comes face-to-face with the T-X.

The T-101 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) arrives in his usual nude way. After gleaning clothes from a stripper at a ladies’ night bar, he sets out to find and rescue Kate from the T-X.  He also has to rescue John.

T-101: John Connor, it is time.

John: Are you here to kill me?

T-101: No. You must live.

John assumes his future-self sent the terminator as he did in the last film. But it was actually Kate who sent him. While running away from the T-X, John and Kate learn a lot about their future together from the T-101. Most surprisingly they learn that SkyNet still rises to power.

As Kate runs for her life, her General father is battling an unknown virus spreading quickly through the computers. They have a “secret weapon” they  have developed that could take care of this virus. Kate’s father, General Robert Brewster, is high up in the federal government who has the ability to tell the Pentagon no, they will not release SkyNet to deal with a major computer virus. His job is actually a cover up for a top-secret security work, which will become important when our three  heroes discover that a nuclear holocaust is upon them. Eventually, though, his hands are tied. SkyNet is release, however, instead of destroying the virus, it takes over all the machines.

While this is not the best of the Terminator films, it is still worth watching a few times. The CGI used in this film makes the first two look antique. And the film continues in developing John Connor as a Christ-figure.

“They tried to kill me before I was born.”

As John tries to explain the situation to Kate, he tells her, “Imagine that you were going to do something important with your life.” This line sums up John’s story perfectly.  His life is at stake because he is going to do something important with his life. It is his life will save humanity, in the fullness of time. In the first Terminator film, the objective was to kill Sarah Connor in order to ensure that John Connor, savior of the world, does not come to be.  In Matthew’s gospel, Mary and Joseph are informed by the wise men that King  Herod is planning to kill all the Jewish baby boys. King Herod wants to ensure that no future leader rises against his rule. Mary and Joseph along with the infant Jesus escape the genocide by fleeing into Egypt. At one point T-101 tells John that he will die, which is why Kate is the one who sent T-101 to the past. It alludes to the fact that John gives his own life to save that of others.

“It is your destiny.”

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John Connor has a purpose in life. A vocation that the whole world depends on, whether they know it or not. He has a hard time, however, accepting the fact that he will be kept in the equivalent of a “safe house.”  As the apocalypse of the computer-age gets underway, Robert Brewster tells Kate of a secret underground weapons control facility. She and John head there. These scenes were actually filmed on location at a decommissioned federal control center in West Virginia.

This underground center could symbolize the tomb of Jesus Christ. It will be after this tomb experience that a new life will be found. Not necessarily an easier one, which speaks volumes to the human condition. While new life is apart of the journey of humanity, it does not always mean life will be easier. Life is still hard. Life is still challenging. Life is still a battle between good and evil.

The greater lesson that John learns is that the person he is now, is not the person he will become. That is the good news about new life. We are becoming into someone new, transforming the old. He is becoming the one who will bear salvation for the world.

“You’re terminated.”

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The T-X is evil, no doubt about it. She is an agent of SkyNet, which is the big bad in the film. It is not a mistake that the enemy takes on the shape and appearance of a human. She looks like one of us. “And no wonder!” Paul writes to the Corinthians, “Even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.” (2 Corinthians 11:14, Common English Bible). The T-X can take on the appearance of others. At one point she becomes Kate in an attempt to trick Kate’s father. This enemy is deadly and determined to put an end to any possibility of salvation. She does not want there to be salvation. Her mission is to eliminate the possibility of hope.

This hope, however, is not lost. It is while John and Kate are in the underground control center, with computers that are thirty years old, that voices from across the country are heard. They found a radio range that SkyNet did not affect and they call out for anyone else who might be out there. And through these radio waves, the people hear the voice of John Connor, from the walls of a borrowed tomb, offering them hope in the midst of destruction and judgment.

Joy Conquers Fear: A Sermon

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A sermon preached Sunday, December 16, 2013 at Peakland United Methodist Church.  Scriptures were: Zephaniah 3:14-20; Philippians 4:4-7; Luke 3:7-18.

The wilderness.  It was the place where the Hebrews wandered for forty years before reaching the Promised Land.  It was the place where Jesus would go and be tempted for forty days before officially starting his ministry.  And it was the place where John the Baptist lived and preached.

The wilderness is dangerous and inhospitable.  It is barren, rough, and rocky.  It is a place that is unstructured and chaotic.  The wilderness is a place of fear.  We have been in the wilderness this weekend.  We were forced into the reality that the world is not safe and is unpredictable. We have roamed in fear, grief, and horror after the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary school.

Sometime Friday, a clergy person I know posted on his facebook, “WHY!?!?!”  We have probably all asked the same question at some point.  Why did this happen?  Why does this keep happening?  Will we be safe?

But if we let the words of John echo through our wilderness, we may find the next steps.  John calls for repentance and change.  He calls for the people of God to bear good fruit.  It is not enough, he tells them, to claim your heritage to Abraham, you must act like who you say you are.  To us we hear it is not enough for you to say that you are a Christian, you must act like who you say you are.

In the midst of the barren and inhospitable, John calls for reprioritizing.  In the midst of chaos, John calls the people to focus their lives on God’s love.  And we, like the people in the wilderness of John’s day, ask, “What then should we do?”

John’s answer is preschool worthy.  What then should we do?  We should share.  John gives examples of what to do.  If you have a lot, and your neighbor has nothing, you should share what you have.  It reminds me of the saying, “Live simply, so others may simply live.”  But this sharing goes beyond our material things.  We who claim the Christ Child as our Lord and Savior are to share the love of God with others.  We are to share grace and forgiveness.  We are to share our hugs. We are to share our prayers.

In Philippians 4, Paul tells the church, “do not worry.”  At a time like this, that seems like a tall order.  If anyone knew anything about what it meant to worry, it was Paul.  He had churches that were being bombarded with false theologies and pagan ideas.  The churches were infested with conflict and confusion.  They were looked down upon by the rest of the society.  All of this is tough when you are responsible for one church, but Paul had them scattered all around.  Oh, and Paul was in prison.  Paul knew about worrying.

But Paul goes on to say in Philippians 4, “but handle everything in prayer.”  For Paul, the opposite of worry is prayer.  Instead of worrying and being anxious, Paul says, pray!  Prayer should not be the last resort when we are panic-stricken.  Instead, we should be so tight in our relationship with God, that we open ourselves up to God on a daily basis, so that when we are panic-stricken, we are in a place where we naturally hand things over to God.  We do no worry, we give it God.  Because, at the end of the day, God is in control, not us.

My Dad was an example of this for me.  While he was in the hospital sick with prostate cancer, the meds were leaving him in such disarray that he did not always realize where he was.  So, we took turns staying overnight at the hospital with him.  On the night I stayed, I was a young 20, Dad thankfully was alert to his surroundings. During our conversation that evening, he lifted his hands as high as he could and said, “It’s in God’s hands now.”

It would be easy to say that my Dad was giving up, and to be honest, that’s what I feared was happening.  But the reality was that he was opening himself up to God in such a way that it was natural and easy for him to say, “It’s in God’s hands. I’m not in control. God is in control.”

This experience was a wilderness one for me.  It was a time full of fear and uncertainty. It was a time of sorrow, and a time of hopelessness.  It was difficult to see my Dad, whom I had never seen sick during my childhood, in a hospital bed, barely able to lift up his own hands.

Every year during Advent we come to the wilderness to hear John’s story and his message of repentance and change.  It is a message of transformation and renewal.  There is no getting to Bethlehem and the sweet, little, baby born in the manger without first going through the wilderness.

There is a Native American proverb that goes like this. A grandfather told his grandson about two wolves who were constantly battling inside his heart.  One wolf was greed, hatred, and fear.  The other was love, peace, and kindness.  “Which will win?” asked the grandson.  The grandfather replied, “The one I feed.”  When we open ourselves up to God and live in this tight relationship, we are feeding the wolf of love, peace and kindness.

Paul goes on to say, in Philippians 4, to rejoice!  That too seems like a tall order in moments like these.  We can rejoice, however, because the Lord is near.  One Bible translates as “God lives among you.”  This is a word of comfort, no doubt.  In the midst of our grieving, God is with us.  In the midst of our sorrow, God is with us.  In the midst of loss and tragedy, God is with us.  In the midst of healing, God is with us. These are all causes for rejoicing.  Because God is with us, we discover joy.

This is perhaps why the words from the prophet Zephaniah are so profound.  The Israelites of this generation were surrounded by destruction and exile.  They had failed to listen to God; they had strayed; they had not trusted God.  They were need of renewal and change.

What Zephaniah pronounces is that the crises we face are best addressed in community.  Change and transformation, healing and renewal happen best in community.  Nurturing our relationship with God as well as with others is essential to the Christian faith.    We need each other. The Christian faith is not a solo, rather a choral arrangement.  And at the center of this community is the God who comforts.

Despite the conditions and challenges we face, the pain and disappointment, God is a God who comforts, consoles, and nurtures.  God is a God who hears the cries of God’s children. God has not abandoned God’s people.

The events on Friday showed us that in a moment everything changes.  In a moment 15 first-graders were taken from us.

In a moment a teacher, protecting her students, lost her life.  In a moment the lives of ten individuals in Chicago ended.

In a moment, a father loses his job and a family struggles.  In a moment, an accident leaves a mother in a wheelchair.

In a moment a light begins to shine.  In a moment we discover joy.

And it only took a moment for a baby boy to be born. A baby boy who will change everything.

Go from this place and share. Share the love and grace of God.  Share your prayers.  Share a hug.

 

Amen.

Got Questions?

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Read Philippians 1:3-11.

When I was a kid, I remember always having questions. I didn’t always voice these questions, but they still roamed around in my head. I was curious about why things happened the way they did.  In school, I remember always wanting to know more about a given subject, at times more than the teacher was willing to teach. My favorite teachers in school were the ones that were okay with me asking questions.

This continued into college, where I had some great professors who encouraged the asking of questions. I was told, very politically  by a professor after a presentation in class I made that I was wrong. I didn’t believe her. I spent the next two days reading everything I could find in the library on the given “wrongness” of my presentation. I eventually  had to go back to her and say, “You were right.”

In his prayer for the Philippians, Paul encourages them to seek knowledge of God.  The more we know about God, the better we can discern, or make good decisions. And the more we determine what is good, the better our harvest, or good works, will be. It all starts with gaining more knowledge. And the way we do that is through searching for answers for the questions we way.

Today, make a list in your journal of the questions you have about God, faith, and/or religion. Share your list with someone you think might be able to help you search for answers.

Pray

God of Answers, help us become more comfortable with the questions of life and faith. Help us today as we name our questions and consider how we will learn more about you to better our journey of faith. Amen.

Got Support?

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Read 1 Thessalonians 3:9-13.

The Thessalonian Christians stuck out like a sore thumb.  They were not like anybody!  In their world, religion, business, and social position were all interconnected.  Because they worshiped Jesus Christ, and not those other gods, they were considered not a part of the “in” group.  They were no longer accepted in society.  They were outcasts.  Paul, in his letter to this church, gives thanks for them.  He does so because they haven’t given in to become like everyone else.

Gone were there friends, their connections, and for some even their families.  All because they choose Jesus as their Savior and Lord.

It may be hard for us today as 21st century North American Christians to understand this great loss due to our faith. The Thessalonian Christians knew that they were different because of Christ, and they remained strong in their faith despite all the crazy things people thought about them or did to them. This community faced its own set of challenges, but nothing could bring this community of faith down because of the cohesiveness they had together in Christ.  They knew Jesus and they supported each other.

Today, think about how you are in need of support from your Christian community.  What loss have you experienced that might make faith hard? But, also, think about how you can be supportive to others who may be going through a hard time.  Decide how you will be supportive in the coming week.  Journal about  your experiences.

Pray

Dear God of Hope, be with us today as we search our hearts for ways in which we need support from our brothers and sisters in Christ.  Help us to discern ways we can be supportive to others.  In all things, remind us that we are reflections of you in all that we do.  Amen.

HIMYM 8.6

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The autumn of break-ups continue! This week’s victim: Robin & Nick.  Marshall has talked Nick into joining his basketball team with other lawyers, because Nick is the best player. In a game Nick injures his groin, and has stopped having sex with Robin. Since they are not having sex, they are talking more which has led Robin to see  just how stupid Nick is. The rest of the gang gives Robin a knowing look, because they’ve known along.

There are a few side bars in the midst of the Robin and Nick drama: Ted forms a team of architects, who are more concerned about the structure of the gym and window placements than they are about the game. Marshall is exercising the entire episode, something he doesn’t normally do. And Lily is oddly sex-obsessed.

But back to Robin and Nick: Barney tries to motivate Robin to breakup with Nick. Barney claims to know from experience that she is only with him because he’s good looking and the sex is good. If Robin does not break up with Nick, Barney threatens to send an e-vite for a  ”Robin and Beatrice Fun Day” to Beatrice, Robin’s overly cheerful co-worker who wants desperately to be Robin’s BFF.

Robin takes Nick to Splitsville, a dessert cafe, to do the deed. Nick gets a phone call  and he becomes very upset. Robin assumes he’s received bad news about a family member. She calls Lily, who puts her on speaker phone and Barney tells her again, she needs to breakup with Nick. When she tries and Nick attempts to “put the moves” on her, Barney grabs his coat and leaves.

The next time we see Barney is when he shows up at the cafe and tells Nick that Robin is trying to breakup with him.

Barney: Robin doesn’t want to hurt your feelings because you’re a nice guy, but she thinks you’re stupid and she hates you. You’re welcome.

Robin: Stop doing this.

Barney: I love her, Nick.

Robin: Look, he doesn’t love me. He’s just saying this because…

Barney: I love everything about her, and I’m not a guy who says that lightly. I’m a guy who has faked love his entire life. I thought love was just something idiots thought they felt, but this woman has a hold on my heart that I could not break if I wanted to, and there have been times that I wanted to. It has been overwhelming and humbling and even painful at times, but I could not stop loving her any more than I could stop breathing. I am hopelessly, irretrievably in love with her. More than she knows.

There may have been a collective sigh of relief among Barney-Robin fans, but as the two are walking down the street, Barney boasts about  how awesome he was with his fake speech. Robin tells him that it was pretty convincing, and he holds true that it was all an act. As they are about to lean into each other for a kiss, Robin’s phone rings.

The episode brings us closer to what we already know, Robin and Barney will get back together. The question remains, how much longer will it take to get us there?

The theme of sexuality dominated this episode. Lily seems to be obsessed with Robin’s sex life. Ted calls Lily and Marshall out on their odd behaviors, and wonders why they are not having sex. Lily and Marshall have not had sex since the birth of little Marvin . Ted babysits Marvin, giving Lily and Marshall some time alone. Ted acts as the good friend, which has always been an overarching theme of HIMYM.

The “lesson” of the episode comes in Barney’s wise, while ironic, advice to Robin. He basically tells her that she is in the relationship with Nick for all the wrong reasons. Being in a relationship just for the sex is really not a relationship. For Barney to be the one to name this shows, again, the growth of this character over the show’s eight seasons.

Sexuality is a part of God’s creation that was deemed good. As such, we need to treat sex as a gift from God. It is not something we need to hide under the rug, hoping no one ever knows, rather it is something that needs to be treated with respect and expressed responsibly. This is not, however, a license to get it on. Paul did ministry in various Greek and Roman cities where getting it on was the norm and even celebrated by some religious circles. Paul teaches that in Christ things are different.

We live in a society that misuses sex. Current events speak for themselves. It is misused for power; out of selfishness; to feel good about ourselves; or to feel loved.  Sexuality is less about what you get and more about what you give. Intimacy in a relationship is about what is shared. The classic Biblical example of this is the story of David and Bathsheba. King David was hanging out on his balcony one evening and his eyes fell upon Bathsheba taking a bath. Using his power as King, David calls for her to have sex with her. For David, it was about what he got, not what he gave.

Let’s be honest, when a relationship is based on sex alone it’s not really a relationship. Even Barney gets that.

The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012)

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Pirates reminds us why we love British comedies. The film, one of the best stop-action animation films I’ve seen, is absurd in all the best ways. Just imagine the best of Monty Python in a stop-action animated film minus the dirty jokes.

The Pirate Captain (Hugh Grant) sets out to win the Pirate of the Year Award. All he wants is some recognition from his peers that he is good at what he does. This sets him out to find the largest booty (insert PG jokes here), but always landing on the wrong ships; a ghost ship, a ship of school children on a field trip, a ship of lepers, and a ship of nudist. Finally, he attacks the ship carrying Charles Darwin (David Tennant), yep you read that correctly. Charles Darwin.

Darwin is journalling about his ship-filled scientific discoveries. Upon meeting Pirate Captain and his Polly, which is really the only surviving dodo bird, Darwin (whom Pirate Captain starts calling Chuck) convinces the pirate to go to London to present the bird at a scientific gathering to win the prize money. Darwin is seeking not so much recognition by his peers, but recognition by Queen Victoria. Pirate Captain is blinded by the deceit because of his own ambition to receive recognition from his peers.

Seeking approval from our peers is not something that ends with adolescence. It is a struggle that continues well into adulthood. Paul writes to the Galatians: “Am I trying to win over human beings or God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I wouldn’t be Christ’s slave.” (1:10, Common English Bible)

What Paul wants the church to know is that what he is preaching is not to be popular among humans, but it is to be right with God. At the same time, Paul calls all of those who hear/read these words to consider the same question in their own lives. Are we doing what we are doing for the sake of our relationship with God or “to win over human beings?”  And at times we will do anything to achieve that recognition. The Pirate Captain is motivated to seek the largest treasure there is to receive recognition  by his peers as a great pirate. Pirate Captain sells his beloved Polly to Queen Victoria for a boat-load of gold. In the process, he loses the faith of his trusted crew, is stripped of his title as pirate, and banned from the community, left out in the rain.

It is through the faithfulness of his crew, and in particular Number Two (also called the Pirate with a Scarf voiced by Martin Freeman) that Pirate Captain  learns that he is a good pirate when he is himself. He tells Pirate Captain as the film ends, “It’s never been about the trophy or the treasure. It’s about who you are on the inside.”

What’s on the inside is important to God as well. When God sends Samuel out to find a new king, Samuel is sent to the home of Jesse. As he looks at the eldest son, Samuel is told: “Have no regard for his appearance or stature, because I haven’t selected him. God doesn’t look at things like humans do. Humans see only what is visible to the eyes, but the Lord sees into the heart.”(1 Samuel 16:7, Common English Bible) Samuel goes down the line, looking at each son, and each time God says the same thing. It is not until Samuel reaches the youngest son, that we learn that this son is a man after God’s own heart. The son was David, the greatest king of Israel.

The matter of the heart is one that repeats itself throughout the scriptures. From the prophets to Jesus to Paul, we read how it is not what we do, but rather the attitude of the heart.  Pirate Captain is not a pirate because he brings in the largest booty, he is a pirate because his heart’s in it. A lesson for all of us striving to live a holy life.

Little Brother Rat (1939)

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In this Chuck Jones directed Warner Bros. theatrical animated short, Sniffles the mouse makes his second appearance on the big screen. Sniffles is ahead in the mouse community’s scavenger hunt. As the short begins, Sniffles has just gotten a cat’s whisker. The only remaining object to be found is an owl’s egg. Sniffles quickly rises to the challenge.

The task, however, proofs to be difficult. Sniffles slips out into the night to find an owl’s egg. Upon finding an egg, Sniffles quietly picks it up and heads out of the barn. The Parent Owl is quick to not let this happen. Sniffles returns the egg back to its nest. But, the unexpected happens, the egg hatches.

Sniffles does what he can to get the baby owl back into the egg shell. When he finally does, Sniffles ties a piece of string around the cracked egg shell and sets out to return to the party. But, the baby owl slips out before Sniffles knows it. Sniffles is ready to walk away from it all, when it notices the cat!

The cat sets is yellow eyes on the baby owl. Sniffles has to make a split-second decision, will he continue to walk away or will he help the newly hatched owl? Sniffles decides to help the little owl. He runs and grabs the owl. They are chased by the cat, but Sniffles is able to keep the baby owl safe. The Parent Owl soon sweeps in and carries the cat away. In gratefulness to Sniffles for rescuing the baby owl, Parent Owl gives him the egg shell.

Paul writes in Philippians 2:4:

Instead of each person watching out for their own good, watch out for what is better for others. (Common English Bible)

Sniffles contemplates this in that split-second he has to decide if he will do what is best for himself or for the baby owl. Paul continues in Philippians 2 with what has become known as the “Christ Hymn.” Paul quotes an ancient hymn, possibly one of the first that the Christian community used, to articulate who Jesus is: “he emptied himself by taking the form of a slave” (2:7).

Sniffles’ act is one in which we as Christians are encouraged (even called) to do as well. Paul says that we are to “adopt the attitude that was in Christ Jesus” (2:5). If Jesus emptied himself to become a slave, or servant, than we are to have that same attitude as well. In other words,everything from our actions to our decisions have an affect on others. What a difference would we make in our lives, in our communities, in the world, if we followed Philippians 2 to “watch out for what is better for others”? Sniffles provides for us a model for watching out for the good of others.