Hi everyone, welcome back to the Nightcrawler Experience!
We're now on part 3 of my collaboration with St. John's United Methodist Church, helping to examine and find Scriptural messages in movies that they will be screening for the church. For this entry, I will be returning to last year's Disney gem of 'Zootopia.'
I know, I've talked about this movie a couple times already on this blog, between my full- length review of it shortly after it premiered and including its heroine Judy Hopps on my '10 Favorite Movie Characters of 2016' list (Feel free to check out either of those on this blog if you want). However, for the sake of continuing this awesome collaboration with St. John's and spreading the message for those who haven't seen those entries yet, I'll talk about it one more time.
'Zootopia' is a great entry in the Disney library, centering around a young rabbit named Judy Hopps who desires to move to the large city of Zootopia and become a police officer. However, nobody takes her seriously compared to the larger and more intimidating animals on the force, and she is put on meter maid duty. Eventually, she finds herself tackling a major case involving an otter who is one of several predatory animals that have recently gone missing. While investigating this, Judy allies herself with a fox con artist named Nick Wilde, who is one of her leads in the case. Eventually, they learn it is much deeper than a simple missing otter, and it is a case in which the fates of everyone in Zootopia can hang in the balance.
As the devotional flier I wrote for the church screening shows, one message taken from 'Zootopia' involves changing the way we look at others as a result of becoming followers of Jesus, as shown in 2 Corinthians 5:16-21. Judy comes to realize that she too needs to change the way she looks at things and at other creatures. Also, Psalm 105:1-11's call to remember the Lord and all He's done and seek Him always can be seen as similar to Judy remembering the great principles Zootopia was first founded on and tirelessly pursuing justice and what's right in everything she does.
Once again, though, I think more Scriptural messages can be found in 'Zootopia' than just those, so I'll be discussing them here.
The main message of 'Zootopia' deals with the subject of tolerance, animals needing to overcome their petty differences (In the case of the movie, mainly between "Predator" animals and "Prey" animals). Over the course of the film, Judy discovers both how subtle and how destructive prejudice and hate can be, and the different forms it can take. She sees that she must confront it, starting with overcoming her own inner prejudices, in order to return Zootopia to the place of inclusion and togetherness it was meant to be. Tolerance for others is most definitely a Christian virtue. Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:25- 37 to show the importance of being a good, compassionate neighbor to those who are different from you. Even just the fact that He told such a story with a Samaritan hero to a group of Jews (Who had been taught to hate Samaritans) further demonstrated His point about compassion overcoming prejudice. Acts 10 has the apostle Peter sharing what he learned about tolerance to a group of listeners. In verse 28, it says "He said to them: You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with or visit a Gentile. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean." Then, in verses 34 and 35, it goes on to say "Then Peter began to speak: "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears Him and does what is right."
I think another very important message to 'Zootopia' deals with Judy demonstrating the Biblical virtue of perseverance. In Judy's goal of becoming a police officer, she hits one obstacle after another, from seemingly insurmountable challenges in her Police Academy training to fellow officers and superiors who underestimate her due to the fact that she's a rabbit, and so on. Nevertheless, she refuses to stop or even slow down amidst these obstacles. She keeps going and perseveres. In much the same way, we as Christians face obstacles and challenges in our lives and our walks with Jesus every day. We must keep going, however, persevering in our faith and remaining true to our Lord and Savior. Galatians 6:9 says "Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up." 2 Thessalonians 3:13 drives this home further by saying "And as for you, brothers and sisters, never tire of doing what is good." Lastly, James 1:12 observes "Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love Him."
So, 'Zootopia helps to teach us that by looking past each other's differences to see that God loves us all, and remaining patient and persevering even when tested, we will be truly doing what the Lord calls of us. At the end of the day, we are all God's creatures.
That wraps up this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. Come back next week when I conclude this series. Until then, God bless you all!
Friday, July 28, 2017
Friday, July 21, 2017
Dealing with loss and being good stewards; A devotional look at 'Big Hero 6.'
Hi everyone, welcome back to the Nightcrawler Experience!
For this, part two of my collaboration with St. John's United Methodist Church on their Movie Night series, I will be taking a look at faith- based messages in the 2014 Disney film 'Big Hero 6.'
This was quite a good movie, the first time Disney has really taken full advantage of their ownership of Marvel Comics. It is also being made into an animated TV series for Disney XD, due to premiere this fall.
'Big Hero 6' centers around a boy named Hiro Hamada, a brilliant but rather unfocused teen boy living with his brother Tadashi and their aunt in the fascinating city of San Fransokyo (Yes, you read that right). Hiro is a robotics prodigy, but puts that gift largely to waste by using it to win money in illegal back- alley robot fights. With a little prodding, Tadashi convinces Hiro to join up with a technical college and find a way to use his gift for the good of all. Sadly, not long after this, Tadashi dies in an accident, and Hiro has a bit of a downward spiral. Eventually, he's roused out of it by Tadashi's last great creation, a delightful inflatable healthcare robot named Baymax. The two of them eventually discover that a mysterious figure wearing a Kabuki mask has stolen the idea for a groundbreaking bit of "Microbot" tech Hiro designed and is planning to use it for nefarious purposes. Together with a few of Tadashi's friends from the technical college, they refine their respective inventions enough to become a kind of superhero group and unravel this mystery before it's too late.
In the devotional I wrote to go along with the screening of 'Big Hero 6' this evening, I brought up two lessons that can be taken from it: First, that Hiro's turning from his rather wasteful lifestyle and striving to act for the good of all ties into Psalm 34:14's call to "Turn from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it." Second, that Hiro's newfound devotion to aiding others and following Tadashi's good example tie into what the Psalmist prays for in Psalm 86:11- 17.
However, as with 'Up' last week, I'd say that's just scratching the surface on Scriptural messages that can be found in 'Big Hero 6.'
I think the core message of 'Big Hero 6' concerns how to deal with loss. We quickly see how devastated Hiro is over the death of his brother, and how for quite a while, he basically gives up on life himself because of it. Eventually, though, he learns how to deal with this through Baymax and his new friends. We all have lost people we love, some in senseless and untimely ways. I most certainly have. I currently have only one grandparent still alive, I have lost very many older friends of mine (In fact, in the very first edition of the Nightcrawler Experience, you see I dedicated this blog to one of them, and just a few months later did an entry in memory of my grandmother "Mimi"), and in 2006, a younger friend of mine nicknamed "Chip" who had everything going for him was killed in a botched carjacking less than three weeks before he would have graduated from high school. The key to ensuring that those we've lost never truly leave us is to always remember them, do the good things they taught us, and follow the noble principles they believed in. Hiro realizes this in the movie, especially through Baymax, who was Tadashi's master work and the embodiment of the great principles Tadashi lived by to do as much good as you can in the world.
More to the point for us as Christians, we know that for those who are in Christ Jesus, death is not the end, but a new beginning. We know that those who die in Christ Jesus will dwell with Him in Heaven forever, and the day will come when we will be reunited with them. An important verse in Scripture that deals with this is 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14: "Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who has no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him." Jesus Himself said in John 11:25-26 that "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives in me by believing will never die. Do you believe this?" I have derived so much comfort from verses such as those, knowing that I'll see Chip, my grandparents, and others I've lost again in Heaven some day. I'd say the rest of you who've lost those you've loved can also be strengthened by those verses.
Another very important Scriptural message that can be taken from 'Big Hero 6' is on the importance of being good stewards of the gifts we are given, using them the way God intended them to be used. One moment of the movie in which Hiro is severely tempted to give in to sin in this way is when he discovers the identity of the Kabuki- masked villain, and learns he was also connected to the accident that killed Tadashi. In fury over this, Hiro removes Baymax's healthcare chip (The chip which contains all the personality traits and other such things that enable Baymax to respect life and devote itself to providing people with medical care) and orders Baymax to kill the guy.
Baymax later points out that Hiro doing this, removing the healthcare chip and turning Baymax into a weapon rather than a healer, is definitely not what Tadashi intended when he built Baymax. In fact, we see through a video recording that once Tadashi had perfected Baymax and was happily celebrating this victory, one of the first things he says to the robot is "You're gonna help SO many people, buddy! SO many!" What's more, Hiro's perverting Baymax in such a way by trying to turn it from a healer into a killer, would be no different from the way that the film's villain perverts and weaponizes Hiro's microbot invention. Upon realizing this, Hiro repents of his mistake, and from then on uses Baymax in a way much more in keeping with what Tadashi wanted.
In much the same way, God gives each of us great gifts that He intends us to use to help serve Him and build His Kingdom. We need to resist temptations to use those gifts in sinful or short- sighted ways. A Bible passage that particularly pertains to this is 1 Peter 4:10-11, which says that "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory and power forever and ever. Amen." Also, Ephesians 2:10 tells us "For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
The reason for this is because through each of us working together and using our gifts and strengths the right way as God intended, people will see the good we do, see God's hand in it, and praise Him. Jesus Himself drove this point home in Matthew 5:14- 16: "You are the light of the world; A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven."
And so, there you have my look at 'Big Hero 6,' a great superhero movie with great messages about handling loss and using our gifts the way God intended.
That's it for this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. Come back next week as I look at the next film on St. Johns's list. Until then, God bless you all!
For this, part two of my collaboration with St. John's United Methodist Church on their Movie Night series, I will be taking a look at faith- based messages in the 2014 Disney film 'Big Hero 6.'
This was quite a good movie, the first time Disney has really taken full advantage of their ownership of Marvel Comics. It is also being made into an animated TV series for Disney XD, due to premiere this fall.
'Big Hero 6' centers around a boy named Hiro Hamada, a brilliant but rather unfocused teen boy living with his brother Tadashi and their aunt in the fascinating city of San Fransokyo (Yes, you read that right). Hiro is a robotics prodigy, but puts that gift largely to waste by using it to win money in illegal back- alley robot fights. With a little prodding, Tadashi convinces Hiro to join up with a technical college and find a way to use his gift for the good of all. Sadly, not long after this, Tadashi dies in an accident, and Hiro has a bit of a downward spiral. Eventually, he's roused out of it by Tadashi's last great creation, a delightful inflatable healthcare robot named Baymax. The two of them eventually discover that a mysterious figure wearing a Kabuki mask has stolen the idea for a groundbreaking bit of "Microbot" tech Hiro designed and is planning to use it for nefarious purposes. Together with a few of Tadashi's friends from the technical college, they refine their respective inventions enough to become a kind of superhero group and unravel this mystery before it's too late.
In the devotional I wrote to go along with the screening of 'Big Hero 6' this evening, I brought up two lessons that can be taken from it: First, that Hiro's turning from his rather wasteful lifestyle and striving to act for the good of all ties into Psalm 34:14's call to "Turn from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it." Second, that Hiro's newfound devotion to aiding others and following Tadashi's good example tie into what the Psalmist prays for in Psalm 86:11- 17.
However, as with 'Up' last week, I'd say that's just scratching the surface on Scriptural messages that can be found in 'Big Hero 6.'
I think the core message of 'Big Hero 6' concerns how to deal with loss. We quickly see how devastated Hiro is over the death of his brother, and how for quite a while, he basically gives up on life himself because of it. Eventually, though, he learns how to deal with this through Baymax and his new friends. We all have lost people we love, some in senseless and untimely ways. I most certainly have. I currently have only one grandparent still alive, I have lost very many older friends of mine (In fact, in the very first edition of the Nightcrawler Experience, you see I dedicated this blog to one of them, and just a few months later did an entry in memory of my grandmother "Mimi"), and in 2006, a younger friend of mine nicknamed "Chip" who had everything going for him was killed in a botched carjacking less than three weeks before he would have graduated from high school. The key to ensuring that those we've lost never truly leave us is to always remember them, do the good things they taught us, and follow the noble principles they believed in. Hiro realizes this in the movie, especially through Baymax, who was Tadashi's master work and the embodiment of the great principles Tadashi lived by to do as much good as you can in the world.
More to the point for us as Christians, we know that for those who are in Christ Jesus, death is not the end, but a new beginning. We know that those who die in Christ Jesus will dwell with Him in Heaven forever, and the day will come when we will be reunited with them. An important verse in Scripture that deals with this is 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14: "Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who has no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him." Jesus Himself said in John 11:25-26 that "I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives in me by believing will never die. Do you believe this?" I have derived so much comfort from verses such as those, knowing that I'll see Chip, my grandparents, and others I've lost again in Heaven some day. I'd say the rest of you who've lost those you've loved can also be strengthened by those verses.
Another very important Scriptural message that can be taken from 'Big Hero 6' is on the importance of being good stewards of the gifts we are given, using them the way God intended them to be used. One moment of the movie in which Hiro is severely tempted to give in to sin in this way is when he discovers the identity of the Kabuki- masked villain, and learns he was also connected to the accident that killed Tadashi. In fury over this, Hiro removes Baymax's healthcare chip (The chip which contains all the personality traits and other such things that enable Baymax to respect life and devote itself to providing people with medical care) and orders Baymax to kill the guy.
Baymax later points out that Hiro doing this, removing the healthcare chip and turning Baymax into a weapon rather than a healer, is definitely not what Tadashi intended when he built Baymax. In fact, we see through a video recording that once Tadashi had perfected Baymax and was happily celebrating this victory, one of the first things he says to the robot is "You're gonna help SO many people, buddy! SO many!" What's more, Hiro's perverting Baymax in such a way by trying to turn it from a healer into a killer, would be no different from the way that the film's villain perverts and weaponizes Hiro's microbot invention. Upon realizing this, Hiro repents of his mistake, and from then on uses Baymax in a way much more in keeping with what Tadashi wanted.
In much the same way, God gives each of us great gifts that He intends us to use to help serve Him and build His Kingdom. We need to resist temptations to use those gifts in sinful or short- sighted ways. A Bible passage that particularly pertains to this is 1 Peter 4:10-11, which says that "Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory and power forever and ever. Amen." Also, Ephesians 2:10 tells us "For we are God's handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do."
The reason for this is because through each of us working together and using our gifts and strengths the right way as God intended, people will see the good we do, see God's hand in it, and praise Him. Jesus Himself drove this point home in Matthew 5:14- 16: "You are the light of the world; A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on a stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in Heaven."
And so, there you have my look at 'Big Hero 6,' a great superhero movie with great messages about handling loss and using our gifts the way God intended.
That's it for this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. Come back next week as I look at the next film on St. Johns's list. Until then, God bless you all!
Friday, July 14, 2017
Selflessness and putting the past in its place: A devotional look at 'Up'...
Hello everyone, and welcome back to the Nightcrawler Experience!
This will be the first part of a hopefully four- part series which I am doing kind of in partnership with St. John's United Methodist Church. The pastor there, Rev. David Averill (A dear old friend of mine from our seminary days), is doing a series in which he screens an animated movie at the church on a Friday night and then gives a sermon tying into it on Sunday mornings. He asked me to help him with this, writing devotionals to go along with each movie and be passed out at the screenings, and then go a little more in depth on other possible Scriptural messages in the film here on the Nightcrawler Experience.
For the first installment in this series, I will be looking at the beloved 2009 Pixar film 'Up.'
I'm sure most if not all of you (Certainly those at today's screening of it at the church) have already seen this great, heartwarming movie:
Carl Fredricksen, a widower who's let bitterness take over after his wife died, gets the idea to use tens of thousands of balloons to fly the house he and his wife shared over to the beautiful jungle of Paradise Falls, where he and his late wife had always dreamed of one day going. He unwittingly picks up a stowaway in the form of an enthusiastic little boy named Russell, and while making his way there, also finds himself saddled with a strange bird that Russell takes in and names "Kevin," and a lovable dog named Dug. These four have an incredible adventure while trying to get the house where Carl wants it to go.
In my devotional I wrote to be passed out at the screening, I pointed out how Carl's crazy and seemingly impossible yet brilliant plan ties into Jesus's point in Matthew 19:26 that "With God, all things are possible." I also pointed out that key to this, achieving our dreams through trusting in Jesus, includes us actively following after Him and making sure that we're doing what He knows is best for us, using the Psalmist's example in Psalm 119:5-12.
However, I think a couple more Scriptural messages can be found in 'Up,' as well.
For instance, one major faith- based message I saw in 'Up' concerned living selflessly, putting others' needs ahead of your own. Carl Fredricksen started his journey only concerned with his own goal of getting his house to the location on Paradise Falls where he wanted it. In fact, later in the movie, Carl's self- centered devotion to this goal led to him allowing the bird Kevin to be captured when it came to a choice between helping Kevin escape or putting out a fire that had been set on his house. By the movie's climax, however, Carl learns to start caring more about the needs of others, as he finds himself willing to sacrifice his goal in order to save the life of young Russell. This is a perfect example of what is taught in Philippians 2:3-4: "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." Overcoming selfishness can be a major hurdle, especially in our current Western society, but it's one we need to overcome in order to be fruitful for the Lord. Jesus selflessly allowed Himself to die on the cross to pay for our sins, so the least we can do is kind of pay it forward by being kind and selfless to others.
Another Scriptural message to be taken from 'Up' involves letting go of the past. Carl's relationship and marriage to his late wife Ellie (Which the house kind of represents) was wonderful, but as we see through Carl's reading of the final note of Ellie's adventure book, she did not want him to hang on to their past so tightly, regardless of how great it was. As her final note in it explains, her last wishes were for him to move on and live abundantly in the next chapters of his life. Carl then lives this out, first by emptying the house of all the material things that are weighing it down and keeping it from flying (Similar to how we all have unnecessary baggage from our past that weighs us down and we should let go of), then finally by letting go of the house itself after he saves Russell. While we shouldn't forget our past experiences, good or bad, as they have helped to shape who we are, if we hold onto them too tightly like Carl does for much of the film, it can keep our eyes off of the here and now and rob us of any hope of living well in the future. Scripture is pretty clear on the point of moving forward in life rather than constantly looking back, especially due to the saving effect of accepting Jesus changing our lives and priorities. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says that "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; Behold, the new has come." Furthermore, Philippians 3:13- 14 says that "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." By not letting ourselves be too closely tied to our pasts (Whether it be good experiences or bad ones), we can move ahead and better serve and honor the Lord now and build a better tomorrow for His Kingdom.
Both of these points, and the potential consequences of not following them, can be further seen in 'Up' by contrasting good old Carl with the film's villain, Charles Muntz. Some of my favorite kinds of movie villains are those who represent the hero's darker nature, or the sort of person the hero could have ended up becoming like if they had made different choices or had different circumstances, and I'd say Muntz fits the bill perfectly. A couple other examples of this are Gaston from 'Beauty and the Beast' (He represents the sort of person that the Prince would have almost certainly ended up becoming like if he had never met the Enchantress and been transformed into the Beast), and Justin Hammer from 'Iron Man 2' (He represents the sort of person that Tony Stark would have likely ended up becoming if he had never been kidnapped by terrorists in the first film and forced to re- evaluate his life).
In 'Up,' Charles Muntz shows what Carl could have ended up becoming like if he continued obsessively focusing on the past and on his own selfish desires. Muntz had become so obsessed with reclaiming his past glory and position by capturing the bird that he was willing to flat- out murder anyone that he even just believed might have been planning to capture the bird and bring it to civilization before he could. That he would stoop to such depths further shows that Muntz was not motivated by decent goals such as contributing to a scientific discovery and helping to teach people about the world, but that he was only doing it because he wanted the personal glory and status that would come with such a discovery. Muntz's selfishness and fixation on the past drive him mad and eventually destroy him, while Carl's learning to move on and put others ahead of himself are what enable him to prevail, become a father- figure to a young boy in desperate need for one, and set about living the rest of his life to the fullest.
So, that's my look at 'Up,' one of Pixar's best films with loads of great messages about living for Christ.
That's it for this installment of the Nightcrawler Experience. I should have a similar devotional entry up next week looking at the next film in the lineup, 'Big Hero 6.' Until then, God bless you all!
This will be the first part of a hopefully four- part series which I am doing kind of in partnership with St. John's United Methodist Church. The pastor there, Rev. David Averill (A dear old friend of mine from our seminary days), is doing a series in which he screens an animated movie at the church on a Friday night and then gives a sermon tying into it on Sunday mornings. He asked me to help him with this, writing devotionals to go along with each movie and be passed out at the screenings, and then go a little more in depth on other possible Scriptural messages in the film here on the Nightcrawler Experience.
For the first installment in this series, I will be looking at the beloved 2009 Pixar film 'Up.'
I'm sure most if not all of you (Certainly those at today's screening of it at the church) have already seen this great, heartwarming movie:
Carl Fredricksen, a widower who's let bitterness take over after his wife died, gets the idea to use tens of thousands of balloons to fly the house he and his wife shared over to the beautiful jungle of Paradise Falls, where he and his late wife had always dreamed of one day going. He unwittingly picks up a stowaway in the form of an enthusiastic little boy named Russell, and while making his way there, also finds himself saddled with a strange bird that Russell takes in and names "Kevin," and a lovable dog named Dug. These four have an incredible adventure while trying to get the house where Carl wants it to go.
In my devotional I wrote to be passed out at the screening, I pointed out how Carl's crazy and seemingly impossible yet brilliant plan ties into Jesus's point in Matthew 19:26 that "With God, all things are possible." I also pointed out that key to this, achieving our dreams through trusting in Jesus, includes us actively following after Him and making sure that we're doing what He knows is best for us, using the Psalmist's example in Psalm 119:5-12.
However, I think a couple more Scriptural messages can be found in 'Up,' as well.
For instance, one major faith- based message I saw in 'Up' concerned living selflessly, putting others' needs ahead of your own. Carl Fredricksen started his journey only concerned with his own goal of getting his house to the location on Paradise Falls where he wanted it. In fact, later in the movie, Carl's self- centered devotion to this goal led to him allowing the bird Kevin to be captured when it came to a choice between helping Kevin escape or putting out a fire that had been set on his house. By the movie's climax, however, Carl learns to start caring more about the needs of others, as he finds himself willing to sacrifice his goal in order to save the life of young Russell. This is a perfect example of what is taught in Philippians 2:3-4: "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others." Overcoming selfishness can be a major hurdle, especially in our current Western society, but it's one we need to overcome in order to be fruitful for the Lord. Jesus selflessly allowed Himself to die on the cross to pay for our sins, so the least we can do is kind of pay it forward by being kind and selfless to others.
Another Scriptural message to be taken from 'Up' involves letting go of the past. Carl's relationship and marriage to his late wife Ellie (Which the house kind of represents) was wonderful, but as we see through Carl's reading of the final note of Ellie's adventure book, she did not want him to hang on to their past so tightly, regardless of how great it was. As her final note in it explains, her last wishes were for him to move on and live abundantly in the next chapters of his life. Carl then lives this out, first by emptying the house of all the material things that are weighing it down and keeping it from flying (Similar to how we all have unnecessary baggage from our past that weighs us down and we should let go of), then finally by letting go of the house itself after he saves Russell. While we shouldn't forget our past experiences, good or bad, as they have helped to shape who we are, if we hold onto them too tightly like Carl does for much of the film, it can keep our eyes off of the here and now and rob us of any hope of living well in the future. Scripture is pretty clear on the point of moving forward in life rather than constantly looking back, especially due to the saving effect of accepting Jesus changing our lives and priorities. 2 Corinthians 5:17 says that "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; Behold, the new has come." Furthermore, Philippians 3:13- 14 says that "Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: Forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." By not letting ourselves be too closely tied to our pasts (Whether it be good experiences or bad ones), we can move ahead and better serve and honor the Lord now and build a better tomorrow for His Kingdom.
Both of these points, and the potential consequences of not following them, can be further seen in 'Up' by contrasting good old Carl with the film's villain, Charles Muntz. Some of my favorite kinds of movie villains are those who represent the hero's darker nature, or the sort of person the hero could have ended up becoming like if they had made different choices or had different circumstances, and I'd say Muntz fits the bill perfectly. A couple other examples of this are Gaston from 'Beauty and the Beast' (He represents the sort of person that the Prince would have almost certainly ended up becoming like if he had never met the Enchantress and been transformed into the Beast), and Justin Hammer from 'Iron Man 2' (He represents the sort of person that Tony Stark would have likely ended up becoming if he had never been kidnapped by terrorists in the first film and forced to re- evaluate his life).
In 'Up,' Charles Muntz shows what Carl could have ended up becoming like if he continued obsessively focusing on the past and on his own selfish desires. Muntz had become so obsessed with reclaiming his past glory and position by capturing the bird that he was willing to flat- out murder anyone that he even just believed might have been planning to capture the bird and bring it to civilization before he could. That he would stoop to such depths further shows that Muntz was not motivated by decent goals such as contributing to a scientific discovery and helping to teach people about the world, but that he was only doing it because he wanted the personal glory and status that would come with such a discovery. Muntz's selfishness and fixation on the past drive him mad and eventually destroy him, while Carl's learning to move on and put others ahead of himself are what enable him to prevail, become a father- figure to a young boy in desperate need for one, and set about living the rest of his life to the fullest.
So, that's my look at 'Up,' one of Pixar's best films with loads of great messages about living for Christ.
That's it for this installment of the Nightcrawler Experience. I should have a similar devotional entry up next week looking at the next film in the lineup, 'Big Hero 6.' Until then, God bless you all!
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