Godly Love, Being Willing to Take Risks, and Dealing with Loss: A Faith- Based Look at 'Onward.'

 Hi everyone, and welcome to another entry of the Nightcrawler Experience!
Continuing my annual partnership with St. John's Untied Methodist Church for their Summer at the Movies series, we will now be looking at the third film in that series, another Disney- Pixar film from last year: The fantasy epic 'Onward.'

(Credit for this image goes to the user CrazyBob2014 on the Disney wiki at https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Onward/Gallery?file=Onward_Teaser_Poster.jpg)

This film takes place in a very unique sort of fantasy world. It has elves and dragons and unicorns and magic and whatnot, but it's also very modernized; Magic is rare and also seen as rather obsolete as technology has made everything much easier and more convenient.
In this world, we meet two elven brothers, Ian and Barley Lightfoot. Ian (Voice of Tom Holland) is very intelligent but also quiet, timid and socially- awkward, and we soon see that he has a talent for magic. Barley (Voice of Chris Pratt), in contrast, is loud, outgoing, and has a love of fantasy and gaming, but is also a slacker who tends to unwittingly cause a lot of problems for others. Ian is deeply embarrassed of Barley as a result of this, further contributing to his shyness and difficulty making friends. While their mom (Voice of Julia Louis- Dreyfus) does her best to keep her family together, things are made harder by the fact that the boys' father died when Barley was a toddler and Ian was just a baby. As such, Barley has only a few vague memories of his dad, and Ian doesn't have any at all. Both would give anything to see him again.

Things take a big change, though, when Ian turns sixteen, and is given a magical staff that their dad had apparently owned which was set aside until both brothers turned sixteen. As I said, we learn that Ian does have some magical talent, and they discover a spell he can cast that can restore their deceased father for one day. The spell goes wrong, though, as the rare Phoenix Gem that helps power it shatters, so it only brings the dad back from the waist down. Realizing that they need another Gem to complete the spell before the 24 hours runs out, the two brothers and their half- resurrected dad pile into Barley's beloved van Guinevere, and they set out on an adventure to find one in time.

I think I actually enjoyed 'Onward' even more than the previous Pixar film we looked at in this series, 'Soul.' While it's not as thought- provoking as 'Soul,' I'd say it's a good deal more fun and entertaining in general, and is just as poignant.

Over the course of the brothers' quest, they run into a number of perilous situations that provide for a lot of thrilling moments and action sequences, usually involving the brothers in Guinevere being chased by those who seek to stop them (First a hilarious gang of irate pixie bikers that Barley had unwittingly offended, then later by the cops). There's also a thrilling sequence in which they have to make their way through a dark tunnel to find the Gem, dodging arrow traps, a flooding room, and even a Gelatinous Cube (It's a LOT deadlier than it sounds, trust me)!

'Onward' also gains points for how cleverly it includes several different nods to various aspects of fantasy, from Dungeons and Dragons (i.e. the aforementioned Gelatinous Cube originates from that game), to JRR Tolkien's books (In a charming double- nod to 'Lord of the Rings,' there's a fast- food joint in the movie called "Burger Shire" whose sign boasts that it serves "Second Breakfast"), to many others. It's clear the writers of this film are major fantasy genre devotees who really did their homework on it.

Now, for the character run- down:
Ian makes for a decent enough main character. He's very easy to sympathize with, things like his desperately trying to fit in while having to deal with his embarrassing brother and his own personal anxieties, his initial fear of learning to drive, especially on the highway (I can certainly relate to that from back when I was first learning to drive), and how much he misses his dad and is so sad that he never really knew him. Seeing him shaking off his cautious nature as he and Barley pursue their goals is always deeply satisfying. Tom Holland (Best known for his work as the MCU's Spider- Man) brings the right amounts of emotion for each scene he's in.

Barley, as some of you regulars to this blog may recall, was one of my top 10 favorite movie characters of 2020, and with good reason. I LOVED THIS GUY! He's incredibly funny in nearly every scene he's in, and manages to have some deeply sympathetic moments too (i.e. a scene rather late in the film when he reveals to Ian that he has another memory of their dad which he had never told him about, because it wasn't a good one). His adventurous spirit, exuberance, kindness to everyone, and just general good nature make him a character you'll quickly love. Even when he's screwing up, it's clear he's really got his heart in the right place and he still remains quite likable. Chris Pratt's awesome voice acting makes an already cool character even better! As a matter of fact, I'd say Barley Lightfoot is one of my favorite Pixar characters in general.

The boys' mom, Laurel, is an alright character. She starts the movie as just the typical "Animated movie mom" character, and it's a little sad that, while we clearly see how much the boys miss their father, we don't see much at all of her missing her husband. She may have moved on since his passing and found someone else (More on that in a second), but losing her spouse had to have still left her with a lot of pain to work through. Laurel REALLY starts to shine, though, around the second half of the movie, when she learns that the boys' quest could put all their lives in mortal danger and sets out to try and stop them. There, while we can still see how scared and worried she is for her boys, we see her developing incredible courage in all that she faces along the way.

A supporting character whose portrayal I liked a lot was Laurel's boyfriend, Officer Colt Bronco, a centaur police officer. It would have been so easy to make him just a dime- a- dozen "Mom's jerk boyfriend" character and/ or a dime- a- dozen "Mean, bullying cop" character, yet they dodged both of those with Colt; He seems to be a genuinely decent, well- meaning guy, and while he can get rather strict and does at one point present an obstacle to the brothers and attempt to stop them from completing their mission, he's just doing his job as an officer of the law and trying to help keep his girlfriend's sons out of trouble. Seeing him by the end of the movie lighten up some more and get along better with the boys makes him even more likable. Plus, he gets some more points in my book because I just think centaurs are cool in general.

One last character I'd like to talk about is another character from this movie who made my "Top 10 Favorite Movie Characters of 2020" list: Corey the Manticore. See, early in the film, the boys discover that the best way to gain assistance in finding the gem is by seeking out the "Manticore's Tavern." They go there, expecting it to be a cool, rough place, but find instead a goofy family eatery. As for Corey the Manticore herself, she was once a great adventurer, but is now reduced to running her restaurant and keeping her customers happy. Still, a pep talk from Ian helps her to regain her spirit of adventure. She eventually befriends Laurel, and helps her a lot in finding and at one point saving the boys. She has loads of funny moments, and Oscar- winner Octavia Spencer does a wonderful job voicing her.

There are quite a few Scriptural messages in 'Onward' that I can think of. The first, which I included in the devotional that I wrote and Pastor Danny circulated, concerned how Barley's flawed but genuine love for his family makes for a great summation of what Christian love as seen in 13:4-7 can look like. May we all love our families as deeply as Barley loves his. Even when we mess up at times like he does, we can still allow love to define all we do.

A second Scriptural message to be taken from the film is on courage and learning to take risks. As I pointed out when talking about Corey in my "Top 10 Movie Characters of 2020" list, what really helps inspire Corey to ditch the timid restaurateur she had become and regain the adventurous personality she once had is when Ian reminds her of a wonderful quote she herself had said while in her prime: "You have to take risks in life to have an adventure." She's not the only one who learns this, as Ian is in a way reminded of this great truth later in the movie; He, his brother and their half- restored dad are in Guinevere, trying to get away from a gang of extremely ticked- off pixie bikers (Every scene with these little guys is pure gold). Barley is still suffering the effects of a temporary shrinking spell and thus can't drive, so Ian (Who, again, is very nervous about driving) has to take the wheel. To escape the pixies and get back on their quest, they need to get on the highway, but merging onto highways is one aspect of driving that terrifies Ian. That, then, leads to this frantic exchange with highway traffic pouring in from the side, and the pixies hot on their heels:
Barley: "Okay, you're gonna have to merge. Speed up..."
Ian: "I can't do this!"
Barley: "Yes, you can!"
Ian: "I'm not ready!"
Barley: "You'll never be 'ready'! MERGE!"
Ian then hits the gas, and terrified though he is, successfully merges onto the highway and eventually helps them get away from the pixies.
As both Corey and Ian learn in the movie, taking risks and doing things that seem scary are the only ways to really get anywhere enjoyable in life. The Bible teaches this, too. So many people in the Bible took huge, scary risks in the name of serving the Lord, particularly the disciples of Jesus. In 1 Chronicles 28:20, King David tells his son Solomon, who was at the time trying to build an enormous temple to God, "Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord thy God is with you." There are Christians today in various nations who take immense risks by accepting and standing up for Jesus. We, too, may be called by God to do scary or risky things for Him, but He will get us through them and will never leave us or forsake us.

A final Scriptural message that I think can be taken from 'Onward' is on the nature of grief. We see how the family has dealt with the loss of the boys' father. It is a heavy blow for them all, especially for Ian who had never really known his father and wants so desperately to have some memories of him, but it's a blow that they eventually (Largely through this adventure they go on in the movie) learn to make peace with and move on from. By the end of the movie, we see that the brothers have a better relationship with each other and with their mom's boyfriend Colt whom they initially disliked, the mom has become more socially active, and they aren't letting their loss negatively impact their lives anymore. This calls to mind what Jesus said in Luke 6:21: "Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh." We as Christians know that, while we can experience deep pain and loss (I'm speaking from personal experience on this), the Lord Jesus Christ can help us all find comfort, get through it and move on, and live active, fulfilling lives in spite of our pain. We know that the pains of our Earthly lives are nothing compared to the endless joys that await us in Heaven, and that God can still enable us to make the most out of life even amid loss and setbacks; All we have to do is trust Him.

That's about it for 'Onward,' an awesome family film that teaches us what Godly love can look like, the importance of being brave and taking risks to serve the Lord, and how He can help us recover from loss. We've learned these lessons, now to paraphrase Barley, let's ALL go "'O' for 'Onward'" and put them to good use in our lives as we follow Jesus!

That's all for this entry of the Nightcrawler Experience. Come back next Wednesday, as we'll be finishing up this year's Summer at the Movies series with one more film. Until then, stay safe and healthy, and may God bless you all!

Finding Purpose and Dodging Distraction: A Faith- Based Look at 'Soul.'

 
Hello everyone, and welcome back to another edition of the Nightcrawler Experience!

This is part two of my four- part annual partnership with St. John's United Methodist Church for their annual "Summer at the Movies" series.
For this installment, we will be looking at quite an interesting one: Pixar's splendid 2020 offering known as 'Soul.'

This movie is the story of Joe Gardner (Voice of Jamie Foxx), a fortysomething man living in New York City and working as a middle- school music teacher. He wants more out of life than that, though, and deeply believes he's meant to be a full- time, professional jazz musician, and he has the amazing piano skills to back it up. Nobody's ever really given him a chance at that, though.
One day, though, he finally gets that chance, as he lands a gig performing alongside an incredibly respected jazz musician named Dorothea Williams. Shortly after getting this news, however, he falls into a manhole (Even in moments of bliss over your dreams being fulfilled, you've still got to watch where you're going), which puts him into a coma and sends his soul off on a kind of conveyor belt to the "Great Beyond." He doesn't want to move on when he's so close to achieving his dream, however, and so he instead finds himself in the "Great Before," an area where young souls develop their personalities and prepare to come to Earth and start a life.
One soul Joe meets here, known simply as "22," has been in this area for thousands of years. In spite of countless mentors throughout history (Including some pretty well- known deceased public figures), she dislikes Earth and refuses to become a fully- developed soul and head down there. Joe figures that she could be his ticket back to Earth so his soul can get back in his body and wake him up in time for his gig.
A mix- up finds Joe and 22 on Earth, but not exactly in the way they'd hope. This leads to a struggle to set things right, some great revelations and both characters learning more about what it means to truly be alive.

'Soul' makes for another incredible creation of Pixar's. I think I'd compare it the most to 'Inside Out,' in that it takes a massively complex topic (The human subconscious for 'Inside Out,' elements of esotericism for 'Soul'), and yet presents it in a way that's easy for kids and others in the audience to understand. It's won a ton of awards, and it's easy to see why.
The visuals are great, both for the scenes in New York City and its various locales Joe lives in and interacts with, and for the "Great Before" and other such spiritual locations. So many colors and environments are presented, it's almost overwhelming.

Also, another plus to 'Soul' is, as you can probably guess for a movie in which the main character is an aspiring jazz musician, the musical score is flat- out gorgeous. There are loads of incredible pieces of jazz music (ranging from Joe just playing on his piano, to the scenes with Dorothea Williams's entire band playing), and also some more soft, simple compositions for the scenes in the various spiritual locations. It's a feast for both the eyes and the ears.
A small detail I liked about 'Soul' is a quick but quite touching little "Easter egg" they threw in: In 22's sort- of house/ base, we can see one wall is littered with name- tag stickers of 22's past mentors, none of whom were able to help her discover her purpose or seek to go down to Earth. There are some famous celebrities among those names, and others I'd never heard of. One that's seen pretty prominently is "Joe Ranft." This may not be a name any of you recognize, but he was one of the people who basically built Pixar animation in its early days. Joe Ranft was a major writer and story supervisor for most of their early films, co- directed one, and voiced a few characters for them (i.e. He was the voice actor for Heimlich the caterpillar in 'A Bug's Life' and Wheezy the squeaky toy penguin in 'Toy Story 2,' among other characters), before being tragically killed in a 2005 car accident. So, I thought including that little nod to him in 'Soul' was a very nice gesture.

Now, for the character run- down. It's not often that an animated kids' movie has a fortysomething man as its main character, yet Joe Gardner makes for a wonderful main protagonist, likable all throughout. He wants for his life to be worth something, and since jazz music is his passion, figures that succeeding in that field is the only way to achieve that. It's easy to root for him in all he does, with all the hard work and frustration he faces in pursuit of his dream. I found myself relating to him a lot, as I too still struggle at times with finding my own calling in this world. Jamie Foxx brings a ton of emotion to his voice, as well. It's clear how much he invested in his performance of this complicated character.

22 was a little annoying at first with her grumpy, confrontational attitude, but she grew on me a lot as the movie progressed and we got to see some real depth from her. She also had a lot of funny moments, usually involving her struggles with various aspects of life on Earth. Tina Fey's voice performance gave her a lot of charm and made her lines even funnier.

Another supporting character who I liked a lot was a guy named Moonwind (Voice of Graham Norton) a hippie mystic sign- twirler who helps out Joe a lot over the course of the movie. This guy is constantly funny and interesting to watch, you never want to miss a moment of him.

One final character in 'Soul' who deserves mention is Joe's mother, Libba, who runs a tailoring business and is NOT supportive of his pursuit of becoming a full- time musician. Admittedly, the "Closed- minded parent who attempts to discourage their offspring's lofty dreams"- type character is a trope that's used a lot in movies, but Libba makes it actually believable. She's not trying to be mean or ignorant, she just thinks that Joe would be a LOT better off instead becoming a full- time music teacher, as that would provide him with a lot more stability and financial security. It's an extremely understandable concern to have that you can easily see where she's coming from with, and it makes her and Joe finally reaching common ground on the matter and seeing eye to eye on things late in the film become all the more satisfying and heart- warming to watch.

Now, for the real theological meat of the matter.
While 'Soul''s portrayal of esoteric theory and views on things like the afterlife aren't exactly in line with Christian theology, I still think there are some solid Scriptural messages that can be taken from it.

In my devotional which Pastor Danny helped pass out for the screening at the church this evening, I bring up that arguably the main theme of 'Soul' is finding one's purpose in life. Joe starts by feeling that his purpose is simply to become a professional jazz musician, but eventually finds that is only one part of his life's actual purpose. I point out that God gives a great purpose and calling to each of us who follow Him through Jesus, and that He will eagerly guide us towards this if we let Him. As proof of this, I bring up Romans 8:28, which says that “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” The true purpose God has for us is to help spread His Word and build His Kingdom, and He gives each of us a unique calling to help pull this off.

I think another Scriptural message that can be taken from 'Soul' is to not be too consumed or overtaken by worldly issues and concerns. One area that Joe comes across on his journey is an area known as "The Zone," a place where living souls can briefly enter when the pursuit of their passions put them in a sort of euphoric trance. You know how, when someone like for instance an artist or athlete truly gives their all to what they are doing and does something incredible with it, they can be described as being "In the Zone"? Well, in this film, their souls briefly enter this particular area during those moments and seem to sort of float around in there for a bit before they return to reality.

 There's a dark side to this, however: The ground of this area is crawling with "Lost souls," horrific beings that are the souls of people who let their anxieties and obsessions overtake them and disconnect them from life. An example of this that we see turns out to have been a hedge fund manager so obsessed with making a trade that his soul was briefly turned into one of those monsters, mindlessly chanting "Make a trade, make a trade" over and over while lumbering across the astral plane (Don't worry, he is freed from this by Moonwind and a couple fellow mystics).
Jesus Himself warns believers to avoid letting themselves be caught in this sad state. People who allow themselves to be overtaken by their obsessions and temporary stresses can easily be seen as embodying what Jesus said in the Parable of the Sower, found in Matthew 13:1-23, specifically embodying the seeds that fell among thorns: "The seed falling among thorns refers to someone who hears the Word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the Word, making it unfruitful." Becoming too caught up in petty worldly matters and concerns, letting them become single- minded obsessions, greatly hinders our witness to others as well as our own personal walks with God. It keeps us from focusing on important, eternal things because of how preoccupied our minds have become with comparatively minor, temporary things. Fortunately, just as the hedge fund manager in 'Soul' is freed from his lost state with help from Moonwind and restored to his old self, when we at times get too caught up in worldly concerns and obsessions, Jesus can free us from it and return us to the state we're supposed to be in, if we just ask Him.

There you have 'Soul,' a marvelous, fascinating film that can show us how to avoid pointless worldly distractions that ensnare us and truly find the purpose that God intended for each of our lives.

That sums up this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. Come back next week when I'll be examining the next film in this series St. John's UMC is putting on. Until then, stay safe and healthy, and may God bless you all!

Trust and Unity: A Faith- Based Look at 'Raya and the Last Dragon.'

 Hi, friends, and welcome to another edition of the Nightcrawler Experience!

I am pleased to say that with this entry, this blog is again partnering with St. John's United Methodist Church for their Summer at the Movies series! For the next four weeks, they will be screening a movie each week, with me supplying both a devotional about the movie to be passed out at the screening, and an accompanying blog entry on the Nightcrawler Experience to reveal even more theological lessons that can be taken from the movie.

For this first week, we will be looking at Disney's newest animated feature, 'Raya and the Last Dragon.'

(Credit for this image goes to the user "Sonic the H fan" on the Disney wiki at https://disney.fandom.com/wiki/Raya_and_the_Last_Dragon?file=Raya_and_the_Last_Dragon_Poster.jpeg)

This film has a pretty detailed plot/ backstory: Once upon a time, the land of Kumandra (Located somewhere in Southeast Asia) was ravaged by these evil spirits known as the Druun, which can turn people, animals and dragons into stone. The final dragon, Sisu, concentrated all her power into a magical gem that she used to banish the Druun. This revived Kumandra's people, but not the dragons. The people of Kumandra then turned against each other to try and gain control of Sisu's gem for themselves, and ultimately divided into five tribes: Heart, Fang, Spine, Tail, and Talon (Named after their respective locations along a long, dragon- shaped river).
Centuries later, Raya, the young princess of the Heart tribe, has been trained and appointed as the new protector of the gem. Her father, Chief Benja, earnestly believes the tribes can be united again, and to that end, invites leaders of each of the other tribes to come to his palace for a friendly dinner to hopefully help improve diplomatic relations between the five tribes. Things turn ugly, though; The gem is ultimately smashed into five pieces with each tribe greedily grabbing a piece, causing the Druun to reawaken and begin ravaging Heart before then moving on to the rest of the land. Raya's able to escape before the Druun can turn her to stone, but her father's not so lucky.
Some years after that, Raya is now a young adult, attempting to use Heart's piece of the gem to find and reawaken Sisu. She does so, and the two of them set out to gradually recover each of the other four pieces of the gem, which currently remain in the possession of the leaders of the other four tribes, who won't exactly be eager to part with them. They figure that if they can reassemble the gem, Sisu can use it to defeat the Druun for good, and again restore everyone who's been turned to stone.

 Sisu isn't quite the invincible force that Raya envisioned, but she still proves to be quite useful to the cause. They also meet a very interesting assortment of allies along the way: A young boy from the Tail tribe named Boun who uses his boat restaurant to help provide them with river transport since the Druun cannot cross water, an adorably devious baby con artist (Yes, you read that right) from the Talon tribe named Noi and her monkey friends, and a towering but good- hearted Spine warrior named Tong.

 On their mission, they have to avoid Raya's rival Namaari, princess of the Fang tribe, who learns of Raya's mission and is determined to get the gem pieces herself.

I must say, I was a lot more impressed with 'Raya and the Last Dragon' than I thought I'd be. From the initial trailers, I was afraid it would just be yet another over- the- top "I am woman, hear me roar"- type film (Don't get me wrong, I'm all for women empowerment and all, but in recent years, films featuring this theme have started becoming really repetitive, as well as preachy in how that message is presented; Even the best and most noble of messages can start to leave a bad taste in one's mouth if forced on us too constantly or too heavy- handedly), and one which would take itself way too seriously. I am pleased to report I was wrong on both counts. It contains LOADS of tension- taming humor throughout it to keep from getting too serious for its own good, and while Raya is a strong and inspirational character, the "Girl- power" angle isn't done in a preachy way.

It has a lot of great action in it, too. Each scene with Raya going into the base of one of the tribes and retrieving one of the pieces of the gem has some form of unique yet quite thrilling action sequence in it, all amazingly animated.
Now, for the character run- down:
Rather than making Raya some dime- a- dozen invincible perfect heroine, she actually has some flaws and depth; It was at least partially her fault that the gem was broken and the Druun reawakened, due to her trusting someone she shouldn't have, and she consequently wrestles with both her guilt over that and her newfound inability to trust anyone. Seeing her gradually learn to trust others and strive to achieve her father's dream of reuniting the nations of Kumandra is quite satisfying. While Raya isn't one of Disney's best heroines, she's still a good addition to their ranks who's enjoyable to watch.

Her pet/ primary means of transportation, Tuk Tuk (A creature that's sort of like a cross between an armadillo and a roly- poly, but grows a LOT bigger than either of those creatures) is a delightful creature. He has some funny moments, usually involving his love of food and how easily distracted he is, and also proves to be VERY useful to Raya. What's more, he gets extra points for the fact that his assorted grunts and roars are done by one of my favorite actors, Alan Tudyk, who I'm delighted has become such a staple voice actor for Disney over the last decade or so (He's voiced characters in every Disney animated movie from 'Wreck- it Ralph' up to now, and voiced characters in a couple of Disney's animated TV shows, AND was the voice of Iago the parrot in the live- action 'Aladdin' movie they made two years ago).

Sisu makes for an excellent supporting character. She has been worshipped as this all- powerful being for her initial defeat of the Druun, but it turns out that she was just the deliverer of the gems' power, with her siblings (Who were then turned to stone) doing most of the actual work in channeling their magic into it. This gives her a lot of insecurity, but she also has an adorable amount of wonder relating to the world around her. A scene in which she discovers that things could be bought through credit is hilarious, and a great indictment of the attitude that many today can have regarding it. She also proves to be a surprisingly good source of wisdom and guidance for Raya along her journey. Next year, Sisu will almost certainly be making my Ten Favorite Movie Characters of 2021 list, she's practically got a reserved seat there!

The other friends Raya makes over the course of her journey are all delightful as well. Boun brings a good amount of humor and his boating skills certainly make him a great asset to them over the trip. The baby con artist Noi and her monkey friends are such a hoot to watch, cute and funny in literally every scene! Tong is generally pretty funny too, and becomes increasingly likable and sympathetic when he lets his tough facade drop a little and opens up to the others. Much like Raya and Sisu, these different companions have all lost loved ones to the Druun, and do a lot to help Raya in her quest to help restore all of them.

As I indicated in my devotional that was passed out at the screening, the central theme to 'Raya and the Last Dragon' deals with trust. These problems within their nation started when the people of those different areas stopped trusting each other, and Raya learning to trust others is what ultimately saves the world. 

I pointed out that we need to trust others more, and ESPECIALLY put our trust in God. I used Psalms 56:3 ("When I am afraid, I put my trust in You.”) and Proverbs 3:5-6 (“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”) to help drive this point home.

However, I'd say that is certainly not the only valuable Biblical lesson that can be taken from 'Raya and teh Last Dragon.' Another important one I can think of is on the importance of unity. People can do so much more when they forget about their differences and work together to achieve common goals. Raya and her friends help show this in the film's climax, when they (Characters from each of the tribes) help to evacuate a village before it's overrun by the Druun, saving countless lives and providing everyone there a perfect glimpse of the strength of unity in action.
Raya's father Chief Benja also makes a wonderful statement earlier in the film, when speaking to the other tribe leaders: "We can tear each other apart, or we can build a better world." There is so much truth in that statement for all of us. Over even just the last year or so, we have witnessed horrific division among the American people, and pointless social unrest and destruction breaking out nationwide. This needs to stop, with people of all races, genders and political persuasions needing to do what they can to encourage peace and unity. I regularly pray each day for this country, that its people could learn to come together in unity and thus build a better world for all in spite of their differences.

This is most definitely a Biblical lesson. Ephesians 4:3 says of believers, "You are joined together in peace through the Spirit, so make every effort to continue in this way." The body of Christ's main strength is in how diverse it is. It unites people of different races, cultures, and ethnicities, and with a whole multitude of different strengths and talents they can bring to the table. We have some who are scholarly, while others are better at worship. We have some who are skilled at prayer, while others are more about action. That is exactly how God intended it to be. This enables the church to better serve God and help to build His Kingdom on Earth, which is why peace and unity in the church and all around us desperately need to be encouraged.

 John 10:16 says that there is "One flock and one shepherd," we as believers are all part of the same flock in the eyes of our shepherd, Jesus. We need to avoid petty squabbling over our differences, and focus on the common goal of spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ to as many people as we can.

There you have 'Raya and the Last Dragon,' a very fun and exciting new addition to the Disney library which teaches valuable lessons about the importance of trust and unity.

That's all for this edition of the Nightcrawler Experience. Come back next week when I'll be tackling the next film that St. John's will be looking at in this series. Until then, take care, stay safe and healthy, and may God bless you all!