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I will easily admit that I love children's movies. Not only do I love the pure simplicity of the imaginative stories untainted by sex, drugs and violence that so saturates most adult movies, but I enjoy the lessons found in the narratives, and the soundtracks. Iron Giant makes me cry when he says, "Superman!" as he flies through the air on his way to save the town. It doesn't matter how many times I see Lion King, each time I cry when the father dies. The movie "Enchanted" reminds me to have a childlike, open heart to contrast the world's cynicism and Kung Foo Panda leaves me in stitches!
There is one movie that has been on my mind a lot lately. It is the movie, "Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron." My younger sister bought it for me for my 23rd birthday when I had a party with a pinata that looked like the horse in the movie. (What can I say, I haven't fully grown out of my kid-side! haha) I was deeply entrenched in learning to ride and train horses for my degree at the UofA that year and my favorite coloring for horses is the buckskin (yellow with black points) like Spirit, so my sister thought it was a fitting gift for me. She was right! I like the movie because none of the horses talk, there is only slightly exaggerated facial expressions, a narrator that interjects once in a while and a wonderful soundtrack with Bryan Adams singing throughout. It is an exciting, yet simple story about a horse that lives free and wild in the west, gets captured then fights to regain his freedom the rest of the movie.
There is one scene in the movie that speaks to me in a variety of ways, but in particular, in the idea of resting in the knowledge of who (or whose) you are. Watch it here first:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUgCIuNaMq8
One day last semester, I was on my way to an Equestrian competition with my teammates. We were all squished in a van, driving the many hours to San Diego. I was feeling dread for this trip for a variety of reasons, mostly because I was tired of going out of town so often that semester, but also because I had a feeling this trip was going to be a difficult one. I was the only Christian on the team too, which made me nervous that if the trip was going to be so difficult, that I was already feeling like I didn't want to be there and that I was the only representative of Christ in the group, I was afraid. I was afraid that I would lose my cool and not be a good example or that I would get sucked into their ways of thinking or gossip and certain topics of conversation I knew were bound to come up. I was too weary and felt like my spiritual defenses were down.
One of my teammates had an excellent compilation cd playing while we drove and while I was contemplating the above, the song, "Sound the Bugle Now" came on. I listened carefully because the lyrics were pertinent to how I was feeling at the time. These lyrics struck me, "Then from on high - somewhere in the distance..." At that moment I looked up to the sky as if to look at the Lord 'in the distance' and the song continued..."There's a voice that calls - remember who you are" As I said, I was looking up and out the window, but at the exact moment of the lyrics saying "remember who you are," we drove by this mountainous hill, and at the very top was a white cross! We were driving hundreds of miles through the desert with nothing in sight! There at the top of a huge hill, in the middle of nowhere, was this cross that I just "happened" to see as we "happened" to drive by that exact location at the exact moment a song's lyrics say, "Then from on high - somewhere in the distance...There's a voice that calls - remember who you are!"
Imagine my surprise!
The song continued with these words, "If you lose yourself - your courage soon will follow
So be strong tonight - remember who you are
Ya you're a soldier now - fighting in a battle
To be free once more - Ya that's worth fighting for!”
This moment reminded me that I was forgetting who I was, that I was God's daughter, a loved child of God, a warrior... and it reminded me of WHOSE I was, that I was not really "alone" and that even though I didn't feel that I had the strength to face whatever was coming, I had an all-powerful God watching over me and giving me strength! It ended up that I needed all the strength God could provide for that weekend because it was a very difficult one, but the Lord was faithful and I felt more courageous after that moment, so the events didn't shake me as much as they would have in my previous state.
I bring this up because lately I have been thinking about how often we, as Christians, feel like we've been wounded beyond repair. We go through a difficult time and when the “fight” is over, we are left bemused, disoriented, in pain or unwilling to move forward. Maybe you feel like this: “As the seasons change - remember how I used to be. Now I can't go on - I can't even start. I've got nothing left - just an empty heart.” Maybe you can echo the lyrics with the attitude that says, “I'm a soldier – wounded, so I must give up the fight-There's nothing more for me - lead me away...Or leave me lying here.” Or maybe you respond this way: “tell them I don't care-There's not a road I know - that leads to anywhere. Without a light I fear that I will - stumble in the dark.-Lay right down - decide not to go on.” To me, those lyrics perfectly sum up our many reactions to pain or suffering. We feel empty, like we have nothing left to give; we are so near death spiritually (or physically) that we feel like we have outlived our usefulness and might as well give up now; we feel afraid or apathetic and decide it is easier to stay in the same place rather than risk moving forward.
In response to this, I know the Lord is calling out to us, saying, “Look up! Hear my voice calling to you, my beloved child! Remember WHO you are! Remember WHOSE you are!” In the Bible, there are many verses that liken our Spiritual journey through life as a battle. We will probably have many moments (maybe you're there now) of feeling defeated and “done.” In those moments, I encourage you to think of the verses that tell us of the way God has equipped us for battle, such as in Ephesians 6:10-20. Those verses list the tools we have for “fighting in a battle”-truth, righteousness, salvation, the gospel of peace, faith, the Spirit/the Word of God and prayer! To top it all off, we have an all powerful God who can and does singlehandedly take on the enemy-especially when we have no strength to fight. He is a God who says, “Is there anything too hard for me? (Jeremiah 32:27)” and who promises that those who trust in him will soar on wings like eagles! I think in remembering that we are children of God and that we are not alone, nor are we defeated, but that we have the weapons and the strength to keep fighting for the FREEDOM that is in Christ, will help us stand up and sing like the final lyrics to this kid's horse movie song:
So be strong tonight - remember who you are
Ya you're a soldier now - fighting in a battle
To be free once more - Ya that's worth fighting for!
Now watch the video again and listen to the song more carefully! |
