Archive for February, 2011
The Pixar Principle: Part 1
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There are so many things I like about Pixar films: the incredible visuals, the focus on quality storytelling, the edgy cultural references, the consistent appeal to adults just as much (if not more) as to children, and the commitment to bringing a sense of wonder into their movies. Time and again I would read articles speculating that the next Pixar movie would be a bomb. How could they make a good film about monsters … or a family of superheroes… or French cooking … or a robot on a planet full of trash … or a lonely and crotchety old man … and make it appeal to both kids and their parents? But the same critics raved when they saw the final films, and each movie was a hit.
These guys at Pixar understand human connection–the family relationships and friendships that define us. If one message comes through loud and clear in every Pixar movie, it is this: Each of us is created not for independence but for interdependence.
In this series of posts, we’ll take a closer look at a few of the Pixar movies more in depth to see what we can learn about our need for interdependence, and how True Adventure Is Found in Relationships.
In the meantime, leave a comment about which Pixar movie you love the most and why? Which character do you most identify with?
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Thanks to FamilyLife for original blog post on this subject.
Guest Blog: Prostitutes, Phone Apps & The Sacrament of Marriage – Part 2
Posted by: | Commentsby Ellany Collins, if you missed Part 1, check it out here first.
Everything that’s worth doing in life is hard. Losing weight and building muscle is going to leave you so sore you’ll swear your liver is crying. Having that sweet little baby look at you from the podium where he’s now delivering his valedictorian speech will mean many sleepless nights, mornings that life is so hectic that you leave for the grocery store without shoes on, extra-long showers where you just sit and cry afraid that you might go crazy, some prominent gray hairs, and days that you’ll wonder if you’ve scarred his soul forever because you didn’t want to read Goodnight Moon one. more. time. But the ones who choose to put in that kind of effort will always tell you, “It was all worth it.”
And marriage is no different. It’s hard. It’s work. But much of the time, couples can’t remember what they’re working for in their marriage. They want to be happier: do they need better communication? More romance? Hotter sex? Are they working together toward achieving their goals of being debt-free? Becoming missionaries? Being good role models for their children?
All of those things have their place in marriage, and a happy marriage is a wonderful goal. But as I’m learning, having a happy marriage is not the end-all. Unlike the quasi-enlightened, but completely narcissistic movies like Eat, Pray, Love would have us believe, the purpose of marriage isn’t to make us happy or to help us be ourselves more fully. It’s not even about helping each other achieve some lofty ministry goal or raising good kids.
Marriage is on-the-job training for me to learn to be less like me and more like Jesus. For Lukus to learn to be less like Lukus and more like Jesus. It is the exact representation of Christ coming to a selfish, perverted, hostile, diseased prostitute and saying, “I love you more than I love my own life. Here, let me show you.” And as that prostitute spat in His face, laughed as His hands were nailed to wood, then walked away scornfully leaving Him there to die, He still said, “I love you. I forgive you. If you’ll have me, I will make you my Bride.”
The irritating husband who never calls to tell his wife he’s running late at work is a gift for the wife to develop the patience and understanding of Christ. The nagging, snotty wife is an opportunity for her husband to learn the discernment of the Holy Spirit regarding his wife’s unmet needs. The spouse’s response is effectively irrelevant, because our responsibility before God does not depend on how others respond to us. After all, Christ did not give up on going to the cross because many people rejected Him.
And Christ did not whisper to Peter, “Check out that Pharisee over there, reading Deuteronomy on his droid phone instead of reading it from the scrolls. Who does he think he is?” A lot of days, I am the selfish, hostile prostitute that Jesus had to die for and that Lukus has to come home to. Sometimes, that’s Lukus. But thanks to the grace of God, we are both learning together how to be more like Jesus and say, “I love you. Let me show you,” as we lay our lives down for one another.
Ellany Collins Bio: Wife to her best friend, Lukus, and mommy of two feisty little girls. An adventurer and wander-luster at heart, hailing from her beloved San Diego, she never expected to be a stay-at-home mom and home-school teacher residing in Oklahoma City, but is learning to embrace those roles with joy, creativity and frequent mental vacations to the beach. She chronicles her domestic adventures on her blog, http://memoirsofawannabegypsy.com, where she explains exactly how her underwear caught on fire. Twice. Ellany met Jesus in her tree-house when she was four years old, where her heart remains to this day.
The Simple Life – Part 2
Posted by: | CommentsSo I continue….
It’s like when you were in grade school. When it came time for sleepovers and play dates, you always wanted to go visit the kid who had the coolest stuff. It was fun. My neighbor was a great friend of mine, and he was also this kid. In his house were treasures like a Nerf Gun, Slip-N-Slide, Atari, and an unlimited supply of Slim Jims. The problem was, when visiting this house, you also knew who made the rules. Inevitably, at the end of any game, the rules could be changed by the Keeper Of The Slim Jim, as it were. You could be on the cusp of victory in the “Who-Can-Disembowel-My-Sister’s-Stuffed-Animal-Collection-The-Fastest” game, only to find that the object of the game was to go to the family room and put on a Village People record.
Who is making the rules now? After watching TV, reading the paper, and listening to the radio, I get the feeling that those with all of the shiny junk (and TV stations and advertising budgets) have decided that shiny junk is the goal.
Coincidentally, they made these rules after they had already won the game.
The question is, “Why does owning all of the TV stations and/or Slim Jims give someone the right to make all of the rules?” I get this crazy feeling that we’re all playing this game of life without knowing the true objective.
I read a really alarming statistic recently. Every week, the average American spends six hours shopping, and spends forty minutes playing with his or her children. Working couples spend, on average, 12 minutes per day talking to each other.
Three minutes if you accidentally washed your wife’s favorite white blouse with your favorite red sweat pants.
Does this seem out of whack to anyone else?
We’re trying hard to be successful, but in the end, we’re gonna’ figure out that the key to it all was something totally different. I don’t purport to know what the key is, but I feel like I’m learning that disemboweling stuffed animals ain’t where it’s at.
One day I hope to meet God and ask all sorts of questions. Stuff like, “What were you thinkin’ when you made the platypus?” and “How did the cast of Jersey Shore really get so famous?” But most of all, I want to get the final answer on what his purpose was for my life.
If only we could redefine success and winning in life and pursue it with the tenacity of an Olympic athlete. Those same athletes who, when polled, 51% of them said that they would take a pill to win a Gold Medal even if it killed them in five years. We could just change the rules of the game so that the winner wasn’t the one who could accumulate the most the fastest, but rather, the one who understood “enough” the fastest, and worked the hardest to make sure everyone had it.
The ultimate judge would be The Almighty. I imagine it all looking a bit like the Price is Right.
God would be the Bob Barker of the Universe, asking us all to get as close to “enough” as possible, without going over. Inevitably, in our world, the one who wins would be some grandma from Pomona named Ethel who bid $1, after she had seen all of us overestimate how much we really needed to survive. She would then get to kiss and hug The Big Guy, while the rest of us were left holding our Year’s Supply of Turtle Wax and Rice-A-Roni – parting gifts for the overindulgent. If only we knew what “enough” truly was, and worked hard to make sure EVERYONE made it to the Showcase Showdown!?
My guess is that God, my God and your God, probably has an opinion as to where He would like us to invest the blessings He’s bestowed upon us. If I were to ask God if I should buy a fifth guitar, He would probably subtly remind me that the Second Harvest Food Bank could feed 2500 people for what it costs to buy that $500 guitar.
Maybe that’s what Jesus’ feeding of the 5000 was all about. We often see this miracle as some sort of magic trick. I can see the headlines in the local paper. “Bearded Man With Great Abs Turns Two Fish and Five Loaves Into Enough Food for 5000 People!” Might as well have had just two guitars, eh?
However, when we read In the Bible, it doesn’t talk of magic. The disciples saw a throng of people gathered to hear Jesus and learn from him. After Christ had spoken, the disciples said,
“This is a very remote place,” they said, “and it is very late. Send the people away so they can go to the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” (Mark 6:35-36)
The disciples thought it only fair to let everyone fend for himself. Hey! Concessions aren’t free at the JesusPalooza! You’re on your own, bro!
But Jesus answered,
“You give them something to eat.”
They said to him, “That would take eight months of a man’s wages! Are we to go and spend that much on bread and give it to them to eat?”
“How many loaves do you have?” he asked. “Go and see.”
When they found out, they said, “Five – and two fish.”
Then Jesus directed them to have all of the peoples sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. Taking the five loaves and two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. The number of men who had eaten was five thousand. (Mark 6: 37-44)
In this entire passage, there is no mention of Jesus multiplying or adding. No. Jesus divided. He broke. Mathematically speaking, these are very different. This feast was not about bread and fish magically appearing. No, the miracle was that a small amount of resources, equally shared, could satisfy so many.
What will it take to satisfy me? What is “enough” for me? Will I share my abundance?
God is asking me these same questions. Will you share? Will you stop? Reflect? Own what you have? Love? Cherish? Savor? Give?
This Christmas, God is challenging me to live the simple life.
Simple…. But not easy.
Guest Blogger Scott Dannemiller is an Accidental Missionary. A guy on a quest for meaning. Several years ago, he and his wife Gabby quit their corporate careers, sold their house and cars, and spent a year living with a Mayan family to serve as missionaries in the highlands of Guatemala. It was a life-changing experience.
Upon return to the U.S., they spent 18 months touring the country presenting a concert of original music and stories to raise money for various charities and promote service and outreach. Today, Scott continues to explore God’s purpose in his life as a father, husband, musician, writer, and church leader. When he’s not eating junk food or spending time with family, he’s usually perched at his laptop writing slightly irreverent, mildly-entertaining, God-centered stories for his blog – The Accidental Missionary. He makes his living as President of Lifework Associates, a training and development consulting firm. He and his wife Gabby reside in Nashville, TN with their two very loud and lovely children Jake (4) and Audrey (3).
