Wednesday, November 22, 2006

So I am back, sort of. I will just post the same blog posts on Blogger, Myspace and Facebook, so here's for Josh, Shane and Steve

Stranger than Fiction

We saw this movie on Saturday night and many thoughts have been ruminating in my brain about the flick. My friend Preston told me after he had seen the film that it was his new favorite, surpassing Shawshank. This is a big deal for Preston. So, I was worried that the hype would prove to be too much. Alas, I was wrong. This is a beautiful piece of art centered around one theme...Death. I guess I have been confronted with death as an idea a ton lately. David Crowder's new book is about death and Johnny Cash's latest release is on facing death.
This movie is about (don't worry no spoilers here) Harold Crick, a mild mannered IRS agent (Will Farrell), who wakes up one morning hearing a voice acting as a narrator to his life. One of the things this narrator mentions is his impending death. We also get a glimpse into the brain of the narrator who is writing a book. She is an author who is trying to find the perfect way to kill her main character. We don't quite know for most of the movie of either side of this film is a fantasy.
The question this movie raises is "What will Harold Crick do when faced with his own death?" Will he continue to waste his time on earth continuing on a path that doesn't lead to fulfillment? Will he take risks to go for things he only dreamed of before?
Thoreau said that "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation."Given the chance to break free of that desparation, will you choose to take that chance. Isn't that the theme of other movies like the Matrix (only the first one, the second and third are shameful attempts at cinema) and Fight Club. In many ways, so many of us Christians are leading the desperate life. We are satisfied to make money, watch a few sporting events, play a few rounds of golf, and slowly die.
Christ faced his own death with full determination to follow the Father's will. Many times during his ministry he reminded his followers that he was headed into betrayal and death.
What things in your life are you living passionately about? What gets you up in the morning. Are those things weighty? Do they have significance? Treat the moments in your life with holy wonder. The meals you eat, the people you talk to, and the activities are opportunities to no live in "quiet desperation". They are holy moments. Your life is a series of encounters with the Holy God, whether you wish it or not. Don't squander them.
There are many more thoughts on the movie that I could get into, but they would spoil the ending.
I'll finish with the chorus of a song by Flogging Molly (oddly enough about the death of Johnny Cash):
So don't let die still wonderingWhat it was I left behindI want a race well run ahead of the gunWith a dance before the far finish lineSo no life long regrets, only well feathered stepsUntil these shoes I can longer shineBut don't let me die still wanderin'For the love I left behind

posted by Kevin @ 11:34 AM 1 Comments