Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Back to Narnia...

PrinceCaspianPoster

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian - Offical Poster via Cinematical

I caught this little poster out in public for the first time today. It looks as though Walden Media, and the folks over at Disney, are taking movie audiences back to C.S. Lewis' mythical land of Narnia again this coming summer. Cinematical, a movie news site, had the following to say:

Directed once again by Andrew Adamson, Prince Caspian is a follow-up to the highly-successful The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe -- and seeing as you folks shelled out more than $730 million to watch that flick, I'd say you're probably pretty stoked about the sequel.

I for one include myself in the category of "folks" who are "stoked about the sequel." As a young(er) boy, the tale of Prince Caspian became my most-loved book out of the Chronicles of Narnia. I spent many warm summer afternoons with my grandma and siblings adventuring about the woods and creek of my grandparents' home.

I hope the movie captures the themes of manhood, leadership, courage, faith, and loyalty that Lewis so masterfully worked into his book. Though the book, and most surely the coming movie, does not present the gospel which alone saves, its colorful allegory may prove to be a helpful illustration and stimulation unto "love and good deeds" for those princes and princesses who, by way of adoption, serve in the court of the King of Kings already.

Saturday, September 15, 2007

Lessons from a Miserably "Lucky" Man

 Jack Whittaker

Winner reflects on nightmare lottery - CNN.com

This article really caught my attention today. In our bible study we have been going through the sermon on the mount, and our shepherd, Mark, has been organizing his thoughts around the theme: 8 Habits of Truly Happy People.

This article serves as an amazing counterpoint to the words of Christ. In summary, the author describes how Jack Whittaker won an enormous lottery pot, and then watched his life disintegrate around him. It is a tale of the American Dream turning into a personal tragedy. The following quote stood out most poignantly, however, for it belies Jack Whittaker's continued enslavement to money:

"If it would bring my granddaughter back, I'd give it all back," Whittaker said of his jackpot. "But I can't get her back, so might as well keep the money, I guess."

His granddaughter, who was to be the heir of his multi-million dollar corporation, recently passed away as a result of her addiction to drugs.

One final note, Whitaker used to attend church regularly; he stopped. Was he driven away from a loving Christian community by his love for and indulgence in a sinful life? Perhaps that is partially the case. Sadly, and embarrassingly, the answer seems most directly to be the greed of the body of Christ.

Before Powerball, Whittaker and his wife went to church together. These days, he seldom does.

"It's just aggravating, you know. People come up and ask you for money all the time, tell you some kind of a sob story."

Beware the sweet root that bears the toxic bloom. 1 Timothy 6:10