And now for something completely…Divergent

Yes, I am a sucker for target marketing. As I sat in the movie theater last November waiting for the start of Catching Fire, I saw a trailer for a new movie that would be based on another book trilogy - Divergent. I love great stories and one of my friends at the movie with me indicated that the book had been recommended to her by a friend.

So, within a day or so, I had started reading the book. It didn't take me long to finish all three.

And so there I was Sunday night, on the edge of my seat as I watched the movie. I was not disappointed…not even close.

Divergent is a fascinating story, set in a dystopian society where Chicago had once been. Stories are the stuff life is made of, and this is a doozy. Frankly, the two hours and twenty minutes of the movie flew by. There was not a moment where I was even tempted to look at my watch.

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WARNING: MILD SPOILERS AHEAD

Wikipedia summarizes the premise as follows:

In a post-apocalyptic future in the city of Chicago, survivors have been divided into five factions based on their predispositions:Abnegation, for the selfless; Amity, for the peaceful; Candor, for the honest; Dauntless, for the brave; and Erudite, for the Intelligent. Each year, all sixteen-year-olds take an aptitude test that will tell them for which faction they are best suited. After receiving the results of their test, they must decide whether to remain with their family or transfer to a new faction.

Beatrice (or Tris) Prior, played by Shailene Woodley, is faced with this very choice but finds herself to be very different from her peers. She does not fit into any box…but she must choose anyway.
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There are so ,many aspects of this story that I could write about. It's certainly a story about choices and how they define us. It's also a story of human depravity, showing our deep need for grace because we are rotten to the core. You can also see a story about standing up to evil, even when it is part of society's institutions.

I've seen posts/articles on all these aspects.

But the thing that may have jumped out to me more than anything else was how it showed our desperate need for community. How we need a group of people, however small, that we can love, trust,  and depend upon unconditionally.

Tris never felt like she fit completely in her family - but when she was in trouble she sought out her brother. She struggled to succeed in her faction Dauntless, especially early, but she found a small group of friends that gave her strength to continue. And the most heart wrenching scenes of the movie were those where her community was shattered - whether by death, betrayal, or separation.

Ultimately, that's what we are all looking for. It's why we cling to family, make friends, and sometimes even compromise our convictions to be liked or popular. LIfe works a lot better when we get our identity from the One who made us and then find others who have done so as well. I am blessed to have friends and family like that.

Life is not a solo act. It wasn't for Tris, although at times it felt like it. And it isn't for you and me. My prayer is that you will find people who surround you and love you unconditionally. People who will love you enough to always be there for you, and who also love you enough to tell you when you're wrong.

Our world is becoming so individualistic. I don't want to conform to that trend; I want to be…divergent.

The solo vacation

I love God's sense of humor. I mean, of course it's going to be awesome, because he created humor and laughter. But when I see it on display…well, it's like no other.

A couple of weeks ago I made an impromptu decision. I love being spontaneous. So I got online and made plans to take a mini-vacation, a long weekend skiing at a place I had never been - Big Sky, Montana.

I have not skied in several years, but every time I do I love it. Makes me wish I lived closer to places where it snows. So I am enjoying a nice relaxing evening before hitting the slopes tomorrow.

All by myself. And I'm enjoying that part of it.

So what's the funny part? Well, as I boarded the plane from Minneapolis to Bozeman, I saw a man walking down the aisle wearing a Bama cap. Someone from home - cool. That should get me a "roll tide." And it did. But then he and his family took their seats, and he was right next to me.

I've got to confess, I was a little thrown. I was several hours into my solo vacation, and I was enjoying the idea of 3.5 days away from everything and everybody. I love vacations with my nephew and nieces, my sisters, my dad, and my friends. But the idea of a few days to recharge my batteries in the open cold air is good too. At least for me.

And now God had put me right next to someone with clear instructions to engage. 

I enjoyed the conversation, but part of me was thinking, What if God wants me to use this vacation to spend time with this family and be a light to them? That was not what I had in mind, and I know God was not pleased with my attitude.

So here's where God's sense of humor comes in. I was sitting on the plane reading a book when this family came into my life for the day. Here is the specific passage I was reading from How People Change (Keller & Tripp):

These are the very reasons why community is such a big part of God's plan to transform us  into the image of Christ. Living in community pushes us to die to ourselves.

Yeah, pretty much part of a whole chapter about how we are need each other, how we need to live in community, how dangerous it is to be a "lone ranger Christian."

All of which I believe. I love my community, my church, my family, my friends - all of which are helping to conform me to the image of Christ.

But this was my time!

Ummm, no, says God. There's no such thing. We are all in this together, and there's no such thing as a vacation from that. God had to be laughing as he brought this family to these seats…on this flight…during this vacation…while I was reading this passage.

Oh no, Donnie. There is no solo vacation, or solo anything else.

We parted ways after we landed, but they are still with me. They are with me as I eat dinner, hang around the lodge, and will be with me as I ride the lifts tomorrow. I am not here - even here - for myself. I'm here for God and for others.

And that makes it all worthwhile.

Prayer (Petra)

You never know what gem you're going to be reminded of when you put your playlist on shuffle. Today, for the first the first time in maybe years I heard the song below on my iPhone. And then I listened again, and a third time. Each time after the first, I was 1) lifting a prayer of thanks and praise, 2) requesting God's care for the people I love, and 3) asking to be used by him to build his Kingdom.

Here it is, along with the lyrics. Pray with me please:

Prayer:



Lyrics:

First I want to thank You Lord for being who You are
For coming to the rescue of a man who's drifted far
For calling me to be Your son and calling me to serve
Lord the way You've blessed my life is more than I deserve

Keep the ones I love so dearly
Fill their emptiness while I am gone
And fill the loneliness in me, in me

This is my prayer lifted to You
Knowing You care even more than I do
This is my prayer lifted in Your name
Your will be done I humbly pray

Let me be the evidence of what Your grace can do
To a generation struggling to find themselves in You
May they come to know the love of God
May their eyes be made to see

Give me the opportunity to share the truth that sets them free

And may unity in all things
Be the banner of Your church
And let revival's fire begin to burn, begin to burn

This is my prayer lifted to You
Knowing You care even more than I do
This is my prayer lifted in Your name
Your will be done I humbly pray

As we face the last and final hours, turn a wayward country back to You
And keep us from the evil that devours
Keep us on the path and lead us through
Keep us in Your light until Your kingdom comes and our work is done

This is my prayer lifted to You
Knowing You care so much more than I do
This is my prayer in Jesus' name
Your will be done I humbly pray

This is my prayer, this is my prayer

Really? That was me?

What a strange day. I consider myself pretty flexible, pretty laid back. I strive to be the kind of person who is not easily angered. I know that I'm not capable of that on my own, but most days through the power of the Spirit I'm even-keeled.

Today was not one of those days.

Twice I found myself getting really...really...irritated. Yeah, I'd say even angry. I wish I could say it was over something important. Or righteous anger. Or even just understandable.

Nope. Trivial stuff, stuff that I should just let go. But for some reason, it was easy to get under my skin.
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Today was a stark reminder of something that I know - just how dark the human heart is and how much we need mercy and grace. The heart is the cradle of all sorts of negative crud that messes up families, friendships, marriages, and, well, relationships. I'm reminded of in so many places:

• Jesus said, "What comes out of man, that defiles a man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceipt, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness." (Mark 7:20-22)
• My pastor John Ed Mathison, now retired, used to say that when you bump a person holding a glass of water, guess what spills out. That's right - water. The thing that spills out of us when we're "bumped" (like I was today) is what's already inside.
• Paul wrote in Romans 7:15, "For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I want to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, I do."
• And similar to Paul, the character Merle Dixon on The Walking Dead, reflecting on a life of regret, anger, and self-centered decisions, said, "I don't know the reasons for the things that I do. Never did. I'm a d--- mystery to me." (Episode 3.15, 2013, "This Sorrowful Life")

Merle

The fact is, if I'm going to avoid days like today, I'm going to need help. I'm a mystery to me too. I can't do it alone, because there's too much natural rottenness. As Paul wrote later in Romans 7 (verses 24-25), "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God - through Jesus Christ our Lord."

That's my only hope. But I am so thankful that... It. Is. Enough.