I remember watching SAVING PRIVATE RYAN for the first time back in 1998. The movie made a visceral impact on those of us in the theater that night. I left wondering if exposure to that movie would ultimately reduce the amount of young men and women serving in the armed forces.
That did not happen. Never has there been more awareness of the cost of war. We live in a culture that encourages young people to sacrifice for their country, even if it means being killed or maimed. Yet, we, for almost a decade fought a war in two nations, Afghanistan and Iraq, with forces supplied by volunteers.
Last week, I wrote about how God did not create us to be individuals, who are isolated or apart. Rather, he designed us to be part of a community – that is one of the reasons why he gave us the church. God also created most of us to create the community of marriage and family.
Gary Thomas writes in his book, Sacred Marriage, that God’s priority in marriage is not our personal happiness. We live in a culture that tries to tell us that if we are going to get married, then by all means, do it to find happiness.
God’s priority is that marriage helps us to be more like Jesus. Consequently, there is a cross in the center of our marriages.
We don’t idolize romance. We don’t make an idol out of marriage. What we need to understand is we are flawed entering into these marriages, marrying other flawed human beings. Together, in this process, hopefully, we have learned enough about being satisfied with Christ, and we have learned enough about what it is to depend upon Christ, that in those rough points in our marriage, we can stay together in a community of faith because the cross of Jesus is at the center.
We, in the church, must redefine sacrifice. We must broaden the definition of acceptable terms of what is sacrifice. We think nothing of asking 18-year-olds to surrender their lives for the country. But, we think it terrible to ask 18 year olds to sacrifice their lives in a bad marriage. The assumption is—it will never get better; therefore, let them leave the marriage.
Again, we think nothing of asking 18-year-olds to sacrifice their lives in War. We feel no regret encouraging them to risk war wounds, which could lead to lives filled with pain. We consider the cause worth the sacrifice.
Yet, we think it's awful to ask an 18-year-old to sacrifice and live in a marriage in which the spouse does not respond to servant leadership. We consider the emotional pain of a bad marriage to be too great. The cross, asks us to reconfigure our assumptions about marriage.
It is time that the community of faith has input in the lives of married Christians. Marriage and divorce are not private matters for couples; they affect the entire body of Christ.
Five Things I Think I Think (with a nod to Peter King for this idea)
1. At last I found it! I have been waiting since 2004 for the soundtrack for PETER PAN to come out. I’m talking about the most recent version with Jeremy Sumpter. My kids all love that movie. I like the movie and love the music. iTunes has it now, so I downloaded my favorite pieces. Great stuff. “Flying” is the piece that Disney has used the past few years in their commercials for Walt Disney World.
2. NBC! You’re showing family movies like the Mormons use to make. SECRETS OF THE MOUNTAIN was great, clean, family entertainment. Thanks.
3. I checked out one of the 100 Greatest Movies of all time from the public library last week. It is a silent movie made by and starring, Charlie Chaplin. The name of the movie? CITY LIGHTS. I have got to tell you, I was enthralled. Was it a comedy I saw, or a love story? I am not sure. I laughed out loud, but I found the ending amazing poignant and moving. The payoff is definitely waiting until the ending. Now, if I can only convince my entire family to sit through a silent movie. Perhaps if I get them to begin, they will not want the movie to end.
4. I am pleased say no one has left yet in our series on sexuality, not even our guests. Thanks to God for that blessing.
5. I don’t know if I want Colt McCoy to be drafted high or low this week in the NFL draft. I suspect the lower he goes, the better off he will be in his future career.
Have a great week!
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