The Circle & The Parable of the Sower

How to spend an evening: let’s watch a movie. But there’s nothing interesting on tv. What shall we do? Let’s look at the movies we own. How about The Circle. You haven’t seen it mom? Well it’s sort of weird and scary. Fine, will watch it.
While I was waiting for my mom to get ready for the movie, I went to the/my room and one of the first thing I saw on my bed was a book entitled “The Rest of God” by Mark Buchanan. I felt so strange. We were about to watch this weird, scary to a certain level, a movie a bit, well there’s no language or sex or stuff like that, but watching it won’t give you good feelings, it’s not going to lift you up.
When I was waiting for my mom I was obviously thinking about the movie we were about to watch and try to remember what it was and it just seemed to be a bit dark. When I looked at the book, my mind shifted to something so peaceful. I remembered the time I had spent earlier that day reading the book by the lake, feeling the fresh wind over my face, hearing the sound of the endless waves, it was just so good, so peaceful, so restful. I struck me how quickly my mind could be lifted up simply by seeing something. The contrast was just huge.
Then I thought I shouldn’t watch it. But I did.
I remember a time in my life (maybe 3-4 years ago) claiming that God hadn’t created us so we would scare ourselves “on purpose” or have feelings that aren’t true. Movies produces in us feelings that… I don’t know. When these feelings are negative, then I thought it was obvious we shouldn’t be desiring them.
But it seems as if my views have changed. Or maybe I have forgotten.
I’m not trying to set the line here between the kinds of movies we should watch and those we shouldn’t watch. I’m just wondering what’s the worth. Especially when the simple sight of a good book lifts me, cheers me up.
There’s good and there’s best eh?

The parable of the Sower

« A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell…” (Mark 4:3-4)

I read that passage this morning. Now I wonder: The farmer sows the seed, the farmer scatters the seed. He does it. The seed doesn’t say a thing, the seed doesn’t choose to move from one soil to the other. The seed fall to the ground and that’s it. Looking at this parable this way makes me think as if God (the farmer) is to blame if the seed aren’t all in the good soil. And as if the seed have no choice in becoming a great big plant bearing fruit or to be scorched by the sun. Doesn’t it sound strange? Well, I don’t know but maybe this is not the point of the parable at all. Maybe I was never supposed to look at it this way. Who knows.

Bank for Native Missionaries: 18$ as of July 28 2006