Thursday, March 20, 2008

So I watched a movie....

I dont know if you have ever seen the movie Into the Wild, but I had been told by some random cuban lady on a plane back from Miami that i needed to watch it. So when I got home from I decided it would be a good time to go check out some movies. Me and Wass went and picked up about 4 films since it is our Spring Break. I dont want to ruin the movie for you but the whole premise is that this kid just graduated college and had been accepted into Law School at Harvard but instead decided to leave it all behind and go out alone living off of as little as possible and doing some pretty cool things along the way. Ultimately his goal is to get to Alaska where he will live alone in the wild away from all the impurities and frusterations of society. He ends up meeting these 2 hippies that basically become his closest friends. He spends some considerable time with them. As they begin to talk and get to know eachother they continue to question why he is doing what he is doing. Christopher McCandless the main character makes this statement. "Rather than love, than money, than faith, than fame, than fairness... give me truth." I started to think about what that means in the context of the movie and also in the context of my life. I found it ironic that Christopher, who is convinced that he does not need people to be happy, is so focused and driven to find what is true.

You need to watch the rest of the movie to kind of see how that statement plays out, but I believe that his quote has it right. In Christopher's desire to be counterculture he did stumble upon the fact that we live in a world that would much rather have the love, money, faith, fame, and fairness......then the truth. But then again, this is no secret. History atest to it, society screams it, and burried deep into my heart there is a quiet struggle to keep it in its right order.

1 comment:

Allison said...

The quote you mentioned in you blog was one that caught me as i watched it. but their was a quote that was worth noting at the end which revolutionaized my way of thinking in the midst of suffering.

Christopher says something along the lines of ' if i were running into the arms of my parents and they were smiling and everything was ok "would they see then what i see now?" '

that took my breath away. I was reading 1 peter 4 this morning where is talks about arming yourself with thinking like christ. and that was pointing back to how christ thought about suffering and this world. he did everything with the salvation of others paramount in his mind. his suffering was worth it. his death was for us to see then was he sees now.

i think i have a horrible outlook on suffering because i always assume its to teach me something. though it often does, i think sometimes its to teach others as well and to allow us opportunities we wouldnt have if all were healthy wealthy and free.

i need to ask that question if in the midst of my suffering i am complaining or unsatisfied. i would very quickly trade suffering for comfort if all suffering was was just for me but if i saw the benifit to others then maybe i wouldnt trade it so quickly.

i think my heart doesn't think like christophers, who in that moment mimics christs world view, that christ suffered for the sake of others and our suffering is not for our own glory but for Gods that hopefully this world will one day see then what we see now.