13 Jul, 2011
Welcome to Real Life, Harry.
This Friday marks the release of the final chapter in the Harry Potter saga. Ticket pre-sales have hit all-time highs for the midnight showing, as fans, young and old, eagerly await the tragic end of the series.
Harry Potter has been a bit controversial in the Christian community, but whatever your stance on the series, it can't be denied that Harry Potter is nothing short of a phenomenon...
But why?
These books and movies catch their audience up into a great adventure...something bigger than themselves!
There is good and evil...something worth fighting for. Young characters with great gifts and potential, taking on the greatest evil in their known world.
It's a huge task...pretty much impossible. Harry and his friends have no idea what the end result will be, but they know it's worth fighting for...worth their lives.
It might be hard to believe...but the adventure Harry was called to is not all that different from the adventure Jesus calls us to!
Matthew 16:24-25 (NIV) - "Then Jesus said to his disciples,
“Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and
take up their cross and follow me.
For whoever wants to save their life will lose it,
but whoever loses their life for me will find it."
John 14:12 (NIV) - "Very truly I tell you, whoever believes in me
will do the works I have been doing,
and they will do even greater things than these,
because I am going to the Father."
Acts 2:43-43 (NIV) - "They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching
and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.
Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders
and signs performed by the apostles."
See...contrary to popular belief, following Jesus is so much more than perfect church attendance, being a "nice" person and following all the rules!! He intends so much more for us!
Look again at these passages...what does Jesus say His disciples will do???
Whether we feel up to it or not, when we become followers of Jesus, we are called into a story MUCH bigger than ourselves...the story of God redeeming His creation!
Following Jesus is NOT boring. Loving our friends, serving others, going where Jesus calls us to go, being bold when we want to be shy, listening to the Holy Spirit, being daring because we trust God to back us up...THIS is what it means to follow Jesus!!
Never forget that you are a major character in the greatest story ever told...even better than Harry Potter (if you can believe it!)...and there's much more at stake!
Pay attention the passages listed above...
What does God desire to do through us?
What does He say we are capable of?
What is His Story and how do Our Stories play major roles in it??
How willing are you to go where and to whom God calls you?
Are you willing to do whatever He asks of you?
Are you willing to be part of the adventure rather than sitting on the sidelines??
Believe it or not, one of the biggest parts of this adventure is serving and loving others and jumping into Their Story!
We can serve in ways that are obviously big (i.e. feeding the homeless, fighting against slavery, etc)...but we can also serve in ways that seem small but are JUST as big (i.e. taking a lost friend to coffee to get to know them and Their Story, cleaning up the shopping carts in the Target parking lot to bless a Target employee, eating lunch with a student at school who always eats alone...)
When God nudges us toward these things and we accept the challenge, not only can we trust Him to walk us through, but the adventure will begin to unfold!
Life will never be the same...and neither will the lives of the people you love and serve!
Think about specific people or groups of people in your life God is nudging you toward...
How can you take a risk this week to show them love? What will it be and how will you do it? (We call this a Holy Experiment.)
GET INSPIRED! Watch this video about a Holy Experiment one student tried as he followed Jesus into the adventure...
The Home Depot Story from Youth for Christ/USA on Vimeo.
Time to get off the sidelines and be part of the adventure...
Are you game?
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