Category: Reel Parables

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Emptied & Humbled: Frozen – Choice

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

As we saw in Spider-man 2, Wreck-it Ralph, and Guardians of the Galaxy, Lent is about choice. Specifically, Philippians 2 tells us that Jesus chose to empty himself and to humble himself and that we are to do the same.

We all make choices every day. That is one reason Disney’s Frozen is so awesome.  Just about every single character must make a choice.

Elsa wants solitude so she does not hurt anyone and chooses to run away.

Anna, her little sister who wants her big sister’s company, chooses to run after her.

At first, Kristoff wants to work hard and keep his job. As the movie plays out, he wants Anna.

Hans, who says he loves and wants to marry Anna, really wants to kill her so he can become King!

And Olaf, sweet Olaf, wants the very thing that will hurt him, warm hugs.

Yes, everyone in Disney’s Frozen wants something. Some of these things are good, some of them are not. Regardless, each character makes a choice – based on their integrity or lack of it – to get what they want.

We’ve seen that we, too, must make choices because of our own wants, desires, and ambitions.

Philippians 2 tells us to treat others as more important than ourselves and to concern ourselves with the interests of others.

Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. (Philippians 2:3-4)

We all want things. We all have desires. To empty and humble ourselves is to look at others’ wants and desires as more important than our own.

What about you? What do you want? What choice must you make to get it?

What has God been working on with you this Lent season?

What is God currently asking you to choose between?

Are you currently acting selfishly? Or are you acting humbly?

Or do you, like Olaf, want something that is actually bad for you?

Did you know I wrote a whole devotional based on Frozen? You can check out Sharing God’s Story with Disney’s Frozen over at Amazon. Also, here are two free downloads that help share God’s story with Frozen. The first one applies Frozen to the Wordless Book. The second illustrates the “Romans Road” using the storyline of Frozen. Just right-click, “save as” and enjoy!

SharingGodsStorywithFrozen

SharingGodsStorywithDisneysFrozenandtheWordlessBook

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

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Emptied & Humbled: Guardians of the Galaxy – Glory

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about glory. Sure, part of Lent is about anticipating Jesus’ death on Good Friday. But the other part of Lent is celebrating Jesus’ resurrection on Easter Sunday. Jesus defeated death!

Death has been swallowed up in victory. “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (I Corinthians 15:54b-55)

I need Lent

As I stated earlier, Lent is a very emotional time for me because it marks the life of my middle child, my middle son, Jude.

Jude was born February 11, the week before Lent began and died, two years later, on April, 12, shortly before Easter. Because of this, Lent is a very emotional and meaningful time for our family.

First, I need to mourn the death of my son. I need to feel the sting of death.

But, I also need to celebrate his life and his eternity. I need a reminder that even though Death took my son, Jesus has already defeated Death!

As we kept saying at his memorial service and funeral service, “Because Jesus lives, Jude lives also.”

Groot and Lent

As we saw earlier, Groot sacrificed himself to save the other Guardians. Groot’s death saved the Guardian’s lives. If Groot did not choose to sacrifice himself to the point of death, then all the Guardians would have died. But Groot did not stay dead! Sound familiar?

Yea, I know it’s not the same as Jesus’ resurrection, but Guardians does show us that there is life after death! Not only do we see Groot die, but we see little Groot live!

When Rocket asks Groot why he was sacrificing himself, he responds, “We are Groot.” Up to this point, all he said was, “I am Groot.” This time it was about community, and that is part of the glory. Because of Groot’s sacrifice – as a result of his death – the other Guardians lived and found community.

Peter Quill – Star-Lord (who?) – is no longer a loner. Drax, who lost his family, is no longer alone. Rocket, who longed for acceptance, now has a family, a community.

Community is part of the glory.

But that is not all; don’t forget that Groot lives!

The life – the glory – is a result of the sacrifice.

As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth – and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:9-11)

Even with Jesus, the glory is a result of the sacrifice.

Want the glory? Great! Just understand that the glory comes as a result of the sacrifice. Jesus didn’t get the glory without the sacrifice and neither will you.

What are you missing out on because you don’t want to deal with the pain or the sacrifice?

[Tweet “What glory are you missing out on because you don’t want the pain that must come first?”]

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

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Emptied & Humbled: Guardians of the Galaxy – Identity

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about identity. Jesus’ death and resurrection showed that he was both the Son of God and the Son of Man. Spider-man’s sacrifice revealed that his secret identity was Peter Parker. Ralph’s sacrifice showed that he was actually a good guy (even though he was his game’s bad buy). So who is the hero of Guardians of the Galaxy? I say Groot!

Guardians of the Galaxy plays like Star-Lord is the hero, and he does sometimes act heroically, but Groot is the real hero of Guardians!

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? Can this kind of faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, what good is it? So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith without works and I will show you faith by my works. You believe that God is one; well and good. Even the demons believe that – and tremble with fear. (James 2:14-19)

Faith without works is dead. Yea, that’s hard to swallow. And, honestly, I am not 100% sure of what it means. But I know this, James, the brother of Jesus, ties our actions to our faith. He even says faith without actions is dead. Wow.

While hard to understand, we see this in the movies we’ve talked about in Emptied and Humbled.

While Peter Parker struggled with his own wants and desires, we know he humbled himself to be the hero because he was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. He was not defined by his lot in life (poor, girlfriend-less college student). Instead, he was defined by his actions.

Even though Ralph was the bad guy in Fix it Felix, Jr, we see by his sacrificial actions that he is really a good guy at heart. He was not defined by his position. Instead, he was defined by his actions.

And what of Vanellope, the messed up girl everyone thought was a mistake or a glitch? Because of Ralph’s sacrifice, we found out that she was really a princess, the daughter of the real king of Sugar Rush.

We see the same thing in Groot. The quiet and (mostly) gentle giant is not defined by his position. No, Groot is defined by his actions! Groot is the hero!

The same is true for Jesus, right?

But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

God demonstrated his love. He didn’t just declare it, he demonstrated it, he showed it.

So, I leave you today with this question.

Who are you?

Behind the title, the position, or your lot in life, who are you?

(I trust that part of your answer is that you are a Christian, an adopted child of God, a prince or princess of the one true King, and a fellow heir of Jesus! If not, hit me up. I would love to introduce you to the one that loves you so much that he died for you. I would love to introduce you to Jesus.)

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

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Emptied & Humbled: Guardians of the Galaxy – Death

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about death. Specifically, Lent is about Jesus’ sacrificial death. Yes, a huge part of Lent is preparing for Good Friday.

As we saw yesterday, Groot, like Jesus, chose to make the ultimate sacrifice for his friends, for his community.

While sacrifice does not often lead to physical death, it does usually lead to a death. When we choose one thing over another we must often let our pride, our will, or our own desire die.

Going a little farther, he threw himself down with his face to the ground and prayed, “MyFather, if possible, let this cup pass from me! Yet not what I will, but what you will.” (Matthew 26:39)

Look, I don’t completely understand what this means. But there is some sense where Jesus, the Son of Man, pleaded with God the Father to let the cup, the crucifixion, pass from him. But in the same prayer Jesus, the Son of God, emptied himself of his own will and humbled himself to, submitted to, God the Father.

[Tweet “Sometimes we have to let our own will die for the sake of others.”]

Today I leave you with one question; In what area of your life is God asking you to submit to him?

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

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Emptied & Humbled: Guardians of the Galaxy – Sacrifice

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about sacrifice. Specifically, Lent is about Jesus’ sacrifice. The thing is, Jesus’ sacrifice is a hard idea to grasp.

As we’ve seen in Philippians 2, Jesus emptied himself and humbled himself. Jesus chose us.

But (Jesus) emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:7-8)

God emptied himself. That is crazy to me. Of what did he empty himself? To be honest, I don’t know. I have some ideas. Some are probably right on. Some probably stray into heresy. But it doesn’t really matter. Jesus emptied himself to the point of sacrificial death.

In Guardians of the Galaxy, we see this in Groot. While everyone else in the movie was looking out for their own selfish ambition, Groot emptied and humbled himself to the point of death. Why? To save others. Groot saw the others as more important than himself. Groot chose their needs over his own.

When Rocket asks him why he did it, Groot, who has only said “I am Groot,” says “We are Groot.” Groot gets community.

[Tweet “Groot shows us what it means to live in community.”]

We belong in a community! We are not made to go through life alone. God created us – and expects us – to be in community.

We see this in the world, right?

Most of us are born into families. Our families are typically part of an ethnic or religious community. We go to school and become part of another community – sports, band, art, geeks, nerds, punks, etc. In college some of us some join academic or social communities, sororities, or fraternities. Those of us that join the military are adopted into a “band of brothers” that often lasts a lifetime. As we grow and develop our own interests and hobbies, we join other communities of like-minded people. We bond instantly when we see someone in our favorite band’s t-shirt or see our Alma mater’s sticker on a car. Some of us are a part of a running club or a specific gym. Our options for a community are virtually endless. We even develop communities around movies. Don’t believe me? Go to a midnight showing of the upcoming Star Wars movie! You will see a whole community dedicated to all things Star Wars!

Chances are you are already part of a community. The question is, is your community good for you? Is your community looking out for you? Is your community helping you become the best “you” possible?

Listen, I don’t think you need to leave your communities (unless its illegal or immoral or something), but do not let your community replace your Church community.

And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works, not abandoning our own meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

If you are a Christian, then you are a part of the Church and God expects for you to take part in a Church. He even calls us – the Church – the Bride of Christ! Jesus loves us like a husband loves his wife.

Look, I know that most of you probably have wonderfully warm and fuzzy feelings about the Church. I grew up in the Church. My grandfather was a pastor. Even when I hit those “awkward teen years” and felt alienated from the Church, I dug my pastor. He truly loved me unconditionally and was a wonderful face for Jesus’ bride.

But to some of you, the Bride of Christ is quite ugly. Some of you have been hurt – maybe even abused – by the someone in the Church. If this is you, please find a good Church. Don’t let one crappy experience stop you from being a part of God’s community.

When the Church lives like Jesus – and acts like Groot – it is the most amazing community you could ever hope to find.

No Church is perfect – since no Christian is perfect – but the Bride of Christ is a lovely thing when we empty ourselves and humble ourselves to serve others.

You need the Church and the Church needs you.

[Tweet “The Church is at her best when “we are Groot.””]

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

Posted on

Emptied & Humbled: Guardians of the Galaxy – Choice

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about Choice. Choosing between what is best for us and what is best for others. Choosing between our own selfish ambitions and sacrifice.

Guardians of the Galaxy is also about choice.

Just about every character in Guardians of the Galaxy wants something.

Star-Lord (Who?), Gamora, and Ronan all wanted the Infinity Stone. Some wanted it for the money, others wanted it for the power.

Drax wanted revenge on the person who killed his wife and child.

Rocket just wanted to be wanted and to be normal.

Super Hero Jesus

What did Jesus choose? Jesus chose us – you and me.

Jesus, the God of all creation, chose to become one of us. The Son of God who is also the Son of Man.

Jesus, the King of Kings, chose to become an infant.

Jesus, the God of Life, chose to die on the cross.

[Tweet “Jesus chose us.”]

Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross! As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth – and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:3-11)

Jesus chose us.

With what choices are you currently faced?

What choices are you currently making at home, on the job, or with friends?

With every choice, we make a sacrifice. What are you being asked to sacrifice?

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

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Emptied & Humbled: Wreck-it Ralph – Glory

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about glory. Or in movie terms, the happy ending.

Yes, part of Lent is solemn, contemplative, sorrowful. This is the time when we consider sacrifice and death. But part of Lent is also celebratory! We mourn for Good Friday, but we celebrate the happy ending of Easter Sunday!

Jesus has won. Death has been defeated!

Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (I Corinthians 15:55)

We mourn the death but celebrate the glory.

But (Jesus) emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross! As a result God exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow – in heaven and on earth and under the earth – and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:7-11)

Everything Jesus did, he did for the Father’s glory.

He emptied himself for the Father’s glory.

He humbled himself for the Father’s glory.

We saw that Ralph was willing to sacrifice himself to save Vanellope. In doing so he saved all of Sugar Rush and even got to be part of his Fix-it Felix, Jr community.

All Vanellope wanted was to be able to race! She ended up being a princess, the daughter of the true King and got to be part of the Sugar Rush community.

Both Ralph and Vanellope received their glory, they received community.

[Tweet “Often, God’s glory is seen in community.”]

What community are you a part of?

What community should you be serving?

What should you give back to your community?

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

Posted on

Emptied & Humbled: Wreck-it Ralph – Identity

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about identity. Like Jesus, the choices and sacrifices we make tend to reveal our true identity. This is doubly true in Wreck-it Ralph!

The Good Bad Guy?

Yea, Ralph is the bad guy in Fix-it Felix, Jr. But by his actions – by his sacrifice – Ralph shows himself to truly be the hero!

His position did not define him, his choices and sacrifice did.

You’ve seen this, I’m sure.

Leaders lead. Just because someone has the word leader in their title or position does not make them a leader. Conversely, we all know people who lead well, even without position or title.

The same is true for pastors, right? Just because someone is a pastor doesn’t mean they are a pastor or a shepherd. At the same time, you probably know someone who is a true pastor – a real shepherd – even though they are not one by trade or title.

The same goes for Ralph. He is the hero – the savior – because of what he did, not because of who he is.

The Real Princess

One of my favorite parts of Wreck-it Ralph is when we find out that Vanellope is really a princess!


(Watch before you continue.)

As I’ve written before, Sugar Rush is under the control of a counterfeit king, King Candy. Sugar Rush is “fallen.” King Candy has reprogrammed Sugar Rush so that no one knows how it used to be or how it should be.

When Vanellope crosses the finish line, something miraculous – something biblical – happens; Sugar Rush is restored and transformed! The curse is lifted and Sugar Rush is restored to its original creation. When this happens we find out that Vanellope is really a princess, the daughter of the true king!

Ralph’s sacrifice saved Vanellope and revealed to her her true identity. Vanellope, the sweet little “glitch,” is really the daughter of the true king!

That’s us!

We are the sweet little “glitches” that, when we trust Jesus, become children of the true King!

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery leading again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption, by whom we cry, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit himself bears witness to our spirit that we are God’s children. And if children, then heirs (namely, heirs of God and also fellow heirs with Christ) — Romans 8:15-17

Because Jesus emptied and humbled himself to the point of death on the cross – and rose again! – we can be adopted into God’s family!

Because of that sacrifice, we know our true identity – we are God’s adopted children!

Lent is about our adoption into God’s family. Lent is about our true identity.

Today, take the time to consider that if you have trusted in Jesus, you are one of God’s kids and a fellow heir with his only begotten son, Jesus.

If you have not yet trusted Jesus, then today is the day!

Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved! (Acts 16:31)

Jesus loves you.

If you have questions about Jesus, the faith, or Lent, please reach out to me.

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

Posted on

Emptied & Humbled: Wreck-it Ralph – Death

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Lent is about Death. We anticipate Jesus’ death on Good Friday and then celebrate his defeat of death on Easter/Resurrection Sunday!

As we said yesterday, Ralph emptied himself and humbled himself. So much so that he was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. Ralph emptied and humbled himself to the point of death.

Yea, I know he didn’t die.

But he was willing to die.

He thought he was going to die.

And he did it anyway.

Ralph made the ultimate sacrifice.

This sacrifice is the point of Lent.

During Lent, we stop and remember what Jesus did for us. We stop and consider what Jesus sacrificed for us.

We ponder what he emptied himself of. We wonder at how the creator God could humble himself.

Somewhere during Lent, we remember that what he did, he did for us. What he did, he did for me.  What he did, he did for you.

In the same way that Vanellope had he “glitch,” we have our own glitches.

We know our crap. We know the stuff we usually try to hide.

Even with all that stuff, Jesus loves us. Jesus loves us so much that even while we were still dirty, rotten sinners, he died for us.

Yes, Lent is about death.

Not just Jesus’, but also the little deaths we die to every day.

The death of our pride. The death of our own selfish desire. The death of our ego.

What in your life needs to die? What are you holding onto? What do you need to let go of?

This Lent season – today – think about what Jesus did for you. Then consider what you should do for Jesus.

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

[Tweet “Check out Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional.”]

Get my free e-book, How to See God’s Story in Movies. This free download will help you share God’s story with your kids and students by showing you how to see God’s story in movies.

 

Not only will this guarantee that you get the latest Reel Parables posts, but you will also get my most popular downloads, including “How to Time Travel.”

And be sure to check out my About page for more info on what I do around here at Reel Parables.

Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith

Posted on

Emptied & Humbled: Wreck-it Ralph – Sacrifice

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

Ralph had a choice to make. Would he help Vanellope or would he pursue his own desire, to take a hero’s medal back to Fix-it Felix, Jr and join the community?

While Spider-man sacrificed his wants, Ralph chose to sacrifice his life.

King Candy, now the “Lord of the Flies” bug-like creature, has Ralph high above Candy Crush. Vanellope, who cannot leave the game, is about to die at the hands claws of the demon-like bugs from the game Hero’s Duty.

Ralph knows that the bugs are drawn to light, that if he can crash the Mentos into the Coke River, then he can erupt the volcano and draw the bugs away from Vanellope.

The catch, however, is that he would have to sacrifice himself. And that is what he does.

Ralph breaks free of King Candy and falls to (what he thinks will be) his death. On the way down he crashes through the Mentos, igniting the Mentos/Coke volcano.

This is exactly the attitude that Jesus has in Philippians 2.

Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. Each of you should be concerned not only about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, who though he existed in the form of God did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself by taking on the form of a slave, by looking like other men, and by sharing in human nature. He humbled himself, by becoming obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross! (Philippians 2:3-8)

Ralph, like Jesus, thought of others – specifically Vanellope – as more important than himself.

Ralph, like Jesus, emptied himself of his own desire – to go home a hero – and became a servant, serving Vanellope to the point of death.

(Yea, I know he didn’t die, but he thought he was going to die. He was willing to die and chose to sacrifice himself thinking he would die.)

This is how Jesus loves you.

Jesus emptied and humbled himself for you.

But God demonstrates his own love for us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (Romans 5:8)

Today, instead of thinking of what you need to sacrifice, thank God – thank Jesus – for what he did for you!

This is part of Emptied & Humbled, a movie based Lenten devotional. The whole devotional can be found here.

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Until next time, God bless.

Simon L Smith