A Lesson from Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

I don't really claim to be a Star Wars junkie (not sure if there's a name for this fandom), but I do enjoy a good battle between both sides of The Force every now and then. Yesterday, Tanner and I started to watch Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (or the Star Wars where the little boy races in the flying machine, as I referred to it) and I had a mini-revelation. Right in the beginning of the movie when The Federation (the bad guys) has begun to invade the planet of Naboo (kinda like Earth) , Qui-Gon Jinn (Liam Neeson) saves a creature by the name of Jar Jar Binks. Jinn tells Jar Jar he almost got them killed and asked if he's brainless to which Jar Jar replies, "I speake!", meaning he's not brainless since he talks. Then Jinn (Neeson), who, as always plays the all-knowing, kick-butt, fighter dude, says the quote that led to inspire this post:

"The ability to speak does not make you intelligent..." 

MIND BLOWN. I know it's pretty simple, but how many people can you think of that you wish you could say this to.  Just because you can talk, doesn't mean that you should. Just because you have a thought, doesn't mean it should be said out loud. There is tons of scripture about taming your tongue, I saw a few out that I think could best be used in this context.

Proverbs 12:18     There are those who speak rashly, like the piercing of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

When I was a sophomore in high school, I made the Varsity Volleyball team, which seemed like a pretty big deal at the time. I was the youngest on the team and I felt really uncomfortable because I didn't know any of the other girls, and when I'm uncomfortable I tend to make light of situations by joking around or playing pranks on people or whatever (a trait I've gotten from my mom, we both have really disturbing definitions humor... think wry, English humor). Anyways, so to try to bond with the other girls, I'd call them out on silly things they did or do impersonations of them, and I thought everyone enjoyed it, until one day the coach asked me to stay after practice. She sat me down and explained that everyone on the Varsity team had come to her and said I'd hurt their feelings with harsh words, jokes and such. HOW EMBARRASSING!! I was mortified and I felt like the biggest jerk in the entire universe. Not only did I have to sit through that lecture, the next practice while we waited for our coach to arrive, I decided I really needed to apologize to everyone, so I did. Unfortunately, that didn't really help and I spent a lot of my team bus rides sitting by myself. It was a terrible season, but a lesson well learned.

Sometimes we may not think our words hurt, but they do. Take an extra few seconds to really consider these three things before you say anything:

1) Does this need to be said out loud? 

2) Does this need to be said out loud, by me?

3) Does this need to be said out loud, by me, right now?

If the answer is no to any of these, just keep it to yourself.

Liam Neeson actually pulls off the half-ponytail if you ask me. 

Failure to Excommunicate

Relient K was my all-time, hands down favorite band in middle school. I first saw them on a WOW DVD that was played at a week of camp and after I heard their song "Chapstick, Chapped Lips and Things Like..." I had to find out more about this band. Today, while wasting time at work, I decided to revisit some of their old songs and stumbled upon one of my most loved songs by them. After listening to it again and again, I decided that it would be the focus of my entry today so if you enjoy lyric analysis then keep reading. You can listen to the song HERE

It's the principle it's the issue 

that your principal would dismiss you.

 Because you don't fit into that all-American Box.

That coffin created for creative thought.

It's disgusting his priorities

And how we're entrusting him with authority.

His gavel's gone down before he looked in your heart. 

He finished this race(ism) before he reached the start.

Jesus loved the outcasts.

He loves the ones the world just loves to hate.

And as long as there's a heaven, there'll be a failure to excommunicate.

The world just keeps you at an arm's length.

Every week you work up the strength to fight the flames that are hurled.

Let your faith shine right through.

You know it's the world versus Jesus and you.

 It's disgusting, their priorities.

And how we're entrusting them with authority.

Their gavel's gone down before they looked in your heart.

They finished this race(ism).

Let's think about what the word "excommunicate" means. The Free Dictionary defines it as
1. To deprive of the right of church membership by ecclesiastical authority.
2. To exclude by or as if by decree from membership or participation in a group.

Now, most of us will say "Glad we don't do that in our church" or "that's so wrong and un-Christian" and while most of us attend church where anyone is supposedly welcome, how many times do we mentally judge or dismiss a newcomer to our congregation? Or how many times do we purposefully not invite someone to an event simply because we don't like them or don't feel like dealing with them? We may not be forbidding someone to have communion but we're certainly excluding them from what could be the fellowship that they need to get them through the next month, week or even day. As Christians, it is our duty to stand up, stand together, and spread the word about Jesus Christ. How can we do that if we dismiss people so easily just by their clothes, opinions, etc?

Another way to think about these lyrics are to apply them to today's government. Because of the current state of America, I feel like this song could have been some crazy, coincidental foreshadowing about what our country would be like in a few years. Political scandals rock the internet almost daily and it seems as if Christians are slowly becoming the minority, but how amazing is it that as long as we have faith in Jesus and we don't give in to this world, he's always by our side no matter what? Idk...

Let me know what you think about this. Did I completely miss the point of the song or do you agree?

Album - The Anatomy of the Tongue in Cheek 

Jesus was a Freak

Before you're offended by my sac-religious title, hear me out.

Sometimes I like to wonder what Jesus would have been like if he were here today. What would he wear? How would he talk? Would he cut his hair or wear it in a ponytail? Would he be a Republican or a Democrat? What kind of music would he like? Who would he hang out with?

Many of us would like to think that Jesus was a cool kid. That he would be the popular guy, the one invited to all of the parties, the one who would walk down the halls in high school giving everyone high fives and fist-bumping teachers. But, for a few reasons, I don't think this is the case.

I think Jesus would have been labeled a freak. A loser. A nerd. Or whatever kids call each other these days. Think about it, Jesus didn't hang out with kings and queens, he hung out with prostitutes and lepers. He was friends with adulterers and tax collectors. Jesus hung out with the kids (people) who were different. The ones who had bad home lives, the alcoholics, the trouble makers. And he was literally persecuted for that.

I think there are three reasons for this. The first is obvious. He was trying to show them God's love. He was showing them that despite whatever sin they were defined by, God loved them and there was more to life than what they had been shown. And even when they weren't accepted by their own people, God accepted them and had a reward so great that no amount of acceptance on Earth could compare.

The second reason is also quite obvious. If Jesus was "cool" and accepted, then there would have never been a crucifixion, because everyone liked him. There wouldn't have been riots and he wouldn't have had people spit on him. If someone wanted to persecute him everyone else would just say "Jesus? He's cool. Let him chill for a bit." and that would have been the end of that. But instead, Jesus was an outcast. Thus, leading to one of the most brutal deaths our dear Savior could have endured.

The third reason I think that Jesus was a freak is to be an example to us, right now, in modern times. Even all those years ago, he was showing us that it's ok to not be apart of the crowd. It's ok to stand out. It's ok to invite the co-worker that no one likes to watch MNF.  It's perfectly fine to talk to the girl sitting by herself at lunch, in fact, God wants you to do that! He wants you to reach out to those who have never known his grace and love. Today's world is all about status and gain. We're in such a rush to be the same as everyone else and to fit in.

Let's go against the grain. Let's be Jesus to the freaks. Embrace them. Show them there's more. Tell them that there are much better things ahead. And most of all, love them. Love them just like Jesus would have done.