More fractured fairy tales. . .

So another day, another dollar. Actually not a bad day. Work was decent; would have been better had our floor not been so hot and humid and my cold not been hanging around. But it was manageable. Actually the past two or three weeks have been a lot less stressful. I think it was the vacation or maybe the new system. Whatever it was, I'm not going to argue, because it's working!

Tonight I went with my sister, Ashley, to go see Shrek 2. I'm a huge fan of the first movie; I love its originality and almost anarchic sense of humor, especially the way it just totally blasts on fairy tales. This movie, for the first 20 minutes or so, did start out a tad slow. Shrek and Fiona go to meet her parents. It was worth a few chuckles here and there, but it really started out more like Shrek: the sitcom. Really, once the fairy couple gets married, few things are more entertaining than watching them get along and be all lovey and gooey (which only proves my point that any couple who has never been in a fight and says they're in love is definitely not in love... but that's for another post).

Thankfully, about 20 minutes into the movie, Puss In Boots shows up, voiced by Anotonio Banderas. And this is where the movie starts to have some fun. The biggest joke in the movie, for instance, might just be Puss's big kitty eyes as he disarms someone. Funny stuff.

I think those jokes must have juiced up the crew, because from that point on, the film just continues to pick up steam and have more fun and originality. There are less fairy tale jokes and more pokes at our fame-obsessed culture and a lot of movie jokes (Spiderman, Lord of the Rings, Ghostbusters. . . even Flashdance gets a shout-out!) I won't ruin any of the suprises, but the movie is definitely worth it. Not as good as the first, but very few sequels are.

In other news, I'm reading this book right now that Erin leant me called Girl Meets God, about a Jewish girl who converted to Christianity. It's really eye opening. I can't imagine not only having to divorce yourself from the culture of the world, but having to break away from the culture you've known growing up.

I guess it only proves a point that I've come to learn in the past few years. Anyone who said that following Christ won't cost you a thing was a big liar. We're called to lay down EVERYTHING. Christ himself said that our families and our world would hate us for following Him. He commanded us to take up our crosses DAILY and follow Him. And he warned us that the servant is not greater than the master, and we saw how far his persecution was taken.

I guess that's why it frustrates me when I give in to the world's system time and again. When I think my job, money, or relationships will make me happy. It's why I get angry when I see Christians swear, not stay in the Word, or just make church part of their "lifestyle." It's not a club. It's not something you do just to be a better person. It's not a lifestyle. It's Life.

Monday at Bible study we were talking about the importance of the Bible. And I kind of bristled when the word "useful" was tossed around. Yeah, it's true. And I'm probably just getting angry at some semantics. But it's so much more than useful. It's our lifeblood. It's our food. It's our water. It's our bread.

Nothing irritates me more than seeing a person feel that they're a committed, growing Christian and then seeing that they aren't committed to growing! I've said it before, and I'll probably say it again: if someone is not in the Word, if they're not regularly in church, if they're not committed to prayer and utter dependance on God, I don't see how they can begin to grow!! In fact, if they aren't even trying to do those things, I would hesitate to say that they are growing!

And I don't mean to sound like I'm perfect. I'm not. Some Sundays I roll out of bed and just want to sleep a little longer. There are a few nights where I go to bed before opening my Bible. And prayer is tough for me, I'll be completely honest. It's an issue I have to depend on God to grow in me. And yeah, I give into the world just as often as the next Christian...probably more. But I know where my desire is. And I'm committed to pressing on and getting closer to God, no matter how many times I trip or frustrate myself. Because that's all that matters.

With that, I'm also committed to going to bed. It's 11:20 and I still need to sleep the rest of my cold off and 6:15 comes oh so early! I'll write more later!

C-Dubbs