Friday night was family movie night when I was seven. My mom rented Spielberg's Close Encounters of the Third Kind, with great excitement saying, "Jonathan, you're gonna love this movie". I remember her telling me how good she thought it was, and she told me that when she first saw it, she believed that life on other planets was possible. Bottom line: she knew she wanted to show me this because she knew I was going to have a thrilling experience.
She was right.
I have vivid memories of being totally engrossed in this story. When I saw the magnificent ship rise over the plateau, I was not in our living room any more. I was standing next to the man who was waiting to find out what would happen next. I was sitting next to the mother who was waiting to find her son on that ship.
Yes, watching this movie did make me an "official" Spielberg fan for life, but it seemed like my fascination was rooted in something greater. The true fascination that I developed that night was not just becoming a movie junkie; I was growing a love for the power of story. It didn't matter if it was a book, a piece of music, movie, whatever...if the story engaged me, it was worth my time. I have spent countless hours being transported from one place to the next through each piece of art.
I am 27 now, and thus for almost 20 years, I have had a growing love for the power of art and story. I know that God has instilled my love for the arts for a reason, and I have great confidence, that He is using my fascination with the arts for His long-term purposes in my life. So, here I am...a crazy entertainment junkie. How does this all fit into the BIG PICTURE of my life with Christ?
This is a question that has plagued me for years. Does my fascination with film and music really matter? I feel like I received many mixed messages. Youth ministers would say, "Who tonight feels like God wants them to get rid of their CD's?" My family would say, "Why are you watching that?". While I believe that these comments do have merit for some, I do not believe that these are the appropriate questions for everybody. "'Everything is permissible'--but not everything is beneficial" (1 Cor. 10:23, NIV). Was this art beneficial to my life? I ultimately came to the discovery that my love for the power of story in entertainment was deeply rooted in my heart for following Christ, to love Him and love others. This love was definitely beneficial.
As humans, we are on a journey pursuing truth and finding purpose in life. The ultimate goal as Christ followers is to serve Him and play a part in His awesome purpose. Our choices, mistakes, acts of forgiveness, apologies, tears, and laughter--these things are all a part of our story with Him. Thus, each time we listen to a song or watch a movie or read a book and are engrossed in a story, we are tapping into what God has instilled in every human which is a deep desire to be a part of something bigger. He created us with a hunger to be a part of His story.
Twenty years after watching Close Encounters for the first time, I am now married to Lindsey, my wonderful wife. I am teaching music at a great school in Louisiana, and I am preparing to follow God's leadership to carry out a huge vision to plant an arts center in an area close to Nashville. All of these things were orchestrated by the awesome Creator, and I get to play a part in His story every day.
So, with all that being said, what is this blog? If anything, it is more of an exercise for me. I feel a need to be a constant processor or stories...whether through film, music, literature...whatever. I don't want to merely consume these stories, I know that I need to reflect on them proactively. And I don't want to only reflect on the story itself, but also reflect on the art of making the story. So this blog is going to be that reflection.
Please share your thoughts as you read along.
(P.S. Thanks to John Eldrige for his book, Waking the Dead for his inspiring thoughts on the important power of story.)
