Tag: Media reviews

Digging in Deeper: Proverbs 29:18

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“Without revelation people run wild, but one who follows divine instruction will be happy.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

It’s been a little while since I’ve gotten to do something like this. Part of the blame for that lies with my own schedule of late. The other part of the blame doesn’t fall on me, though. There just hasn’t been a whole lot from the other side that has furnished me the opportunity. The opportunity for what? Another media review! It’s fun Friday, and Marvel has finally released more content onto Disney+ for us to talk about. This time, appropriately enough given the season, it was all about witches. There were broomsticks and cauldrons and cats and spooky locations and more than a little of the occult. Let’s talk about Agatha All Along, Marvel’s first attempt to take a page out of Sony’s playbook and make a series in which the hero is a villain. And, fair warning, if you haven’t seen the series yet and plan to, don’t read on. I’m going to spoil all the big reveals as we go.

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Digging in Deeper: 2 Peter 1:16

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“For we did not follow cleverly contrived myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ; instead, we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

Religion is an interesting thing. It’s a powerful thing. Some try to argue that it’s a bad thing. But the truth is that religion is just a thing. How it’s used, who’s doing the using, and for what purpose determines exactly what kind of a thing it is. It’s not all bad, and it’s ignorant to argue otherwise. Neither, however, is it all good. Only a fool would think that. It has to be taken on a case-by-case basis, and some religions are better than others. But try as we might, we can’t escape it. We’re drawn to it. That’s part of what gives it such power. What has me thinking about all of this is my recently finishing both watching and reading Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic, Dune, in which religion plays a profound role. Let’s talk about it.

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Morning Musing: 1 Corinthians 12:12

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“For just as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body – so also is Christ.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

I love cartoons. Near as I can remember, I always have. Animation brings a world of storytelling possibilities to life that live action films and series simply can’t touch. CGI and Ai are a modern marvel in terms of what they allow us to put on the screen that looks so real you almost can’t tell the difference between what’s real and what’s not, but what are those two except tools of animation? The kind of cartoons I’ve always been most drawn to are the ones with good stories. I’m a sucker for well-developed characters and a gripping plot. And, of course, cartoons about superheroes have always been my favorite. Growing up, one of the absolute best on television was X-Men. When news came out a few months ago that Marvel was going to pick back up the classic series that ended its run almost 30 years ago (I can’t tell you how much it pains me to write that), I was thrilled. They did not disappoint. X-Men 97′ wrapped up its first season this week and it was even better than I had hoped it would be. And, as is so often the case, the Gospel made an appearance in the story. Let’s talk about another Marvel classic and why we just can’t escape the Gospel.

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Digging in Deeper: Ephesians 4:1-6

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“Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit – just as you were called to one hope at your calling – one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

One of the ideas I have set before you fairly often over the years of our doing this together is that the Gospel lies at the heart of all of our stories. That one story is so powerful that we just can’t get away from it. In just nearly every story we tell, you can find echoes of the Gospel in some form or fashion. Sometimes you have to look pretty carefully for it, but it is just nearly always there. That’s why I can keep coming back here on most Fridays to offer a review of something I’ve watched recently and talk about its Gospel implications with you. Well, I finally finished watching through something new this week (really new this time, not just new to me but a year and a half old for everyone else), and today we’re going to talk for just a few minutes about its Gospel implications. This series is based on a video game franchise set in a post-apocalyptic future. And while video game franchises set in a post-apocalyptic future are about a dime a dozen, this one has been around for a pretty long time and has remained pretty popular for most of that time. Let’s talk today about the Amazon Prime series, Fallout.

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Digging in Deeper: Romans 8:28

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“We know that all things work together for the good of those who love God, who are called according to his purposes.” (CSB – Read the chapter)

A common cliche we like to use when something happens unexpectedly or unfolds in a way we didn’t plan is that God works in mysterious ways. The idea is that God can accomplish things in ways and by means that go well beyond our ability to explain them. Followers of Jesus call this miraculous. Secular folks just call it chance or good luck. Either way, our powers of prediction are generally pretty bad. A recent series on AppleTV got me thinking about all of this as I watched the story take twists and turns the characters could not have imagined at the outset. God actually played a role in the story, but it was an interesting one. Let’s talk for a bit today about Lessons in Chemistry and how things all work out according to plan.

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