Lent Week One ~ Gospel of Disney

Having already engaged one song from a Disney movie, we continue with one of my favorites, The Lion King.  There are many reasons why I find this movie fascinating.  First, it is a great commentary on families who put the "fun" in dysfunction.  All of us know what it is to have unresolved conflict hanging and hovering around the Thanksgiving table.  We know how power plays are not confined or contained only in Washington D.C., but find their ways in to our own households.  The conflict between Scar and Mufasa might not be exactly what we experience in our family, but there are sometimes echoes at reunions and picnics.  Second, I find the commentary on our abuse of the environment compelling and convicting, especially considering that this film is a few decades old.  Third, the opening song has some great theological themes.  Listen...and watch the amazing art those who drew the frames crafted and created...

 The middle verse strikes and stays with me:

Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with the scars

The questions of why this may be...why do some stumble and some soar?  Or the question might be how do we notice our own stumbling and our own soaring?  Too often, it is easy to tripped or trapped into thinking that we need someone to validate that our stumbling doesn't define us or that our soaring is for real.  There is a circle, cycle, to life.  Moments when we can accomplish more than we ask or imagine.  Moments when we fail spectacularly.  Moments when we taste goodness, grace.  Moments when bitterness lingers, lasts too long.  Sometimes those moments happen simultaneously.  As we enter into Lent, where are you?

Do you feel like your soul is soar or sinking?
Do you feel like your life is trekking like a train or has gone off the rails?

Perhaps again...it isn't yes or no...but both/and.  Depending on the day, the time, we might respond with an emphatic, "Yes" to both.

Take some time today to settle and let these questions soak into your life.  And may you sense more than just a trace of God's grace in this moment.

Blessings ~~