As For Me and My Household, We Follow The Light!

When you have young sons in this day in age, you learn things that you never knew you needed to know. For example, did you know that there is a super hero (or villain, I can’t get them straight) called Ant Man whose super power is to become really tiny? Or, how about the one called Squirrel Girl who shoots out little rodents…don’t ask me…I don’t get it either…

Another thing you might become very familiar with when you have kids at home is the film industry. Whether you like it or not, it is rather hard to escape turning into quite the connoisseur of the kid-movie genre. Such is the case in my household. And even though there aren’t many which are worth talking about, sometimes we discover a rare jewel among the rubble. One that has won the heart of all in my family is called The Croods.

Briefly, The Croods is about the last surviving cave-men family. In the story, the Dad kept all the members of the family alive by forcing them to stay in a cave most of the time. It is truly funny, but there is also a deep message which captivated me from the first time I saw it (that’s right, I’ve seen that movie like 15+ times). The underlying theme is summarized when the Dad, after a series of ironically, funny tragedies, says to his rebellious teenage daughter: “what’s the point of all these, you asked? To follow the light!” He says this as his parting words when he sacrifices himself to, once again, save his family.

I love that scene.

That’s the scene where the father-daughter conflicting-clash of characters gets resolved. Dad finally gets his daughter, Eep’s nagging question: What’s the point of surviving or ‘not dying’ as she puts it, when we have to live in a dark cave?

As a Christian, of course I understand and side with Eep, the rebellious, sun-loving teen who is sick and tired of living in a cave…the problem is…that often times I recognize the fearful, untrusting Dad in me as well. I want to stay in the safety of my cave, even if it’s dark. I like feeling protected even if it means sacrificing freedom. I like the sense of control, even if it means rejecting the light.

That attitude leads me to living a life filled with fear and anxiety. At the least bit windy day, I shake and want to hide. At the sign of problems, I break. At the smallest hint of an issue, I shake and shudder. I want to protect my loved ones even to the point where they don’t get to experience anything, because I am too afraid of letting them do anything, may they get hurt.

I don’t want to be like that. I want to be a follower of the Light. No matter what the circumstance, I want to trust Him and His plans. I want the light of the Son to shine on my face so bright that I have to wear shades! I don’t want to be enslaved to fear anymore. He has overcome the world, and if I belong to Him, I can, too overcome it all. I want to be free, for it is for freedom that Christ has made me free! (Galatians 5: 1)

In the end, Grug, the Dad, got it, “No more caves, we follow the light!” he said…I want to get it too. And I want to be so in tuned to His voice that I can hear it all around me. I want to hear His message for me, even if it comes in shrink-wrap and it smells of microwave pop-corn.