Christmas 2009 is already a memory. The gifts have been opened. Some need to be returned. Soon we’ll finish packing up the decorations and store them away. Some of us are making New Year resolutions — with high hopes we’ll keep them — and looking foward to 2010.
Christmas wouldn’t be the same without special movies like It’s A Wonderful Life. A more recent addition to our holidays is The Nativity Story. The message, production quality and acting are so good that it never fails to bring a tear to our eyes. If you haven’t seen it, don’t wait until next Christmas.
During this first decade of the new millenium, many of us saw Mel Gibson’s The Passion of Christ, which retold the story of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross.
I followed the early news reports when Mel Gibson first started production. He was attacked in the media by both Jews and Christians. Jews claimed the movie was anti-semitic and Christians said he took too many liberties with the story. When the movie was released, many Christians felt it was a dramatic but wonderful portrayal of Christ’s redemptive work on the Cross. But Mel Gibson’s personal failures were soon broadcast around the world, and he has gone through one problem after another ever since.
Mel Gibson pursued his dream. He produced a powerful movie about his Savior. He fought the fight, and then he fell. Like Abraham, Adam, David, Jacob, Moses, Peter, and other leaders in scripture, Mel Gibson has feet of clay that didn’t hold him up under the pressure of success.
The Best is Yet to Come
So, what does that mean for us? If we pursue our life-long dream and succeed, does that guarantee personal failure? Is this the Way, the Truth, and the Life that Jesus promised?
I don’t think so. If you do what God has put in your heart to do, and if you follow the purpose for which He has created you, you’re not going to automatically be knocked down a few notches. That doesn’t have to be the way our stories end.
Like Mel Gibson and the biblical leaders, I’ve made big mistakes and failed God and those I love. My own stupidity and sinfulness created my problems. The consequences of my lack of discipline and character have driven me to my knees many times. But by the grace of God, I’m going to keep getting back up and pursuing my dream.
How about you?
Will you believe that your “present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed” in you (Romans 8:18) and continue to press on in the new year?
The free video Great Quotes from Great Leaders was also very good…
But my favorite video was The Nature of Success by Mac Anderson…
Keep getting back up to pursue your dream, and have a prosperous and happy New Year!
