I saw a preview of AMAZING GRACE a few months back and thought it looked really good...we saw it tonight. The story itself really overtakes the movie itself if that makes any sense. Certainly there were just a handful of parts that seemed heavy-handed on sentimentalism...but by the end, you just didn't care. Bring out the marching bands, the banners, whatever it took! It's a movie about one man's passion for humanity and equality. It's about the fight to abolish slavery in England, but also about having determination to fight a system utterly flawed. Well done overall, well acted and executed. It's an even slow pace, but it lent itself well to the theme of perserverance. It's "Amistad" lite. If you haven't seen "Amistad," then shame on you. And then I wonder, "what will be the 'slavery' of our time?" What will future generations look back upon and wonder how WE let it happen? AIDS pandemic in Africa, homelessness, human trafficking. Yes, yes, and yes most likely. What if there are no future generations because we wrecked the planet? Just thoughts.
And John Mayer is an idiot, because while he writes songs like "waiting on the world to change," people like Bono are using their God-given platform of fame to actually CHANGE the world. Get off your high (and I don't mean high horse), John Mayer, and do something. (aside: I like his music, especially "Continuum," but that song drives me up a wall!)
And now that I'm being self-righteous, I shall turn the pointing finger...what am I doing to change the world? I'm living a smaller life than the one I imagined for myself. I don't know yet if that's good or bad. My heart is to help, but I feel trapped by the 9 to 5-ness of the work week. And so I try to live with integrity, doing the small things I can...and praying for opportunities to contribute in some meaningful way to those who are hopeless and helpless. What is God stirring in my heart?
Go see "Amazing Grace" if for no other reason than to support a film that does not glorify dysfunction, alcoholism, death/destruction, violence, and moral decay. At the least it is educational, as it is based on a true story. At the most, it will help you ask yourself..."what is my God-given passion, and how can I see it through?"
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