The Commitment
AS I think about God’s calling on a person’s life I think of one movie in particular. For those of you who have small children you know what I am talking about. That one movie that your son or daughter gets hooked on and will only watch that one movie for a year straight! For my daughter that movie has been Moana. She loves Moana. I have become a fan of that movie mostly because of the music. I love the music and scenery and it has always drawn me in while she is watching it. After seeing it for what felt like the 100th time, I actually picked up on something more meaningful.
In the movie, Moana is pre determined by her family to run her small island village. From the moment that she is a little girl it seems that this is hard for her to accept. Not because she doesn’t like her people or her village but because something more powerful is brewing. She is fascinated with the ocean and is drawn to it every moment she has by herself to think about her life. She tries to ignore it because her father says its dangerous but she can’t escape it. Finally, she gives in and sails off on a voyage to save her people. She starts off with challenges and even gives up at one point insisting that the ocean choose someone else for this mission. Ultimately, she ends up finding the strength to carry on and believe in herself and achieves the goal of saving her people.
As I watched the movie it caused me to relate this to the calling that God has placed on each of our lives. I can easily relate to moments of doubting and wanting to give up, but I can also relate to that feeling that no matter how hard you try to get away from the calling (something quick and easier comes along) you cannot escape the divine plan that God has for your life. Watching Moana makes me realize that I don’t want to escape it. I would rather press on and continue following His directions so that I can have an opportunity at true God given happiness.
Moana causes me to reflect on what I should be doing while waiting for the calling of things to come. She doesn’t really know how to sail but she begins preparing for it. She practices and doesn’t give up and finally she is able to sail. Are we preparing while we are waiting for the calling to come together? This is something personally I really need to work on. Am I treating people right? Am I setting a good example as a wife, mother, adult, or even friend? God is a reminder that if we draw near to him he draws near to us. As I continue to go through the phases of life, I have realized that there is more then one calling that God has planned for me. What I am doing in one time period I may not be doing in another time period, yet both were part of the calling.
Watching that movie for what seemed like hundreds of times made me realize that I should always prepare for the plans that God has for me. Maybe being ready determines when God will reveal the next steps in my life. Are you ready? Have you ever thought that you knew what your calling was but maybe you weren’t sure if you could do it? Maybe there are things that you would have to sacrifice in order to live out your calling. Just like Moana, I believe we cannot escape our calling. The closer we are to God the more he trusts us and gives us more responsibility related to our individual plan. That is one of the many things I love about The Commitment. The steps in the Commitment are exactly what you need to get closer to all that God has for you. Even though it’s just a movie, Moana made me realize that we can conquer our calling with practice, faithfulness, and perseverance. I’m going to continue to prepare.
www.johannaandrews4tc.com