Hook with Paul McDonald, and Britt Mooney
Coming up on the Men at the Movies podcast, Britt and I celebrate the 30th anniversary of Tombstone. This story takes place in a time of chaos and lawlessness, but through that context we discover the right reasons to fight, who our true enemy is, and the power of having the right friends beside us. I’m your huckleberry—join us as we discover God’s truth in this movie.
Quotes
We don’t realize how often God allows crisis to enter our lives so that we can rediscover the hero we were meant to be.
When we forget our hero identity, we become the pirate.
We can’t fix our families until we fix ourselves.
Life is but a few years. Don’t miss it.
Living another day is worth more than all the money in the world. But why don’t we act like it?
We were made to enter into a story full of adventure and wonder.
The people who believe the stories are true seem crazy.
We don’t actually trust God to take care of us.
When the child is awakened within us, a feast will appear.
It’s about combining the heart of a child with the strength of maturity.
Themes
What happens to a man as he grows up?
We look at crisis and conflict as uncomfortable, frustrating, and inconvenient. But God uses these things to reveal the hero He made us to be.
We lose the magic of the stories we used to believe in. Start being ruled and consumed by paying bills and the minutiae of the needs of the moment. We lose our wonder with all of the stuff we think we have to do, and fear begins to dominate.
Peter grew up/left Neverland because he wanted to be a father. But he loses who he is. In order to save his family, he has to recover his heart. We need to be careful with what we give our hearts to.
When something isn’t working well, it can be a trigger that our heart isn’t in a good place. It’s a sign we’ve forgotten who we are.
We don’t trust God to take care of us.
To be the father we want to be, we have to remember what it’s like to be a child.
How do we grow up well?
Tension: “All grown ups are pirates” vs his kids needed him to be a grown up to rescue them.
We tell them stories not to entertain or placate them, but to tell them, “When you grow up, you can be part of a story like this.”
We have to grow up, we can’t stay in Neverland, but we can’t become pirates.
If I forget what it’s like to be a kid, I become a pirate. I can engage with them where they are
Combine the heart of the child with the strength of maturity.
How do we recover our hearts when we’ve become a pirate?
Motivated by love
Learn to eat invisible food—what do I need to sustain my life, my heart?
Constantly consuming the bread/water of life
The solution is not to act like you’re a child again
Learn to crow (speak the truth in love), to fly (live by faith), and to fight (for what matters)
What does a pirate look like?
Fearful
Taking
Always needs more
A pirate’s life doesn’t matter, leads to death.
Feels like it’s never enough.
Constantly consuming resources
Resources
The objection to fairy stories is that they tell children there are dragons. But children have always known there are dragons. Fairy stories tell children that dragons can be killed. - G.K. Chesterton
“For an answer Jesus called over a child, whom he stood in the middle of the room, and said, “I’m telling you, once and for all, that unless you return to square one and start over like children, you’re not even going to get a look at the kingdom, let alone get in. Whoever becomes simple and elemental again, like this child, will rank high in God’s kingdom. What’s more, when you receive the childlike on my account, it’s the same as receiving me.” - Matthew 18:3-5
The Barbarian Way: Unleash the Tamed Faith Within by Erwin McManus
“Guard your heart above all else, for it determines the course of your life.” - Proverbs 4:23 (NLT)
“You don’t even know what tomorrow will bring—what your life will be! For you are like smoke that appears for a little while, then vanishes.” - James 4:14 (HCSB)
TikTok video
Life Without Lack: Living in the Fullness of Psalm 23 by Dallas Willard
“Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?
“And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?
“So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’ These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.” - Matthew 6:26-33 (NLT)
“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.” - John 4:34 (NIV)
“Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ - Matthew 4:4 (NIV)
“Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.” - John 4:13-14 (MSG)
We Were Reborn for This: The Jesus Model for Living Heaven on Earth by Britt Mooney
Questions
What did you want to be when you grew up? What happened along the way?
How does crisis reveal the hero within?
How have you become a pirate?
How do you define success?
How often do you smile (a real one)? Laugh loudly?
What sustains your heart, brings you to life?
More info
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Edited and mixed by Grayson Foster
Logo and episode templates by Ian Johnston
Audio quotes performed by Britt Mooney, Paul McDonald, and Tim Willard, taken from Epic (written by John Eldredge) and Song of Albion (written by Stephen Lawhead).
Southerly Change performed by Zane Dickinson, used under license from Shutterstock.
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