The Suicide Squad with Paul McDonald and Britt Mooney
Paul McDonald and Britt Mooney talk about The Suicide Squad (2021). Even though breaking patterns feels like death, if you want to live a different story, you’re going to have to make different decisions. But when you make that courageous choice, you inspire others to do the same. And we see that those things we hold too tightly can become our idols.
Join us as we discover God’s truth in this movie.
Quotes
The world treats you as if you were expendable, and the opportunities you get are not ones you want.
We all want to feel free even though we often feel stuck.
We have these patterns we have exhibited over the years that become our way of dealing with things.
The characters in this movie have these patterns that can’t be fixed, only controlled.
We don’t get to reject people just because they might be a little rough around the edges.
We are surrounded by people who are living out the patterns that their parents passed on.
No one has been bludgeoned into believing something.
You can’t convince someone you are supporting love and the greater good by putting them down.
Stop saying, “I love you, but…” Rather say, “Because I love you…”
Breaking patterns feels like death.
Everyone has rough edges.
If we want to have a different story, we’re going to have to make different choices.
I would rather die risking love than hold back in fear.
When you make a courageous choice, you inspire others to do the same.
The choices that change our stories are the decisions that really matter.
“If the rats have purpose, so do we.”
The things we hold on too tightly become our idols.
Jesus came to sacrifice himself to save us.
Peacemaker: “I don’t care who has to die for me to bring peace.” Jesus: “If you want peace, YOU have to die.”
Themes
We all face moral choices that determine who we will become.
You are labelled as this (fill in the blank), and you are never going to change.
We have patterns that we don’t like, but feel helpless to change them. We feel trapped and chained by those patterns. Breaking patterns through moral choices. When we make choices outside of our established patterns, it feels like it will cost us our lives. It feels risky and we don’t want to feel that way.
We will encounter people who are like this movie: rough, kinda gross, lots of cursing. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to find their story anyway. Those rough edges are coming from somewhere. We chose this movie because it’s like life—not all neat and clean and tidied up. Everyone has rough edges that we have to become comfortable with. The people who we think don’t have rough edges are just hiding it better.
Ratcatcher 2 cared about others because of the love her father gave to her.
Our past experience, those moral choices made for us, impacts who we become. We are shaped by the actions and wounds of others. Our stories are built on our choices. And our choices inspire others.
Our purpose should drive our decisions. Your choices are yours. You must reject the feeling that others make their choices for you.
We need to be firm with what we allow into our lives.
Instead of arguing with facts and figures, we should ask questions, having empathy and compassion for those we might disagree with.
Yelling and escalation doesn’t change hearts or minds.
“I love you, BUT…” should be eliminated. “But” erases the first part of the sentence.
We can choose to speak truth in love or speak truth like a javelin.
Pursue love even if it kills us.
We can pursue our purpose without needing to be perfect.
How we worship idols today: safety, convenience, comfort—those things we hold onto too tightly.
Resources
“Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“I remember a mini-paradigm shift I experienced one Sunday morning on a subway in New York. People were sitting quietly – some reading newspapers, some lost in thought, some resting with their eyes closed. It was a calm, peaceful scene.
Then suddenly, a man and his children entered the subway car. The children were so loud and rambunctious that instantly the whole climate changed.
The man sat down next to me and closed his eyes, apparently oblivious to the situation. The children were yelling back and forth, throwing things, even grabbing people’s papers. It was very disturbing. And yet, the man sitting next to me did nothing.
It was difficult not to feel irritated. I could not believe that he could be so insensitive as to let his children run wild like that and do nothing about it, taking no responsibility at all. It was easy to see that everyone else on the subway felt irritated, too. So finally, with what I felt like was unusual patience and restraint, I turned to him and said, “Sir, your children are really disturbing a lot of people. I wonder if you couldn’t control them a little more?”The man lifted his gaze as if to come to a consciousness of the situation for the first time and said softly, “Oh, you’re right. I guess I should do something about it. We just came from the hospital where their mother died about an hour ago. I don’t know what do think, and I guess they don’t know who to handle it either.”
Can you imagine what I felt at that moment? My paradigm shifted. Suddenly I saw things differently, and because I saw differently, I thought differently, I felt differently, I behaved differently. My irritation vanished. I didn’t have to worry about controlling my attitude or my behavior; my heart was filled with the man’s pain. Feelings of sympathy and compassion flowed freely. “Your wife just died? Oh I’m so sorry! Can you tell me about it? What can I do to help?” Everything changed in an instant.” – from Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey
Say Yes: How God-Sized Dreams Take Flight by Britt Mooney
CNN article about empathy
“Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.” James 1:27 (NLT)
“If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.” Matthew 16:25 (NLT)
Questions
What identity has been given to you? By your parents? By your work? Friends? Family? What identity have you given yourself?
Where did that identity come from? Do you like it? Do you want it?
What identity do you want to have?
What patterns do you find yourself turning to when you feel insecure, lonely, angry, frustrated, disappointed, helpless, powerless? How would you like to respond when you feel that way?
What types of people make you feel uncomfortable?
What parts of your story are messy, have rough edges? How would you change them?
How have the choices you’ve made gotten you to where you are today (some positive, some negative)?
What motivates your choices? Comfort? Security? Avoid conflict? Relief? Meeting expectations?
What is your impact on others? In what direction do you inspire them?
What do you cherish above all else?