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Preach Like A Great Movie

As of this year, Walt Disney Studios has produced fifty-one animated movies, beginning with Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs in 1937. Along the way, many of these films have become a part of American life and even part of a worldwide Disney culture. Who doesn’t know the story of Cinderella, Peter Pan, or the many adventures of Winnie the Pooh. These stories are captivating to the imagination of children (and adults!) around the world. We have watched these films times without number and know their stories inside and out.

But would you ever think of watching these Disney classics in clips? I mean, would these films be as captivating if you broke them down into categories and watched clips from these films by categories?

Take for instance, sword fighting. Would watching a montage of Disney sword fights—including classics like Peter Pan and Captain Hook—be as interesting as watching the movie in its entirety? Probably not.

Not to mention, we would lose sight of the real story if we did this. We would never be captivated by the story of Aladdin, as he learns to be himself, if we watched only the fight scenes, or only the love story, or only the comedic inserts of the Genie.

Films tell a story and are created to be watched from beginning to end, lest we miss the major point of the story. The Bible is much the same way. While we can learn some things by viewing it in clips or by categories, we are much better fed if we view it as it was written—a story; to be read from beginning to end. Let me encourage you to re-enter the story of the Bible, so that your heart might be captivated by the story of redemption.

Love in Christ,
Pastor Mitch

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