"Most Wanted" Lessons from the Muppets

The last weekday of our spring break took us to the movies for an early showing of Muppets Most Wanted. Not sure if I liked it better than the first one; but it was good and it is always fun to see the celebrity cameo appearances.

I'll try not to give anything specific away since it just came out but here's what we discussed after the movie.

The first thing that stood out to me was that "Kermit" kept saying "I can give you everything you want". The Muppets allowed being able to do and have all they wanted to completely overlook that things didn't seem right. In the end, Gonzo admitted that what they thought they wanted wasn't really what they wanted/needed after all.

To me, this is what the enemy does to us. He tries to convince us that it's okay to have and do all we want; that we're entitled; that no one should tell us what we can and can't do or have. We are enticed by the lust of the eyes, the flesh and the pride of life to try and fulfill our desires and longings. But in the end, we end up empty because we are trying to fill ourselves with things that don't last.

I was reminded of Casting Crown's song "Come to the Well". The chorus says, "All who thirst will thirst no more, And all who search will find what their souls long for, The world will try, but it can never fill, So leave it all behind and come to the well."

True fulfillment comes from a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. In Him, we have all we need to live this life and hope for the life to come.

We live a simple life. Because of the priorities we have set for ourselves, we have chosen to make sacrifices. We eat at home, we limit the type and amount of entertainment we do, we don't participate in every field trip or homeschool activity, our kids don't participate in every activity at church or in the community that is available to them, and our kids have to save up for things they want. But in spite of all we have chosen to give up, we still feel satisfied because we have chosen to develop a heart of gratitude for God's provision which leads to joy and contentment.

The second message in the movie was about family. Kermit began to lose heart when no one came for him. The prison guard tells him there is no place for family in the Gulag. In the end, she sees the importance of family and that everyone needs to be with theirs when the Muppets stand together to support Kermit.

Whether we are talking about the family we were born into or we created through marriage or our church family, the family unit is important. We need the love, support, and encouragement that family can provide. Family should be the place we feel safest and where we can turn when things are hard. When we hurt one another, we need to ask for forgiveness and in turn need to forgive those who have wronged us.

My Bible study this week was on raising children. We discussed Deuteronomy 6:6-7 and how we can apply this in our homes. One of the ways we follow these verses is by discussing the movies and shows we watch with the kids - searching for the message (good or bad) and discussing what the Bible has to say about it.

We found the movie enjoyable and I would recommend it as family friendly. If you'd like to read more about it, check out PluggedIn's review here. If you're not familiar with PluggedIn, it's part of Focus on the Family. On this site they review movies, videos, music, TV and games.