Lessons Taken from the Movie "Baby Driver"

Note: Baby Driver is rated R and I don't typically watch rated R films or promote them unless there is much more to gain than is lost by watching the film. 

So this week i just watch Baby Driver and I have to say that it was a fantastic movie. It is a high speed action movie with such a good and meaningful story behind it. I originally wanted to see it because of the editing, but once i did see it I saw that there was so much more to the movie with much bigger implications than just good editing. So over the next couple of posts, I am going to be talking and reflecting on Baby Driver and what I personally got from the movie. You may not always agree with my analysis, but it is interesting to think and talk about the movies that we see.

The first thing I want to talk about is the editing of the movie. Now I know not all my viewers know much about how a film is edited, but even knowing some of why the film was edited the way it was gives a deeper appreciation for the movie.

The reason why I wanted to watch the editing in the movie was because I had talked to the editor while I was in Vegas for a broadcasting convention. After listening and talking with the editor, I knew I had to see the movie. The thing that makes this movie unique is because it is all based of the soundtrack. Every gun shot, every cut, every step and movement that the character makes is to the beat of the music. While you are watching it it is hard to notice, but when you focus on how everything interacts with the beat, it is mind-blowing the precision of the editing of the movie.Watching something like that is inspiration to me to make my cutting so accurate with the music and it gives me something to strive for. It is a well edited movie. 

Our Own Way To Worship

One thing that we are told since we were children is that we each are unique. That even includes the way we worship. If we look around there are many different denominations of churches and it seems like there is always a competition on which one is the best. I grew up in many different denominations and in many different ways to worship. I went from worshiping all out, to a church that is way more reserved. The thing is too is that when we worship, we look around to see what other people are doing so we can blend in.

One thing I have noticed when I got to college is that it doesn't matter how you worship. Towards the end of the year there is a worship in the library, and because the library is so small there are people on both levels. This year me and my friends were on the second level, and when you glanced on the first floor, it was clear to see that everyone was worshiping in their own ways, and it isn't about trying to fit in, but having time to worship our savior.

This topic came up again a couple of weeks ago when we went back to my old church that my family went to when I was younger. My parents really got into the worship, yet I couldn't get completely into it.  Yet I can get into the music at my current church and my parents can't. It is not that one way is better than the other, it just that we worship in different ways, and that is totally fine. So next time you go to worship, don't worry about what the people around you are doing, but worship that way that you like to worship, for worship is between you and your savior, not the neighbor next to you.

Changes

So as many of you might see when you first click on my blog, that a couple of things have changed. I've been thinking about this for a while, and I want to change the idea behind my blog. When I started this back in tenth grade, I made it a place where I talked about God and tried to teach something about Christianity. However, that became hard to keep up, and it is why there has been a scarce number of posts for a while. Now I am hoping to open it up to talk about my story and events that have happened to me and show how God is working in my life. It is kind of going to be like an online diary. I am also going to make it a goal to post more pictures and videos.

This past week I was at my family reunion. One thing that I learned is that you don’t need a unique family history to make you unique. A lot of the people I go to college with have had their family move to America in the past two or three generations. My most recent family members are from Kansas, so it is not as exciting story to tell as those who have grandparents who can tell stories about moving to America. The thing is hanging with my family and listening to their stories, they are just as exciting but in their own way. There are stories of my dad living in tents growing up, to my parents working on the bridge over the summer, to trips I told to see my grandparents when I was young. And it is in those stories that I come from and that is what makes me unique. So my family history doesn’t have to be like someone else, because God made this unique family history just for me. And he did for all of us. 

So take time to sit down and listen to your family stories and see just what kind of family you come from.  

Biblical Experiences

Starting at the beginning of the month I decided that I was going to read through the Bible over the course of the year. In just the first couple of the days I could draw connections from what I was reading in the Bible to my personal life. In Genesis 22 is the story of Abraham being tested. A recap of the story is God asked Abraham to go to the mountain to sacrifice his son. His son was Isaac, Abraham’s only son and he was to be the one that would be the decedents of Abraham for all the nations. Abraham did as he was told and went to sacrifice his son, for he trusted that God had something in mind. Then at the last moment God provided Abraham with a ram to sacrifice in place of his son. Abraham’s trust paid off and God provided for him.

Now this is a story that happened a long time ago, and it may seem like it has no application on our lives. The thing is we all have things that we love and cherish. That could be a material object, or money, or anything that we place high value in. The thing is that object is not ours but it is God’s and he is just letting us borrow it. When it comes time, we must be able to trust God in what he has given us and when he asks us to give it up.

Now not many of us are going to be asked to sacrifice our sons, but there are ways every day that we have to trust God. For example, I am working hard this summer to earn money for college. I must be thoughtful of how I spend my money. So, the other day an employee asked if he could borrow some money for food. I said sure but as I walked away I thought about the money that I would give to him to eat, because food where I work is not cheap. But I went through with my plan to be able to pay for his dinner. When it was his break I gave him the tips I made thus far which would cover a meal. But then the surprising thing was is that his brother ended up having food for him so he didn’t need my money. Afterwards I went back to work and I made the most tips that I have made this summer. I thought back to this story and how when God calls us to give, whether that be a small amount of money or a son, we should trust him because he can do more with what we have then we can think of.

Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for the material items that you have given me and I place them in your care because I know your will is better than mine. I trust you when you call me to give up something of mine because I know you have something greater in mind. Amen. 

Loving Others

So while my grandparents were here in town we took them out to lunch. My grandmother had this great idea that she would go up and talk to people that she didn't know in the restaurant to try and get to know them. My parents brother and I thought that that was a bad idea for her to do. But she did it any way and she got a hug from the waitress and got to know a few people. Then last night at Bible study, one of the people there suggested that we can love our neighbor by going up to a stranger and hugging them. That idea was immediately though as being a bad idea for you don't just go up to people and talk to them or hug them.

But that got me thinking. No where in the Bible does it say that we can't go up and talk to a stranger or go up and hug them. Actually the Bible encourages it. We are believe the lie that we have to act a certain way in society and not break the mold that was built. God wants us to step out and talk with people we don't know so we can share his love with them. That does mean getting uncomfortable and talking with people, but it is not impossible and God has called us to be uncomfortable to reach the people who we see everyday with his love.

So I want you to think about who it is in your life that you can go a start a conversation with. It could be a complete stranger or it could be someone you see everyday that you just need to open up and talk to.  But lets step out of our comfort zones and reach people that God has placed in our lives.

Dear Heavenly Father.
Thank you for your love, and I pray that I can share that with everyone that I meet. Help me step out of my comfort zone to talk to people who I wouldn't normally talk to. Amen. 

Grand Parents Visit

So my grandparents came by the last week and visited us for my brother's graduation. It is always a joy seeing them and getting to hang out with them and talk with them. One thing that I learned from my grandma is that it is okay to make mistakes because that is how we learn. She repeated that line every time one of us made a mistake or told a story of a time where we made a mistake. And I believe that is a good way of looking at our mistakes.

For example, we started to put together my first desktop while they were here. Long story short, we have already switched out my motherboard for a new one, and it looks like we will have to buy a new motherboard again. Sure that can be frustrating, but if you look at it the way grandma, then it is a good learning opportunity. Especially for me because I have a very limited knowledge of how a computer works, it is a good way to learn.

So when we go out and try new things it is okay to make mistakes because that is the only way we can learn. So go out there and try new things and make mistakes so you can learn and grow.

Dear Heavenly Father
Thank you for allowing us to make our mistakes so we can grow. I pray that we are not afraid of making mistakes, and that we make all the mistakes that we can. Amen. 

Pile of Rocks

This past Sunday my family and I went to the mountains and went on a hike. The path we ended up going on was really rocky and it was often difficult to know where the path was. So to mark the path there would be piles of rocks. If we followed the pile of rocks we were on the path. It is very helpful to know which direction to go in, and if we did get lost, all we had to do was look for that pile of rocks to get us back on track. That very simple idea of just piling rocks was a major help as we went hiking.

As Christians, we are provided with the same guidelines to help us as we walk through life. It just in a pile of pages bound together and not a pile of rocks. The Bible is a guide for us as we walk through life. As Psalms 119: 105 states, "You word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path."  The Bible is the way that God shows us the path we are to follow. So to know this path, we have to spend time in God's word and getting to know what it says. 

Over the summer I am challenging myself as well as all my readers to read the bible every day this summer. For some of us this may be really easy, but for others, it could be rather difficult. But when we take the time to read the Bible so we know where the path is for us to follo

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Dear Heavenly Father,

Thank you for your word that is a guide to us so we know what path we are to take. Help us to spend time each day reading the bible and getting to know your word better and better. Amen.