127 Hours in Overcoming Adversity

The first time I saw it was when it first opened in the movies, I am a huge fan of Danny Boyle and what themes he explores in his movies. This one was not entirely a departure with his favouring toward close-up shots and stylised sound effects. The DVD was released the other day and on a second watch, I totally remember why I totally loved it. The story is based on the true story of Aron Ralston, an avid hiker, on one of his expeditions into Blue John Canyon. He walks through a narrow passage and an overhead loose boulder is jarred loose. Coming down from above him, the rock falls down and pins his arm against the canyon wall, trapping him. The movie focuses on his act of survival for 127 hours as the title suggests, showing every inch of pain and suffering that he perseveres through.

“You know, I’ve been thinking. Everything is… just comes together. It’s me. I chose this. I chose all this. This rock… this rock has been waiting for me my entire life. It’s entire life, ever since it was a bit of meteorite a million, billion years ago. In space. It’s been waiting, to come here. Right, right here. I’ve been moving towards it my entire life. The minute I was born, every breath that I’ve taken, every action has been leading me to this crack on the out surface.”

I think the power of the movie lies in the bleak simplicity. Where James Franco is the sole actor in front of the screen for most, if not all of the 94 minute film, every emotion is able to be seen in his every movement. Truth be told, I’m still slightly sad he didn’t win an Oscar for his performance. But I do understand that Oscars don’t work on one single performance, but more of a career of acting. That and Colin Firth didn’t win for his performance in “A Single Man” the year before. But James Franco puts out a truly gut-wrenching performance, that lifts the movie above mediocrity. He truly acts from the heart, and I think it is one of the best performances I have seen in film for a long time.

Sitting through the somewhat short but action-packed movie, my mind was just continually being ingrained with this Bible verse penned by Simon Peter:

“For it stands in Scripture: “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”  ”So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe, “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,” and “A stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense.” They stumble because they disobey the word, as they were destined to do.” 1 Peter 2:6-8 (English Standard Version)

You see, how I viewed 127 Hours was that Christ is the rock, he is either the cornerstone of our faith, or he is a rock of offense in our lives. In 127 Hours, there is something hopeful in amidst all the pain and suffering he is experiencing. Though, his hand is wedged between the rock and the cliffside, he is still hopeful. Even near the end of the film, he is just thinking about his life and how he has been an isolationist individual removing himself from the world.

There are two ways to approach adversity when we are approached with it. One is to crumble under the pressure and give up, or on the other hand, persevere and become stronger in the Lord. I am reminded of the story of Job, he lost everything he trusted in, his wealth, his family and his friends surrounding him were poisonous to him. He did not speak against God once, but he remained faithful and he persisted.

Throughout the course of the movie, everything James Franco tries free himself fails, as he tries to wrest himself out of this rock that has been predestined to fall on his arm. Human effort failed as a multitude of different tactics, all of which involved trying to rescue his hand. He begins to show despair in his situation, and he scratches on the walls: “RIP ARON RALSTON” crudely with his blunt pocket knife. In some ways it is wonderfully ironic of the rebirth that subsequently happens: He starts thinking of all the regrets that he had in his life, documenting all his thoughts on his handheld camcorder.

He thinks how much more he would have invested in his relationships, especially replying to his mother’s voicemail. In the time of utmost helplessness, 127 Hours reminds us that sometimes, God removes everything we trust in, to know how futile we are in His presence. How something so small and insignificant as a carpenter from Nazareth could change the course of history. So too, does faith come in a small mustard seed into our hearts, but when God waters it, it flourishes larger than imaginable. The more we give up of ourselves, the more skill and freedom God will work with in our hearts.

The ending of the movie I won’t discuss, but all through the movie, it feels like an inevitable conclusion if you have read the story of Aron Ralston elsewhere, I won’t ruin it for you. But from what comes from the movie at the end, I thought that Aron Ralston came out of that ordeal a better man, certainly more determined than before. The movie characterizes the human struggle in life, and I think it does have a good discussion point in what the rock means. The question is of whether the adversity that God brings in our lives is a stumbling block for us, or the beginnings of a deeper faith.

also, i must say, this movie is probably the closest i have ever come to fainting or throwing up. my head was really light at some parts. i am thinking that the R rating is somewhat deserved.

I Can Play The Background

I’ve been reflecting on passages from Elijah in 1Kings 18, as much as he was a remarkable man, brought into the ministry from obscurity, he also struggled a lot with loneliness in ministry.

Only Elijah was fighting for God’s cause when he stood up to 500 of Baal’s supporters and proved that God of Israel not Baal was God, by causing fire to set alight the wet altar. His gentle prayer to God caused the fire to roar, compared to the empty ravings of the Baal supporters. The Bible even recounts that the Baal supporters sacrified themselves in a vain attempt to appeal to a silent God. If that wasn’t enough, afterwards, Elijah came and made it rain for the first time in 3.5 years.

But it wasn’t long after that he was running away from Jezebel. She was understandably unhappy because Elijah had killed all 500 of the Baal supporters with his sword. She vowed that he would not be alive within the day. ”Then he was afraid, and he arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.” 1 Kings 19:3 (English Standard Version) While Jezebel vowed to kill him that day, her vow did not come true. As much as man tries to promise things, they will never come true unless according to the will of God. I think that is what Paul is alluding to in Philippians when he says to the church in Philippi:

“Convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with you all, for your progress and joy in the faith,“ Philippians 1:25 (English Standard Version)

Paul exudes a confidence in God, that he is in control and that God would alone had control over the future of his ministry with the Philippian church solely in His hands. Similarly, here, though Jezebel threatened, Elijah didn’t die in the day. In fact, Elijah never died, he was taken up to heaven in a flaming chariot. Jezebel didn’t even get close. Therefore, man has no control over the turn of events, we can vow to do one things, but God may have other plans. (James 4v.13-17)

Nevertheless, Elijah fled. Running as far away from Jezebel as he could, through even outside of the nation of Israel into a Palestine land and then further into the wilderness. He rested there, hoping for the news to die down. ”And behold, there came a voice to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?””He said, “I have been very jealous for the LORD, the God of hosts. For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life, to take it away.”” 1 Kings 19:13-14 (English Standard Version)

Notice his repeated use of ”I”s when Elijah is giving a defense as to the reason for running. He gave his reason honestly to God, the reason being that he felt alone in his ministry. He says he has been jealous, he had done many things for God, but he hadn’t seen any fruition. He still was alone and that visual affirmation was what was lacking in his eyes.

We often lose the focus of our ministry in this world when we try to measure the success and effectiveness through what our eyes can see. The reality is that, when we become the center of our own ministry, we lose the plot. God had just performed a great miracle through Elijah, yet he was running away. Yet still, he didn’t believe that God could provide the protection that he already had demonstrated he had full power in the encounter with the Baal prophets. The issue is that when ministry becomes solely based on visual things and driven by visual things, this is a direct disobedience. What makes ministry successful is how greatly we are obeying God, not how many people follow us. I read in Hudson Taylor’s biography, that he had to toil 6 years before his first convert. There is a patience that is required of us, to persevere and endure, to see the Lord’s work come to fruition.

A lot of this has to do with the inherent tendency to think that we have any control over our situations. Elijah thought that he deserved more fruition to his works, even after killing 500 Baal supporters, he had no one believing him, but now he had the queen of Israel putting a death threat on him. He was weary and the loss of context and vision is apparent in his call for help. This loss of confidence causes us to become nothing like God intended us to be. God has made us to be dependent, not independent of His grace, only through His grace in our lives can we begin to see the world through His eyes. When ministry in itself becomes anything but to bring God more glory to this earth, it loses its bite and ambition. It is humanistic to think that we would be able to bring someone to God, but we should continually search for how we can improve ourselves. Too often we search how we can change our methods, how we can more effectively show the message, but the problem is me. I am not praying enough for God’s wisdom, I’m not praying enough for God to open their hearts, I’m not praying enough to become less and God to become more.

One of my favourite tracks from the new Lecrae album, is “Background”. The whole song is related to what I’ve been talking about, mainly how we should fade into the background, and become purely instruments used by a sovereign and powerful God.

background by lecrae feat c-lite

“I could play the background
I could play the background
‘Cause I know sometimes I get in the way
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
So won’t You take the lead, lead, lead?
And I could play the background, background
And you could take the lead

Praying the whole world would start embracing stage fright
So let me fall back, stop giving my suggestions
‘Cause when I follow my obsessions, I end up confessin’
That I’m not that impressive, matter of fact
I’m who I are, a trail of stardust leading to the superstar

“

full lyrics

How much patience do we have? How much do we wait on the Lord? How often do we search for visual affirmation to what God has predestined for us?

Would the real Jesus please stand up?

“Then you turn your eyes to the fields and you find places where you see people that worship stones, rocks and sticks. You say, “Yes, those tribal people…” I’m talking about New Yorkers and Detrioters. Steel and wheels and tyres and green pieces of paper, diamonds and jewels and youth. Everything that does not last.“

-Paul Washer.

Oh snap.

The notion of idols is totally foreign to our society, people would want to say that we are past superstition and sage. The Enlightenment and the French Revolution were surely signs that society did not like authority to dictate how we should live and we should be structured. Yet, I notice that the idols that we see today are more disguised and hidden, which makes our struggle much more difficult than what the Israelites had to fight against. I read a quote once that said that the Devil finds it much more easier to trick people nowadays because no one believes in him.

One thing that I find personally to be an idol is success. It seems almost too obvious to become an idol. Society dictates that we are expected to go to college, we are expected to marry a wife, have sex and have 3 children and that we live in a suburban house with a small mortgage…society dictates how we should act and therefore, this is an idol too if it conflicts with what God has to say. Jonah chose not to follow what God had to say and instead chose to run away and followed the flow of society. God did eventually bring him back to His will, but the rebellion against God was present in the story.

“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”—”yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.”Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.””As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.”So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” James 4:13-17 (English Standard Version)

I guess writing this, what an idol is anything that replaces God. A replacement for the joy that comes through God, taking what joy that comes through that we being saved from our sins and therefore infinitely joyful, replacing it with a cheaper alternative that does not require the same amount of sacrifice nor care. It is a symptom of a society that promotes rootlessness and promiscuity in every direction. If anything loses its appeal over a short period of time, as a consumer we can go to another substitute of equal joy. Since Christians exhibit such an anaemic faith with so little joy but more bondage to the Law, they do not know what great joy we have.

“Rejoice always,” 1 Thessalonians 5:16 (English Standard Version)

PS. …did you catch how I put a Eminem reference in the title? I thought that was pretty trippy.