Film Friday In this classic film there is a moment when Eric Liddell tells his sister that God made him fast and when he runs he feels God’s pleasure. The quote is repeated as Eric speeds to glory as he unexpectedly wins the 400 metres at the Paris Olympics. Just before that race another athlete hands Eric a Bible verse from 1 Samuel 2 v 30 which says, ‘Those that honour me, I will honour.’
I wonder when you feel closest to God, and when you get a sense of his pleasure. You can probably tell that films are a big part of my life and faith and there are times when watching a movie or writing and speaking about it that I sense God’s presence and pleasure. When my life and faith fell apart 20-odd years ago, God brought film into my life as a whole new way of discovering him and his word, and sharing that with others.
We have a tendency at times to separate that which we think is spiritual from the rest of life. But God made all of life, and wired us up to enjoy and enthuse about all kinds of things. ‘You can praise the Lord by peeling a spud…’ Eric’s father had told him earlier in the film. An encouragement to use his gift of running as a way of honouring God. If something brings us joy then it’s a sign God is a part of it, there is only one maker of good things in this world. We may not think of sport (or science, or knitting, or baking, or maths, or geography, or computing, or reading, or writing, or art, or listening) as being ‘spiritual’ but these and so many other things are great gifts from God. Creation declares the glory of God, and our interests, passions and hobbies are a precious part of God’s creation.
Eric excelled as a runner, whereas we may not be the best at what we do, but that’s not the point. God has made us with our personalities, preferences, hopes and dreams. And we can offer all these as part of our worship of God and our life with him.
I’ll finish with these encouraging words from Hebrews chapter 12 in the Message version:
“So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life – your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life – and place it before God as an offering. Don’t let the world squeeze you into its mould; instead, be fresh, new, and transformed by his Holy Spirit. Then you will know the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.”
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