Welcome to the very first week of Summer Serials! This week Celeste takes a look at one of the more awkward Father Daughter scenes from Star Wars Episode 4: A New Hope and uses it to discuss a pretty intense topic; persecution. How do we handle persecution of the church? Why is there persecution? What do we do, if we’ve failed in the face of persecution?
The Question of the Day: What order do you watch the Star Wars films in?
Don’t miss next week for part two of our Summer Serials event, Star Wars Episode 5! Make sure you watch the movie and let us know your thoughts!
In Star Wars- A New Hope we are introduced to the future/past world of space and the conflict between the rebel alliance and the empire. We meet the Skywalker family, Han Solo and of course the order of Sith and Jedi. Within the first few minutes of the movie, we meet a young lady who is going to be the focus of our discussion today. Princess Leia( to be General Organa one day) is introduced to us as she is sending a message to Obi-Wan. The Message gets out and Darth Vader, the villain of the movie, captures her and tortures her without realizing that this is, in fact, his daughter.
Determination:
Leia was determined not to give away the location of the rebel base. She endured torture and persecution to hold true to her beliefs.
As Christians, we are told through scripture that we are going to endure persecution and that we should be glad for it because the world despised Jesus Christ. (2nd Timothy 3:12, John1:18, & 1st Peter 4:12-14)
We must be determined that when persecution comes that we are going to stay true to who God has called us to be, and what he wants them to say to you. No Matter What, remember God’s reward of His love and saving grace is so much better than anything we could possibly go through. He will be there for you because He knows it’s not easy. But He never promised that it was going to be rainbows and unicorns once you became a Christian. We need to be strong in our faith no matter what.
When You Mess Up:
Thank God that He is graceful. In the movie, Leia finally caves and gives away the location to the rebel base to Vader when he threatens her home planet. We are humans and therefore not perfect. We must remember that when we mess up when we do something we regret because we are tired of being different, or we lose our temper with the person who has been mocking us, that God is Graceful and Just to forgive us. The keys at that point are accepting His forgiveness and forgiving ourselves so that we can move on and continue to function in that grace. Do Not Allow yourself to live in Condemnation. This is not the life God wants or plans for you.
The Wrap-Up:
The things I hope you take away from today’s episode is:
- That if you are being persecuted or ridiculed for your faith, it is ok, God is with you and He knew this would happen to you. He thinks you can handle it with His help.
- If you mess up and succumb to pressure, do not feel you are beyond forgiveness. God loves you even though you messed up. He created you just the way you are and knows all the amazing things He has in store for you. Relay on Him to get you to that point.