Tag: review

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CAPTIVE Movie Review

Captive ReviewCaptive is a great movie that shows anyone HOPE is possible, even in their darkest hours. Here are a few spoiler free things I enjoyed about the movie. After reading my thoughts, make plans to go see #Captive on opening night, Friday, September 18, 2015.

  • Captive is NOT God’s Not Dead and that’s Okay: If you’re looking for a movie with an overtly evangelical, “Go get saved now” message, this is not that movie, and that’s okay. The movie is effective as it shows how two people in seemingly hopeless situations discovered hope was possible, even in their darkest hours. The movie is based on a true story & does a good job, in the limited time available, portraying what took place with the Atlanta court escape by Brian Nichols, the murders he committed, along with his eventual kidnapping of Ashley Smith [Robinson], and how Ashley became a hero in the midst of the crisis.
  • A Powerful Conversion Story: Although there’s not a highlighted moment showing someone place their faith in Jesus for Salvation (Ashley was already a Christian), there is a very powerful conversion that takes place when Ashley decides she’s not using drugs again, even under the threat of death. It was one thing to read about this moment in her book, but even more powerful to see it on screen. Kate Mara did a great job reflecting Ashley’s struggle and eventual resolve.
  • Captive is Not What You Think: Captive, what a great, unoriginal title for a movie about a hostage situation! You may think that before watching the movie, but you’ll find Captive is actually a deeper story than that. The underlying story is about two individuals held captive by their own personal demons, constantly haunted and unable to find freedom, until forced to finally decide how they would find their own freedom, would it be through choosing life or death?
  • God has a Purpose for Everyone: Can God use an addict to get a murderer off the street? Can God use a murderer to get an addict clean? Can God use the sacrifice of a hero to bring peace to a city? Although it may not be overt, the message of the gospel and God choosing to use whom He pleases is weaved into the movie. God has a purpose for everyone, but not everyone sees it. Blinded by personal choices, failures and even successes, people will write off God, even though God hasn’t written them off.  Ashley’s boldness to share the Purpose Driven Life with Brian brings God’s redemption to the forefront of the story.
  • Take the Next Steps: Captive provides a great opportunity for churches to take their congregations to see the movie together and then provide follow up discussions to discuss such topics as substance abuse, mental health issues, God’s purpose for each of our lives, the gospel, second chances, and many of the other themes presented by the movie. It doesn’t have to be churches, it could be small groups, or friends; just don’t miss the opportunity to take the next step by following the movie up with quality dialogue.

Helpful Resources:

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Brother

I was recently introduced to the music of the Rhett Walker Band. Their music is awesome. I don’t care if you like the “style” of music, it is obvious that the lyrics have been birthed out of a life transformed by the radical grace of God.

I had the privilege of personally meeting the members of the Rhett Walker Band as well. These men are down-to-earth and represent Christ well.

I love their entire CD, Come to the River. It is available on iTunes for $7.99 – That is a steal! Buy it. I keep listening to it over and over again. <—- That’s my review. No need for a lot of words and no need to compare them to Third Day or any other group. They are the Rhett Walker Band and I am excited about the music they are creating now and will create in the future. It’s unique and powerful.

When they played in concert in Evans, one song in particular caught my ear, Brother. The message perfectly describes life in general, but also our vision for New Passion and our mission at the Salvation Army, where I work. Here are the lyrics and then you can listen to the song below:

You’re a king and a prisoner
One for each eye
Starting to believe your own lies
You hold every moment
Tight at the throat
But nothing’s ever out of control
You act like you know every answer
Making your world work just right
Never a question, never a doubt in sight

Brother don’t you know
No one’s too high to fall
No one’s strong enough to make their own way
Brother don’t you know
We’re all just beggars and thieves
In need of the very same grace
The very same grace

A days always coming
When our kingdom breaks down
Our plans are like glass on the ground
You act like you know every answer
But missing what matters most
Confessing our weakness
Cause that’s when God moves in close
Come down off of that mountain
Let go of everything
Come join us who are broken
That mercy is healing

What a great message. The whole point of the gospel: “Brother don’t you know, we’re all just beggars and thieves, in need of the very same grace…” “Come join us who are broken, that mercy is healing”

Listen to Brother below, it cannot be downloaded…


Rhett Walker Band on Facebook ::: Rhett Walker Band on Twitter ::: Rhett Walker Band on iTunes

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Blog Pirates

A Blog Pirate: Someone who tries to steal the spotlight from a more successful blog in order to make their blog noticed and to increase their traffic stats.

This is usually done by pointlessly criticizing posts in order to drive traffic to their blog. Most blog pirates surf the “What’s Hot” on the front page of blog hosts (I.E. WordPress.com) hunting their next victim. They also search through the tags pages to see what blogs have the most comments (thus a high level of traffic) and rips into the author of the blog and/or their content. If you have ever crossed a Blog Pirate you will see why they have to steal the spotlight, its usually because their content is not good enough to draw their own crowd and keep them.

Blog Pirates know that most authors will defend their content thus linking to the pirate and driving their readers (traffic) to the pirate’s site, they also know that when people search for key words pertaining to the victim’s blog in Google the searcher will be driven to the pirate’s blog as well, thus attracting extra traffic. Blog Pirates are interested in one thing, signing on to WordPress and immediately going to their daily stats and seeing how many hits they had that day…nothing more, nothing less.

Watch it! You may be hijacked by a Blog Pirate today 🙂

Join the Conversation! Have you ever been attacked by a Blog Pirate? Know anyone else that has? I’ve been attacked and I know others that have been attacked as well.

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Chasing Daylight Chapter 6 Thoughts (Part 2)

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Here are my final thoughts on Chapter 6 (Advance) of Chasing Daylight by Erwin McManus. Join the Conversation at the end if anything stands out to you…

  • What is it about our conversations with God that we seem to hear the no more readily than the yes? Many times when we claim we are waiting on God, He is waiting on us.
  • You are called not to be a survivor, but to be a conqueror. With passion and anticipation, you move with determination into the eye of the hurricane.
  • I don’t know what it means for others, but for followers of Jesus Christ, what it means to live on the edge is to stand at the epicenter of where the kingdom of God confronts the kingdom of darkness.
  • On this journey one thing becomes certain: When you move forward on what you know, things become clearer. When you refuse to act on what you know, all that you do not know paralyzes you.
  • When we become a people of the Spirit, we join the wind of God as He moves through human history.
  • Those who seize their divine opportunities move with the God-given yes unless God says no. They work from the go and wait for the stop. They understand that the mission gives them permission. They know that the danger is their invitation to step up to the challenge. Continue reading “Chasing Daylight Chapter 6 Thoughts (Part 2)”
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Chasing Daylight Chapter 6 Thoughts (Part 1)

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Here are some quotes and thoughts that stood out to me from Chapter 6 of Chasing Daylight by Erwin McManus. Join the conversation at the end if anything sticks out to you…

  • When God’s calling and promises are made clear to us, our response will shape how the journey plays out.
  • God will give us victory in the battle, but He will not fight the battle for us.
  • When you’re moving with God, you must move with an advance mentality. You move forward unless God tells you to stop. You advance unless God tells you to wait. There are certain things that you do not need permission to do. You’ve already been commissioned to do them. There are certain things that you do not need a calling to do. You’ve already been commanded to do them.
  • Much of our religious language has been focused on the don’ts rather than the do’s. In the same way we act as if the primary word from God is Stop when it actually is Go.