WEEK 5 -- MERCY - "THE LIFEBLOOD THAT FUELS THE DREAMS OF CHAMPIONS!"

MERCY - "THE LIFEBLOOD THAT FUELS THE DREAMS OF CHAMPIONS!"

We often use the Parable of the Good Samaritan and the Parable of the Merciful King in our training to help express the radical, unconditional, merciful generosity of God and the unimaginable kindness and compassion of God’s heart.  I always feel encouraged when speakers use these stories to illustrate the radical abundance of mercy and compassion that characterizes God’s heart. 

My kids are on  Spring Break this week.  Two nights ago we watched the movie Kicking and Screaming together.  The main character of the movie, Will Ferrell, is a kind, compassionate, meek, gentle dad who throughout the movie slowly begins to question mercy as the right approach for relationships and finally test drives selfishness, savagery, and cruelty as an approach for experiencing fulfillment.  His abandonment of beatitude living fails miserably. 

The clip below captures the moment where he hits rock bottom. The scene in the clip, as well as the entire movie,  parodies the insane death trap we set for ourselves when we stop trusting the Father’s merciful heart and instead put our faith in forceful coercion and brutality. 

Spoiler alert – After Phil/Will Ferrell alienates himself from what matters most to him, his wife and son, he seeks their apology and puts his trust again in mercy and compassion.  Ultimately, like Darrell preaches, he learns that the practice of mercy is the lifeblood that fuels the dreams of champions!

Next time I’m feeling like trusting force over mercy I’m going to watch this clip below to remind myself how foolish and ridiculous I become when I don’t see the blessing of mercy when it comes to building relationships with God and others.