City Life Starter

Written by Megan Meier

The Word

“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Matthew 5:10-12 (ESV)

“Dark times lie ahead of us and there will be a time when we must choose between what is easy and what is right.” 

Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Megan’s Musings

Seeing news of the Uvalde shootings last week, trying to figure out why the gunman did it, remembering the lives and dreams of the victims, and the seeing the survivors trying to make sense of something so senseless reminded me of Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. I was fourteen years old when news of the massacre flooded every news channel and newspaper (this was 1999, no smartphones yet). Thirteen people were killed, Cassie Bernall and Rachel Scott among them because of their faith in Jesus Christ. When Eric Harris put a gun right to Bernall’s head and asked if she believed in God, she said yes and he shot her. Their families and the Christian community told their stories and inspired many Christian teenagers (myself included) to show godly courage in the face of difficulty. 

A year later, Bernall and Scott’s stories were still being told. Another story, one in which people were excited to hear, would arrive that summer: Harry Potter and The Goblet of Fire. Yes, I was one of those who anxiously awaited the next Harry Potter book. At the end of the book and movie, Dumbledore tells the Hogwarts students the above quote as Voldemort (the main villian) has returned and very difficult times awaited the world. As the series progressed, some in the wizarding community backed down, or even gave in to Voldemort. Harry and his friends refused to back down, some of them died, but they triumphed in the end and made the wizarding world a better place for everybody.  

Stories such as these, whether real or fiction, of people triumphing over immense hardships and ending up as better people inspire us to do the same.

Application

How to apply this? Samwise Gamgee from The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (yes, I am a nerd) explains it better than me. At this point in the movie, Frodo was possessed by a Ringwraith and nearly killed his best friend, he eventually comes to and doesn’t want to carry on with his mission of destroying the One Ring of Power anymore:

In a world full of darkness, there is a Light. Even when you want to turn back or back down, keep going. There is Good in this world, and it is worth fighting for.

Prayer

Dear Jesus, help me to stand for You, even in the face of adversity. In Your Name I pray, amen.