Bonus Blog - The Princess and the Frog

I had the privilege of taking my four girls and MrsRev to go see Disney's newest hand-drawn animated film Friday night, The Princess and the Frog. It is a somewhat different take on the old story of The Frog Prince that many of us remember from our childhood. The Princess and the Frog is "A fairy tale set in Jazz Age-era New Orleans and centered on a young girl named Tiana and her fateful kiss with a frog prince who desperately wants to be human again."*
My first reaction to this film was, "Wow! Disney is back." It's been a long time since the Disney company has put out an animated film that wasn't a Pixar production that was this good. I'm in my mid forties and I was a child when it last happened, so do the math. All four of my girls (5y/o and under) were completely enthralled. They didn't fidget, they didn't fuss, and they didn't even have to get up to go to the bathroom.

"Ah," you say, "but where are the theological perspectives?" Well if nothing else, this is a feel good movie. And there is always something of God in just being happy, at least until we human beings pervert it in some way. I did notice one really excellent point about the things that we wish for. Throughout the film we find different characters wishing on the morning star for things that they want. For Christians we don't wish, we pray. But often we pray a lot like the characters in this movie. We ask God for things that we want or things that we want to happen. During the course of the story, Tiana and Naveed learn to wish for what they need instead of what they want. Imagine how pleased God would be if we were to start praying for what we need, and what others need instead of what we want. Imagine how much more God would answer prayers for the needs of the people and ministries around us if we only prayed for those things and not for ourselves. Maybe more of the events that we experience on a daily basis would be happy endings, like every Disney movie that we all know and love.

So if you have small children, especially little girls who love Disney princesses like mine do, go see this movie. And while you're at it, lift up the needs of someone else this Christmas season. Think of the good we can all do this world with a little more selfless prayer.

Oh and BTW, I will be blogging another Christmas movie next week but I also have plans to go see Avatar next Friday. So don't be surprised if you get the double bonus two weeks in a row.
Grace and Peace!