LOTR

It's Saturday night & the tv in my den has been on the same channel all day. TNT is running a marathon of The Lord of the Rings. Now, if you don't know, Lisa & I own the extended 2-disc collections. All three of them. So why are we watching the televised, cut up by commercials, and with parts deleted? Got me. Besides it'll be off in a few minutes & the ring is burning as I write! There's Frodo, hanging off the ledge & Sam begging him to take his hand. I LOVE these movies! There, the ring is destroyed and the tower is falling! Mordor falls! Mount Doom is overflowing with lava & Frodo's friends realize that he & Sam are right in the middle of its destruction.

There are so many beautiful lessons in these stories, so much to learn if we will only listen. My brother as preached a sermon on the conversation between the two Hobbits and the slopes of Mount Doom. Mother wants Gandalf's monologue to Pippen about death to be spoken at her funeral. The sacrifices and quests of the characters are so great. The evil so strong. Yet men, elves, dwarfs & Hobbits overcome and save the world that is Middle Earth. If I were a better person, I would prefer the books. I'm not. So, I take the easy way out & enjoy the 6 hours of the edited version as well as the 12 hours of the extended version.

Do I understand between fact & fiction? Maybe, maybe not. But I do know that there are so many ways to understand our Lord by watching these movies. He never promised us that we would have an easy road. He never promised that there would be no resistance or evil against us. He never promised that our 'fellowship' or dearly loved ones would not turn against us. He never said that we would not be tempted, at the end, to drop the quest and cling to the evil that we have fought so hard to overcome. No, He just promised that He would never leave us or forsake us. We don't walk this path or travel this quest alone! He stays closer than a brother to us. Or if you will, closer than Sam. If you don't believe me, watch the movies. Listen for those lines. Hear His promises in them. Or, better yet, read His Book. They are all there.

"I'm glad to be with you, Samwise Gamgee,

here at the end of all things."

Frodo Baggins