Not Noah

Okay, I was curious.  I mean it was supposed to be a Bible movie, right?  The trailer showed Noah, his wife, his sons, a corrupt civilization and an ark.  So far so good.  Not so much.  Aside from the names being correct and the boat and a flood...it was a fictional story not even really loosely based on the Bible.  We're not talking about creative license, we're talking about a complete disregard for what many hold to be sacred.  I remember watching Prince of Egypt when it was first in theaters and while they didn't follow the story verse by verse they did keep the heart of the story.  There was no heart in the story of Noah. 

Not only that, but God was presented as an angry God who simply wanted to wipe out mankind, including Noah and his family, and return to Eden.  He just wanted His animals and the world would be at peace, all green and zen. 

BUT, all was not lost.  I watched this with my two oldest sons and listened to their comments as the movie played.  It was a blessing to hear them say things like, "wait, that wasn't in the Bible." or "I thought Noah's son's had wives with them." or "That's just not what happened."  They are learning God's Word and they are learning WHY it is so important for them to be able to discern what is truth and what is so NOT Noah! 

It was fantastic to be able to discuss the scriptures afterward and help them learn some new things about the animals (7 of each "clean" animal and 2 of every "unclean")...and the rest of the story. Following the story as far as the movie, and a little beyond, we read that the Lord made a covenant with not only Noah and his family, but with the animals as well! (did you know that about the animals?!  Look at Genesis 9:8-17!) Who needs to make up a new story?  The original is pretty amazing.

This movie made it pretty darn easy to go through and look at all the discrepancies , but what about all the things my kids see and hear that aren't as easy to discern.  They are children from this present generation.  This generation believes many things that would have been completely foreign in my generation, or my mother's.  Not to say the generations before this were right, or that this generation hasn't contributed anything positive.  What I am saying is that as time goes on the lines seem to get blurred.  There is less black and white and much more grey.  It is hard to contend with grey because it can shift and change so easily. 

In the Akathist to the Mother of God Nurturer of Children we pray:
"Raise my children to strongly oppose atheists.
Raise my children to reject the deceitful teachings of the teachers of unbelief.
Raise my children to not accept the spirit of the sons of the adversary.
Raise my children to run from the world and the delusion of the world.
Raise my children to turn away from evil and do good.
Raise my children to love their enemies and to pray for them."

We want our children to be discerning and loving and compassionate and strong.  Matthew 10:16 says, “Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves." Let us pray that our children will be able to weed through all that life throws at them and yet find and embrace Christ our Lord.  The Way is not so overgrown that it can not be found. God will reveal the path as each step is taken. 

Glory to God for all things!