I saw a great movie today, "The Wild Robot," a Dreamworks Animation Studios adoption of the best seller by Peter Brown. It features a helper robot who accidentally recovers a goose egg, right as the baby is hatching. The gosling imprints on the robot as "Momma," and everything changes. Instant Parenthood. Instant responsibility. Also, there are no instructions. (New parents can relate...) It reminded me of the true stories of some wonderful people I know, that I will share with you in a moment.
It also reminded me of a great movie I saw last year, "Godzilla: Minus One." Our unlikely hero is walking in the market-- minding his own business-- when a young woman collides with him, thrusts an infant in his arms, and promptly disappears. She reappears later that day, and follows him home with the baby. It turns out the child isn't hers either, but the baby's parents are dead and so she stepped up. They become a family then and there, and raise a beautiful daughter together. The movie is a monster movie, to be sure. But it is really no more about monsters than the AMC TV series "The Walking Dead" is about zombies. The real story is the people, trying to get by in the difficult circumstances thrust upon them. The zombies, like Godzilla in this movie, are just one of the many hazards. The human drama is the real story.
I know some people like this in real life. My friend Michael fell in love with Amber, a struggling single mom with three little kids. He married that woman and now they have a fourth child together. He is a great dad, and I love being around their noisy family. Then there is my friend Amanda, who married an older man with four teenagers (God bless her!) After the kids were grown and long out of the house, a grandson came into their life as an infant, and they adopted him. Her husband Jeff is nearly 65 and now has a five year old. Go Jeff!
I had church friends in Houston, years ago. They were at their favorite restaurant after church one night, when the waitress approached them. "I've been watching you," the waitress said. "I'm pregnant and can't keep my baby. Would you please have my baby?" This couple, in their 50's or 60's, looked at each other across the table, and said yes. I have other friends, David and Jody, who had three boys of their own. When they found out their niece was pregnant and planning an abortion, they asked if they could adopt the baby instead. Now they are parents of a beautiful daughter. Such people impress me.
One of my favorite Bible passages concerns the story of Joseph, the husband of Mary the mother of Jesus. The story is covered in Matthew chapter 1, and Luke chapter 2. Joseph was engaged to this girl Mary, and it became apparent that she was pregnant. Even worse, the baby wasn't his. This would be trouble enough today, but in that culture two thousand years ago, this was grounds for her execution by stoning. Joseph was confronted with a dilemma. Should he proceed with the marriage and live with the shame of raising someone else's bastard, or should he publicly call her out, and risk the death of the woman he loved in spite of it all? Matthew tells us (quoted from The Message:)
"The birth of Jesus took place like this. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. Before they came to the marriage bed, Joseph discovered she was pregnant. (It was by the Holy Spirit, but he didn't know that.) Joseph, chagrined, but noble, determined to take care of things quietly so Mary would not be disgraced.
While he was trying to figure a way out, he had a dream. God's angel spoke in the dream: "Joseph, son of David, don't hesitate to get married. Mary's pregnancy is Spirit-conceived. God's Holy Spirit made her pregnant. She will bring a son to birth, and when she does, you, Joseph, will name him Jesus-- 'God saves'-- because he will save his people from their sins." This would bring the prophet's embryonic sermon to full term:
Watch for this-- a virgin will get pregnant and bear a son;
They will name him Emmanuel (Hebrew for "God is with us").
Then Joseph woke up. He did exactly what God's angel commanded in the dream. He married Mary. But he did not consummate the marriage until she had the baby. He named the baby Jesus.
Joseph too, is one of my heroes. He was a man who was confronted with a child-- confronted with instant responsibility. Like my friends I shared about above, he stepped up. "Some people," it is said, "are born great. Others have greatness thrust upon them."
As for the Dreamworks movie, it's a great one. It abounds with life lessons about working together as a community in crisis to problem solve, and about stepping up to do what must be done-- even when it is not in our programming. Kid's will enjoy it but it actually is aimed at parents, especially moms. I don't remember the last time my wife laughed so hard in the theater with me. Also watch "Godzilla- Minus One" on Netflix. Watch the Japanese version with English subtitles, and gain some culture in the bargain!
May we each be confronted with new opportunities to help others, and have the courage step out in faith and step up. Even when it's not in our basic programming.
If you enjoyed this post, check out my book "101 God Thoughts: A Spiritual Journey from Covid to Cancer." It's available on Amazon in Paperback, Kindle, and now Audiobook editions.
(image copyright by Universal Pictures)
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