You've Got a Friend in Me

You've Got a Friend in Me

"A man of many companions may come to ruin; but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." Proverbs 18:24

Don't shoot the messenger ... yes, I did go see Toy Story 3 in 3-D! It was a great movie. It was the best of the three in my humble opinion, and it was surprising to me to see how many teens and adults were there without kids. Guess you can't take the kid out of an adult.

As I was watching the movie, there were several thoughts running through my mind. There were actually a number of spiritual applications that one can learn from the movie:

1. We've come to love all the toys from Woody to Buzz Light Year. It is amazing how the toys come alive and we get sucked in very quickly to their story line. Don't deny it. For years I have been fascinated by one of America's great ventriloquists, Bevan Griener. His dummy Julius is quite the character. By the end of his routine, Bevan has people thinking that dummy is real!

All of the characters in Toy story are useless and lifeless until Andy makes them come alive. Much like you and me -- apart from Christ -- we are really lifeless, useless and hopeless! But just think what we are because of Christ. " ... Apart from me, you can do nothing!" John 15:20 (Thanks, Chris Thompson, for this illustration!)

2. In this movie, Andy is packing up to go to college. His Mom is getting him to clean out his room. At one point all the toys are in a box and are headed to the attic. Andy looks in the box and pulls out Woody and sticks him in a box that he plans to take to college. The other toys get mistakenly put in the trash rather than the attic, thus the adventure begins.

Woody goes isn't about to leave his friends ... so he goes after them with a passion and is reunited with them. The rest of the story is for you to find out.

I was thinking about how this relates to our life in Christ. We were headed to the trash heap (hell) -- "But God, who is abundant and mercy, because of His great love that He had for us, made us alive with Christ even though we were dead in trespasses!" -- Ephesians 2:4

God pursues you and me with a passion. Other friends may fail you -- but in Him, you and I have "a friend that sticks closer than a brother."

No wonder the hymnwriter could pen these words:

Jesus! What a friend for sinners!
Jesus! Lover of my soul!

Friends may fail me, foes assail me,
He, my Savior, makes me whole!

Refrain
Hallelujah! what a Savior!

Hallelujah! what a friend!

Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
HE is with me to the end.

If you're like me, and the little ditty from Toy Story gets in your head -- "You've got a friend in me, You've got a friend in me, You've got a friend in me; You've got troubles, well I've got 'em too;There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you;We stick together and we see it through;You've got a friend in me!" -- just remember that you have a FRIEND who is not imaginary -- He is real! He's alive, and He calls you and me HIS friend. What a friend we have in Jesus.

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 23; Esther 9-10; Acts 7:1-21

Dig This Quote: Abundant life means that we are fully alive at every level our our being, to the whole of life; alive to the very tips of our fingers; aware of the whole range of response, intellectual, spiritual, emotional, sad and joyful, painful and peaceful. Tom Marshall

Determined Digging: Level 1 -- Proverbs 19:3; Level 2 -- Psalm 96:1-9