Signs

We watched the movie Signs with the kids the other day.  I had it on a list of movies to see, and my husband was eager for the kids to see it for the discussion possibilities regarding faith and God’s sovereignty.  But we both knew the time of day would be essential in the success of our endeavor because, let’s face it, it is a scary movie!

So smack in the middle of the day with plenty to do when the movie was over, we all sat down for the experience.  I find it interesting watching the kids cope with stressful situations—like watching a scary movie.  My daughter emitted this semi-constant creaking squeak that edged higher as she got more scared and presses further in to her daddy.  My son responded to the tension in a new way.  He cracked jokes.  While a little irritating when trying to stay in the moment, it seemed to help both kids.  We did our part by pausing the movie to explain, cuddling and assuring them that the main characters all survive to the end of the movie.

The reason for showing a PG 13 movie to our kids was not as a study of coping mechanisms in pre-teens.  We wanted to show them a demonstration of faith, what can shake it, how to defend it and an example of Roman 8:29—seeing how God works all things for the good of those who love him.

We had some good conversations right after the show, but the real payoff came the next morning.  We are currently memorizing Psalm 91.  In light of that we were discussing God as a place of refuge and listing the various dangers from which He protects us.  When I asked what were some terrors of the night, they both responded by talking about how they were scared the night before because of the movie. 

The conversation that followed was really a blessing.  They were both able to articulate their private fears and their comprehension of God using even bad things to help us.