It may come as no surprise to many of you that I love Lord of the Rings. I really do. For so many reasons, but especially because I identify well with a hobbit:
1. I’m short
2. I love parties, food & people, but I also love alone time
3. I love to be comfortable
4. I often surprise myself with what I can do.
I laugh at some of the things Bilbo, Frodo, Sam, Mary & Pippin say because they are thoughts I have daily. Especially thoughts on second-breakfast… I fully believe in second-breakfast. But more than that, I identify with the struggle between loving comfort, home, friends, and food- the usual & being called to something more; Something greater than myself. Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly nothing wrong with those things, but I find myself being challenged. When I think of these books & films, I find pieces of me in these characters.
In the Two Towers, Sam and Frodo are on their way to get rid of the dang ring (obviously) when Frodo has one of his many what I call “struggle bus” moments. Let me just be real for a second, I have little respect for Frodo because I fully believe Samwise Gamgee (his side-kick/BFF) is the true hero here and Frodo is a wimp, but I digress. Another topic for another time.
In this particular part, Frodo is struggling with the power of the ring and is ready to give up. In that moment Sam presents him with an important reminder shown in the dialogue below:
Frodo: I can’t do this, Sam.
Sam : I know. It’s all wrong. By rights we shouldn’t even be here. But we are. It’s like in the great stories, Mr. Frodo. The ones that really mattered. Full of darkness and danger, they were. And sometimes you didn’t want to know the end. Because how could the end be happy? How could the world go back to the way it was when so much bad had happened? But in the end, it’s only a passing thing, this shadow. Even darkness must pass. A new day will come. And when the sun shines it will shine out the clearer. Those were the stories that stayed with you. That meant something, even if you were too small to understand why. But I think, Mr. Frodo, I do understand. I know now. Folk in those stories had lots of chances of turning back, only they didn’t. They kept going. Because they were holding on to something.
Frodo: What are we holding onto, Sam?
Sam: That there’s some good in this world, Mr. Frodo… and it’s worth fighting for.
I love that. There is some good in this world, and it’s worth fighting for.
YES! YES! Hallelujah, YES! I couldn’t have said it better myself. If I could sum up why I believe I am being sent on the race, it would be that right there. I am fighting for the good in this world. BECAUSE IT IS WORTH FIGHTING FOR.
Far too often, I believe that we focus on the trials at hand: the despair, the loss, the brokenness, the hopelessness, and not on the victory that is to come. No where in scripture are we told to dwell on our current circumstances or to accept defeat, but we are called to rise up, stand victorious, and proclaim victory in the name of Jesus Christ. I tell myself that more than anyone, because I think it is easier to focus on the now, because this is the moment that we are in. In this moment, I am feeling the pain/struggle/hopelessness, and I’ll deal with the rest of it later. Wrong.
I refuse to accept defeat, I refuse to listen to the media that tells me of all the death, despair, pain, & hunger in this world and believe that I can do nothing about it. I can do something about it, and by the grace of God, I WILL. There is no reason for me to sit here idly when I could be feeding the hungry, loving an orphan, or reaching those in need. There is nothing that is “too hard” or “too far”. I have been called to serve the “least of these”, I have been called to be a “mother to the motherless”, and I have been called to be a light in this world. I have been called to fight for the betterment of others.
These are my passions: Jesus and People. My first two loves, and the two things in this world that I am willing to die for.
Perhaps that is an intense statement, and perhaps could be perceived as slightly dramatic, but I don’t care. They are my passions and this is what I believe. In my moments of doubt, I sit here and remind myself of this truth: There is some good in this world, and it is worth fighting for.
That is why I’m going on the Race and that, my friends, is what I believe that we are all called to do in our own certain ways. We are called to fight for the good that is in this world. We are called to be lights.
And we will be.
