PrintMAY THE FORCE BE WITH YOU
by Mike Robinson
Film maker George Lucas gave an interview to Time Magazine following the release of the Star Wars series. In that interview, he said the following:
"I put the Force in the movie (Star Wars) in order to awaken a certain kind of spirituality in young people - more a belief in God than a belief in any particular religious system".
"I wanted to make it so that young people would begin to ask questions about the mystery. Not having enough interest in the mysteries of life to ask the question, 'Is there a God or is there not a God?' - this for me is the worst thing that can happen".
"I think you should have an opinion about that. Or you should be saying, 'I'm looking. I'm very curious about this and I'm going to continue to look until I can find an answer. And if I can't find an answer, then I'll die trying".
"I think it's important to have a belief system and to have a faith"
Good for you, George! I'm with you on that issue!
But the idea of a "Force" seems so impersonal, so distant, so unknowable. Electricity is a force. The wind is a force. But there is nothing personal or relational about either.
I don't know whether George Lucas knows this or not but God is not so much a Force as He is a Father. He is personal. He is knowable. We can experience a loving relationship with Him - a relationship built on God's undeserved grace made available to all.
Of course, there's a vast difference between knowing about God on the one hand and knowing God on the other. Knowing about God is simply a matter of information. But knowing God is a matter of relationship & experience as well as knowledge.
I've met folk who perceive God as a kind of spiritual fire extinguisher in a glass case with the words "for emergency use only" written across the case.
Still others treat God as a heavenly vending machine - put in a prayer and get out an answer. Then there are those who see God to be like a broken vending machine. They keep putting in prayers but never seem to get any answers.
May the Force be with you? No, I think I would rather pray, "May the Lord be with you".
