Courageous

Last week Matt and I went to go see the movie Courageous (http://www.courageousthemovie.com/). It's been a long time since we'd been to the theater to see a movie, since we're cheap and usually watch movies from the big box that's red. But I'm so glad Matt said he wanted to go see this movie, and I think the timing of it was really good for us as we look forward to welcoming Baby B in a few short months. Basically, the movie explores what it means to be courageous, to stand up for and follow through with what you know is right. The main premise of the movie is what this looks like in the context of a family, what it looks like for a man to lead his family in Godly ways. It brought up a lot of good stuff that Matt and I talked about for several days afterward, and I'm sure we'll continue to talk about as we figure out what it means to be a family with a child.

As we were leaving the theater I looked at Matt and said something to the effect of, "I just didn't realize what a big responsibility you had." I mean, I know that it's Matt's role to lead our family. But I think I just didn't really comprehend what that looked like, what that meant, or what that could be, until seeing this movie. Matt, on the other hand, did a men's Bible study with a handful of guys from our church about a year or so ago, and this was one of the areas that they talked about during their study. He is really excited and really looking forward to being a strong role model and leader for our family. And I know he'll do a wonderful job. I'm so excited to see Matt as a father. I think now I'm trying to think about ways I can support Matt in his role, and help our child (and future children) grow to see themselves as beautiful children who are valued not only by us, but by their Father in heaven, and what that means for their life. It's a big responsibility, and while I'm looking forward to it, I also know that it will be challenging in so many ways. I'm sure we'll not only be praying about parenting and reading about it, but also seeking guidance from our small group at church and from other families in our community.

I would highly recommend seeing the movie if you haven't already. And even if you're not a parent or soon-to-be parent, I think there are a lot of things to take away from the film.