A Dinosaur Western

Madison had enrichment today after school, where she was creating her reindeer - a Christmas project I assume we'll be seeing before the holidays.  She is loving this class, and loving doing things artistically.  She's such a creative child.

Oh, and she got a 104 on her math test.  Again.  She keeps getting these sorts of scores in math, and that's without studying too much.  She just does her math and keeps on going without any troubles.  She's a natural with math.  But she enjoys other subjects too.  Lately, she's been telling us about the Spanish explorers like Balboa and de Leon.  Daddy keeps telling her that Jack Sparrow discovered Ponce de Leon and the Fountain of Youth, but she keeps reminding him that this is fiction.

Anyway, school is going well for her.  She really enjoys it, from the Book Club to the enrichment classes to everything in between.  She loves her teachers, and has been doing so well in class.  It's such a wonderful blessing.  How blessed we are!

Daddy was creating too - we didn't get to see each other too much today.  The two of them came by after enrichment, and we spent some time together.  Daddy got his message together for tonight, and it should be pretty good.  Here it is, an outline of sorts for "The Good Dinosaur."

KidPak Adventures: Trailblazers

The Good Dinosaur

CUE SLIDE:  “TRAILBLAZERS”

CUE TRACK: The Good Dinosaur

HOST:  “When you think of western movies, you think of all kinds of things.  But when we went to see ‘The Good Dinosaur’ last year, that’s the last thing I expected to see.”

CUE SLIDE: “ THE GOOD DINOSAUR”

HOST: “ Did anyone else see this movie?  I was expecting your standard dinosaur movie.  Some crazy event happens and everyone has to flee and go some place new where they’re safe.  Until the next big disaster happens.”

HOST:  “But that didn’t happen here.  This movie is modeled after a western movie, complete with cowboys and farmers too.  And it’s on one farm that a special little dinosaur is born.”

CUE CLIP 1:  ARLO'S BIRTH

HOST: “As you can see, Arlo is loved by his parents.  But you can see something else right away.  Arlo is a little scared of new things.  And before you start laughing too hard at this little guy, I want you to think of something you’ve been frightened of before.  It’s a part of life, really.  And it’s something we all have to face.  Let’s see how little Arlo deals with it in this next clip.”

CUE CLIP 2: FEEDING CHICKENS/MAKING YOUR MARK

HOST:  “Somehow Arlo wants to make his mark.  And that’s where I want to stop for a moment.  You see, we are all here to make our mark in life.  God has us each marked for greatness, and we’re all designed by Him to do something big with our lives.  In every case, it’s something different.  But that doesn’t mean it isn’t going to change the world.”

HOST picks up an Arlo stuffed animal.

HOST:  “Here’s the problem.  Arlo is scared.  And we get scared of doing new things too.  Maybe it’s a new school.  A lot of people are scared right now of where our country could be heading to.  Whatever it is, we need to remember this:  fear is the opposite of faith.  When you fear anything but God, you’re saying you don’t trust in Him enough to handle it.  One of my favorite scriptures in the Bible is from Jeremiah, and it goes like this:”

CUE SLIDE:  “Jeremiah 29:11”

HOST:  “’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’”

CUE SLIDE:  GOOD DINOSAUR

HOST: “He has a mark on us, a mark for something great.  And if God is on our side, what do we have to fear?  Fear just holds us back from all the promises of God.  Sometimes you just have to get through your fear to see the beauty on the other side.”

CUE CLIP 3:  SEEING THE BEAUTY ON THE OTHER SIDE

HOST:  “Arlo is just learning.  And over the course of events, he winds up meeting a human that he’s named Spot.  Oh, and three T-Rex!  These T-Rex are on a cattle drive, and they need Arlo’s help in getting them back.  And here’s where fear meets faith.”

CUE CLIP 4:  GETTING THE HERD BACK

HOST:  “I saw this again last night, and I saw myself in that little dinosaur standing out there.  And it’s you too.  I want you to picture yourself in that same situation.  You knew he was going to be okay – and why’s that?”

LET AUDIENCE ANSWER

HOST:  “Because there were three great big T-Rex there behind him, just out of sight!  And that’s the way it is with us too.  God is not a T-Rex, of course.  He’s something even greater.  Much, much greater!  And when we stand up for him, even if it appears we’re all on our own… we’re not.  He’s promised to never leave us or forsake us.”

CUE SLIDE:  “Hebrews 13:5”

HOST:  “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

CUE SLIDE:  GOOD DINOSAUR

HOST:  “When God makes a promise, you’d better believe He keeps it!”

HOST:  “Now I want you to see something else in that clip.  That first time Arlo did something brave, he was kind of reluctant.  But when he saw Butch in trouble, what did he do?”

LET AUDIENCE ANSWER

HOST:  “That’s right, he ran to protect his friend.  Normally, he’d never do that.  But this time?  He charged right out there into danger, and came to the rescue.”

HOST:  “And that’s where we’re at right now.  You’re destined to make your mark in life.  But there’s only one way you’ll do it right:  by helping others.  You see, there are many out there that are being dragged down by all kinds of problems.  And there you are, able to charge in and save the day.  Will you do it?”

HOST: “Christmas is coming soon.  Will you spend some time this season gathering toys and games you don’t use any more to donate to those who are poor?  Will you spend some of your time helping others at the church, or serving elsewhere?”

HOST: “ Don’t just sit back and let fear take over.  God has you marked for greatness.  Look at this last verse.”

CUE SLIDE:  “EPHESIANS 1:13”

HOST:  “When you believed, He stamped you with an official mark.  That official mark is the Holy Spirit that He promised.”

CUE SLIDE:  “THE GOOD DINOSAUR”

HOST: “Just want you to remember two things.  Number one:  God is right behind you.  Remember how strong that T-Rex was?  God is so much greater than even that.  Number two: He’s marked you for something greater.  You’ve got nothing to fear, because greater is He that is in you… than He that is in the world.  But here’s one more thing.  Take a look at this last clip.”

CUE CLIP 5:  CAMPFIRE

HOST: “That huge T-Rex admitted it.  Even he felt feared.  If you ain’t scared, you ain’t alive, kid.  Everyone feels fear.  Everyone hears that voice that tells them things might not turn out so well for you.  Before you do anything, what you need to do is listen to that other voice too, the one from God.  If He’s telling you it’s the right thing to do, then it’s time to move forward in faith.  Like Arlo’s dad said, you’re about to see the beauty on the other side.”

HOST: “Or as Butch said, ‘You’ll be alright, kid.’ Let us pray.”

We like this movie, and this message too.  Daddy had Madison's Arlo doll - the one inside the egg - and brought that along for the message.  The kids were really hooked from the beginning.  Of course, having movie clips like that really helped.

The fires continue, and so does the drought.  This is going to be the most epic drought that Madison will have experienced - hopefully in her lifetime.  There are now bans on certain types of water usage.  Things are serious.  Fireworks are going to be banned for New Year's Eve, unless things change - and that seems unlikely.  Fires that were thought to be contained… are reigniting because everything is so dry.  In one way, it's good to burn off in certain areas.  But obviously in many other ways not so much. We're still praying for rain, but in taking the message above to heart, we know it will be alright!