Jesus Goes to the Set

No matter where we go, we can be confident that God goes with us. His Holy Spirit lives inside the heart of every born-again believer - we have been redeemed and equipped to serve Him, to display through us the glory of God.   So, we essentially become the presence of Jesus to those who do not have hope and bringing encouragement to all.  The Bible tells us in 2nd Corinthians 4 (ESV):
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
8 We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;
9 persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;
10 always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.

The comments of an actress who is a Christian can remind us to whom we belong and the Kingdom of which we are a part.  A Faithwire story noted that Masey McLain, who first burst onto the faith-based movie scene with a film called, I'm Not Ashamed, in which she played the role of Columbine victim Rachel Joy Scott.  said, “God’s kingdom is absolutely everywhere...We house the Holy Spirit — bring that in a set, bring that to a film, bring that to a story.”

She spoke those words to CBN News at a red-carpet premiere for a movie called, Soul on Fire, which debuted in theaters not too long ago.  The movie is described by Faithwire as "a biopic chronicling the miraculous life story of St. Louis native John O’Leary, who, at just 9 years old, sustained severe burns over 100% of his body from an accidental explosion in his childhood home. As a result, he was given a 1% chance of survival."  McLain plays Beth, who is O'Leary's wife.  

The article went on to include more quotes from Masey:

“One of my favorite things in Scripture is when it talks about co-laboring with God, and that it’s not like we ask God to do everything and then we just let Him do it or we do it all ourselves,” she said, referencing 1 Corinthians 3:9. “We co-labor with Him, and I feel that when I’m on set. I feel like I’m not doing it by myself, I’m not doing it through my own power.”

McLain, who came to faith in Jesus at a revival event when she was 7 years old, said she was first inspired to work in movies because God “lives in me and He empowers me and we’re doing it together.”

“That does something that no man can do on their own,” she said at the St. Louis premiere. “When you partner with the Holy Spirit, that is what has the power to transform lives — not people.”

The article notes how McLain, who also plays the role of Ashley Baxter in the series, The Baxters, based on Karen Kingsbury's books, has been inspired by O'Leary's story - he told part of it in a recent edition of the Faith and Culture Podcast, about which Faithwire stated:

Speaking about himself, O’Leary said the most difficult part of his transformation was not surviving a seemingly unsurvivable fire, but overcoming a sinking feeling of unworthiness.

“The only place worthiness came from was not my work or my effort or my success, but God’s grace,” he said. “You’re going to witness this all over this kid’s life as he progresses from being burned to dealing with scars, but you’re going to see God’s hands showing up in ordinary people, ordinary heroes. This is where the Gospel’s lived out.”

He also said, "This is God’s hand. This is a miracle story.”  Faithwire also related, "Having a front-row seat to O’Leary’s powerful testimony has deepened McLain’s belief that 'nothing is impossible with God' and reinforced her faith in 'the power of prayer,' she told CBN News."

The movie also stars Joel Courtney, who played the role of Greg Laurie in the film, Jesus Revolution.

I want to return to Masey's comments about bringing the Holy Spirit to a film set.  She also referenced the pervasiveness of the Kingdom of God.  I believe that we have a responsibility, as representatives of Christ, His ambassdors, to testify to His presence within us and what He has done in our lives.  Not only does Jesus call us to represent Him, but He empowers us by His Holy Spirit to do that.  We can hope that through our witness, people will see Jesus in and through us.

So, we take Him everywhere we go.  And, if we are aware of the presence of Jesus, that can radically change the choices we make.  The Holy Spirit, who resides in our hearts, can provide direction and conviction, activating our conscience to make quality, Biblical decisions. Knowing He is right there with us, giving us not only direction but power to obey, can elevate the expression of Jesus in us.