Facing the Giants has always been one of my favorite evangelical movies since I was in college and I happened to watch it again here in UAE together with my churchmates. The write-up that you're about to read was the exact outline that I used after I was tasked to discuss and lead our "reflection & in-depth realization" during this film showing activity. I could say that there was no dull moment because a lot of scenes are very relatable especially to Christians who are currently going through tough times. Interestingly, I was in a challenging situation when I watched the movie as if I was really facing the giants (literally & figuratively). My mind & heart were instantly refreshed & renewed afterwards! Thanks to the cast and crews of this very inspiring film. Truly, this has been crafted purposefully - to reach out to those who are close to giving up & to remind each and everyone about the power and the greatness of God!
Let me start with a little bit of trivia regarding the cast, production and the movie itself.
- Did you know that this movie was made completely by volunteers and majority of the staff and crews are unpaid?
- The budget for this movie ($100,000) was privately donated by the church members (there was no traditional fund-raising happened) and Coach Grant (main character) was one of the directors. This has become a church-wide project of Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany.
- Just like the first evangelical movie of the Kendrick brothers (Flywheel), the sole purpose of this movie is not to be a blockbuster hit but to reach thousands of people who have not known Christ yet & inspire people whatever their life circumstances are. Sure thing they've succeeded!
Anyways, movie was very much jam-packed! It was so overwhelming that they were able to touch various areas in our lives - from family, friends, relationship with parents, respect, trust, faith, forgiveness (and the list goes on and on).
Since points for discussion are vast, let’s just focus on 3 giants that each of the characters have faced here.
Since points for discussion are vast, let’s just focus on 3 giants that each of the characters have faced here.
First off, FAILURE
Could you imagine the consecutive challenges encountered by Coach Taylor?
Let me cite some; In a span of 6 years, he has never won any game, ever, not even a single game. He has never experienced holding a trophy in his coaching career. And then one day, he received an unexpected news that his strongest kicker transferred to another school not only because the boy wants an advancement in his football path but also he views Coach Grant as a failing coach whom he doesn't want to work with anymore. The guy lost his trust in the team because Grant has very little to offer when it comes to coaching. There was one night when Grant overheard the fathers talking about him. The board is losing their confidence in his leadership. Even his close friend sided with the board. Could you imagine?
Let me cite some; In a span of 6 years, he has never won any game, ever, not even a single game. He has never experienced holding a trophy in his coaching career. And then one day, he received an unexpected news that his strongest kicker transferred to another school not only because the boy wants an advancement in his football path but also he views Coach Grant as a failing coach whom he doesn't want to work with anymore. The guy lost his trust in the team because Grant has very little to offer when it comes to coaching. There was one night when Grant overheard the fathers talking about him. The board is losing their confidence in his leadership. Even his close friend sided with the board. Could you imagine?
One more thing, he could barely drive home due to his old, vintage car with a dying battery. He was welcomed by an unpleasant smell coming from the house & ate cold dinner since their stove isn't working. They can’t improve their current life situation because of their low-income salaries and to top it all off, they have been hoping and praying for a baby for 4 long years! Could you imagine the loneliness, desperation and struggle?
A lot of us experience the same struggles in real life. Maybe some of us here, we’re thinking “Ano ba yan. Palpak ko talaga. Ano ba namang buhay to”. Despite everything, we should always remind ourselves that we are all overcomers in every situation (Romans 8:37, John 16:33, 1 John 4:4). Sometimes, we tend to forget this but we are conquerors and victors!
Surprisingly, most of the times, God uses people & circumstances that will bring us closer to Him. In the movie, He used Mr. Bridges who never fails to pass by the corridor praying for each and every student. One day, Mr. Bridges visited Grant inside his room and told him that he just felt the leading of the Holy Spirit. He then read a verse in the Bible and told a story to Grant relating on how he should prepare for rain. That was the turning point of Coach Grant. Similar to what Ananias did with Paul right? He was Saul back then when God sent Ananias to restore his sight, pray for him and empower him.
Each of us has failed already at some point in our lives but always remember, failing doesn't make us a failure. We are not a failure because God designed us to win! Let us not lose hope because the greatest blessings are in the worst breakings. Do not give up. Just when we thought God is finished with us and it was all over, He is just starting. We are all work in progress. God allows failure for us not to brag and to still acknowledge that everything comes from Him and we really can't do anything without Him. His grace is sufficient.
Secondly, FEAR
85 players to 32?? The Giants - another crazily, seemingly impossible team to defeat. It was their first time to be in a state championship and they were about to fight defending champion for 4 years, head to head. Literally, the Giants.
When it was a matter of time & close scores, Coach Grant picked up David. He asked David to give out his best and leave the rest to God. How did David respond? He lost his hope and gave up so easily even before the ball is kicked. Just by thinking about it made him feel like a worry-wart with self-doubt. But then again, Coach Grant didn't give up. He encouraged him to just give his best to the Lord, trust his feet and keep the faith burning.
When it was a matter of time & close scores, Coach Grant picked up David. He asked David to give out his best and leave the rest to God. How did David respond? He lost his hope and gave up so easily even before the ball is kicked. Just by thinking about it made him feel like a worry-wart with self-doubt. But then again, Coach Grant didn't give up. He encouraged him to just give his best to the Lord, trust his feet and keep the faith burning.
Ever wonder why they named the kicker David? Perhaps because just like in the Bible, there was a David who was able to conquer Goliath using only the slingshot. Goliath might be huge and fully-geared but lo & behold, David still won. He knew God is with him all the way. He then became a symbol of hope for the Israelites (or to David's teammates I should say).
Former colleague reminded Coach Grant about the 365 times “Do not fear” appearance in the Bible. That's one verse of encouragement per day for one year!
And why do you think the guy who did the death crawl was blindfolded? Because sometimes, we limit ourselves in what we can do especially when we are being dominated by fear. “Palagay ko po, eto lang po kaya ko eh." Aside from our insecurities and lack of confidence, we oftentimes hear lots of negative voices surrounding us. “Sus. Imposible yan. Di mo kaya yan.” Some will ridicule us, some will mock us. So on and so forth. Take heart! Because there will always be one voice cheering for us, leading us, guiding us, encouraging us saying, “Anak, kaya mo yan! Kaya mo yan, do not give up. Do not fear for I am with you!” And you'll be surprised, after the crawl, after everything we’ve been through, when we take off our blindfold, we can achieve far greater than what we've expeted. We will realize that we could do better with the Lord’s guidance, nothing is too hard for Him! At first we might be thinking, "hanggang dito lang ang kaya ko" but since we are all children of God, we are all victorious and we can do amazing things we could never imagine.
Former colleague reminded Coach Grant about the 365 times “Do not fear” appearance in the Bible. That's one verse of encouragement per day for one year!
And why do you think the guy who did the death crawl was blindfolded? Because sometimes, we limit ourselves in what we can do especially when we are being dominated by fear. “Palagay ko po, eto lang po kaya ko eh." Aside from our insecurities and lack of confidence, we oftentimes hear lots of negative voices surrounding us. “Sus. Imposible yan. Di mo kaya yan.” Some will ridicule us, some will mock us. So on and so forth. Take heart! Because there will always be one voice cheering for us, leading us, guiding us, encouraging us saying, “Anak, kaya mo yan! Kaya mo yan, do not give up. Do not fear for I am with you!” And you'll be surprised, after the crawl, after everything we’ve been through, when we take off our blindfold, we can achieve far greater than what we've expeted. We will realize that we could do better with the Lord’s guidance, nothing is too hard for Him! At first we might be thinking, "hanggang dito lang ang kaya ko" but since we are all children of God, we are all victorious and we can do amazing things we could never imagine.
Do not be afraid. Maybe some of you here, you had uncertainties and doubts before you set your foot here in UAE. “Ano kayang kapalaran ko dun? Ano kayang itsura at ugali ng mga tao dun? Kakayanin ko kayang maging OFW? Magkano kaya ang karne dun? Mataas kaya ang cost of living dun? Magkakalovelife kaya ako dun?”. Lots of personal questions out of curiosity and yet here we are. We were able to step out of our comfort zone by the grace of God just like what Abraham did. God commanded him to go to the promised land without exactly knowing where it is! But he did it anyway, no ifs & no buts, no google maps, no waze. He just did it by faith and by trusting on God's promises. He stayed faithful, obedient and committed. Personally, I am grateful to have found my Christian family here in UAE (Abu Dhabi Christian Family). With the guidance as well from my spiritual leaders, I am actively serving the Lord through my ministry.
And lastly, Lack of Faith
For sure most of us here have been praying for something. We are waiting for something just like Coach Grant who’s waiting for his big break in that arena or his wife who’s hoping to have a baby. Maybe some of us here we still have unanswered questions like “Lord kelan na po ba darating si Mr. Right? or Lord, kelan Niyo na po ba ire-reveal yung plans Niyo for me? Lord kelan na po ba ako makakamove on?”
In Ecclesiastes 3:1 it says here, "There’s always a time for everything and a season under heaven." Question is.. Are we still willing to love God even when things go wrong? Even if things didn’t go according to our plans or if His plan is different from ours?
One of the most remarkable scenes in the movie was when I heard these words of empowerment from Coach Grant to his team - Whatever happens, all glory to Him! If they win, they’ll praise Him, if they lose, they’ll praise Him! Everything has changed 360 degrees when they changed their philosophy!
Maybe some of us here, we were asking, “Lord, pray po ako nang pray, bakit ang tagal po Lord? Yung batchmate ko pong iba Lord nag-aasawa na ako po 13 years nang single. Saan na po ba sya, Lord?” But you know what, if we are going to have faith in God, that He will give us everything in His time, we will always be reminded that His timing will always perfect.
Unexpectedly, Coach Grant received a brand new car beyond his expectation. We'll never know maybe he has been praying for a new car ever since. Maybe he was just looking into buying a sedan-type of car. But did God give to him? A very appealing 4 x 4 red brand new pick-up!You see, when we just keep the faith, anything is possible. Let’s just keep on trusting God because He never gives up on us.
"Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." - Matthew 17:20
God is not yet done with you. Keep going!
Lovelots,
Leigh
P.S. Movie is highly recommended! 5/5
Should you be interested to join our next film showing activity, feel free to message me at +971569415829. We'll be excited and delighted to welcome you in our growing family! 💞
Watch the trailer here:
Nice! Very helpful! Kahit di ko pa npapanuod ung movie, parang napanuod ko na den sa blog mu, hehe. Good job!
ReplyDeleteDahil nag-PM ka sakin with the same comment, alam kong ikaw to. Haha. Thank you for the kind words, Kuya Mike. God bless!
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