Inside Out 2 is a fabulous film with so much anecdotal yet scientific dialogue and comical personification of the human brain, specifically the emotional headquarters, aka the amygdala. There are the basic emotions to start and then with the development and maturation of this young host, Riley, new emotions are introduced. With the arrival of the new emotions, we see a depiction of the chaos of an adolescent mind and the barrage of emotions in the heat of social landmines on the relational battlefield.
In this whole movie, we really grow to appreciate our own journey on the road to self discovery and everything we run into as we sort out our belief system and forge our identity which has a direct and immediate impact on our reality.
Our sense of self and identity comes through our experiences in relationships. Our belief system predicates our be-me system (what I tell myself becomes reality)
Simon, known as Peter is one of Jesus’ first disciples. He seems to have an ongoing battle with who he is and the role he is to play with Jesus in the new kingdom. Simon is one of the inner three closest disciples to Jesus and he has a front row seat to some of the most eye opening and jaw dropping moments.
In Matt 16 we read the account of how Jesus asked his disciples what the word on the street was about him. They shout out some speculations and rumors that they’ve heard floating around. Then he asked them who THEY thought he was. Simon answers, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus praises him because he has discovered this reality in a spiritual sense through the power of God and the revelation of the Holy Spirit. With this revelation and through this encounter, Jesus gives Simon his NEW name, Peter.
This is the original ROCK before Dwayne Johnson and Jesus says the church will be built on this the “gates of hell will not prevail against it.”
I love this because it means that belief in Jesus secures our identity changing our perspective which transforms our reality.
The reality that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, aka the Anointed One, meant for Jewish people that their savior had come. When you are in need of saving, and have been promised a savior, you get a little excited when he arrives.
But Jesus warned them not to TELL people about this identity. Why would he do this?
I can see two reasons:
- It’s hard for people to wrap their head around such a bold claim from hearsay. It’s also likely that not EVERYONE felt or knew they needed saving…at least not in the same way Jesus intended. So, just to holler this out and spread the word, at this time would only create chaos.
- The second reason (and this is not an exhaustive list but enough for us) is that Jesus wanted to SHOW people. Just like this name changing encounter with Simon Peter, and Jacob-Israel in the Old Testament, it wasn’t until there was a genuine encounter with the Creator God that identities were altered.
So, I present this as our take away and offer a chance for reflection as to where you find yourself along the road to self discovery, just like our little Riley Anderson from the movie.
Belief System directs identity
Identity determines perspective
Perspective drives reality
Any wrong belief can derail our reality
This is why eternal life begins in our belief and only in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior!
This model can be broken from the start or all the way of the chain so it’s important to check in and reassess and reconnect frequently on our journey.
How are you doing? And maybe I should ask, “Who do you say Jesus is?” That’s where new life begins.
#IdentityCrisis
#InsideOut2
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Brett
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