The latest film featuring Tom Cruise – or, to give him his full name, Thomas Cruise Mapother IV (really!) – has proved a massive hit. As this column is written, it is estimated that total takings from cinema showings globally could soon hit a whopping $1 billion without too much trouble.
It is not really any surprise that the movie, Top Gun: Maverick (rated 12A) is filling the coffers of its makers. Real-life action stunts involving US fighter jets, plus dramatic scenery, an aircraft carrier, beautiful cinematography, good music and a strong story combine to hit pretty much every spot that filmgoers might want.
And, after all that has happened in the last few years, the time has been just right for a feel-good movie that would sweep weary watchers up into its story.
The power of ‘story’ as a concept is one that is being increasingly recognised evangelistically. See for example Glen Scrivener’s column in the last en.
In the 1990s Leighton Ford wrote a book called The Power of Story (Rediscovering the Oldest and Most Natural Way to Reach People for Christ).
He wrote: ‘Our goal is to uncover the crystalline simplicity of God’s Story (with a capital S). Once we see how we have become a part of that Story we will better understand how to tell and model our own story (with a small s) to others. … Conversion, in a true sense, is a collision of narratives. God’s Story touches my story and your story, and a collision takes place. As people encounter stories they call their own stories into question, and they are forced to consider: What if my story isn’t the whole story? How should I respond? In the process of reconsidering their own lives, they become caught up in the Story of Jesus, and they are changed…’
How might our churches use the power of story – just as Jesus did with parables – to reach people today more effectively?
