ALICE IN WONDERLAND (2010)

Directed by: Tim Burton
Written by: Linda Woolverton
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter
Rated: PG

About the film:
19-year-old Alice returns to the strange place she once knew as Wonderland only to find the odd denizens there filled with anticipation of a long-awaited fulfillment of a prophecy in which she is to play a major part.

Movie Quote:
“The only way to achieve the impossible is to believe it is possible.”
Charles Kingsleigh (Marton Csokas) in Alice in Wonderland (2010)

Bible Quote:
“He replied, ‘Because you have so little faith. I tell you the truth, 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 (KJV)

Commentary:
Alice’s father has stumbled upon what is arguably the greatest secret to success in the universe. Woven into the fabric of creation as an immutable law is this simple key: Believing equals receiving.

The fact that this law works for Christian and non-Christian alike, it has been adopted by many who write self-help, how-to-succeed manuals: (The Power of Positive Thinking, The Law of Attraction, The Secret, etc.) Whatever moniker today’s authors care to put on it, the principle remains the same as when God first created it.

Of course, there are two kinds of believing. Positive believing (believing for health, prosperity, success) will reap positive results. Negative believing (fearing illnesses, poverty, failure) will reap negative results. Eradicating fear and other negative thoughts from our minds and replacing them with thoughts and visions of victory will go a long, long, way to our realizing the desires of our hearts.

But believing is not a passive activity, nor is it for the lazy or timid. Believing requires that we take action in line with our beliefs. The greater our believing, the bolder our actions may become. Believing also has rules. Our believing must be in accordance with what God says is available for us to believe. When we believe Him, and His promises to us, all things really do become possible.

Questions to consider while watching the film:
1. Why do we sometimes find it hard to believe what God says is possible? How do we strengthen our believing?
2. Through much of the film Alice insists she is not the Alice of the prophecy. Why and what changed her view? How does that relate to the roles we play in the body of Christ?

Michael Elliott
www.screensermon.blogspot.com