SPEAKER_00 0:00

Men. Welcome to the most important podcast that you'll hear in a long time. It's the Men's Leadership Community Podcast, and it starts now.

SPEAKER_03 0:16

Well, Obi, we are on the at the movie series. We started it. This is our third week already. I I can't believe how fast this series goes sometimes compared to some of the others in my mind. It just goes so quick.

SPEAKER_02 0:28

Uh yeah, and I think I think it's because so it's so relatable that's it's something that everybody uh can get, you know, that you know that it's a that everybody can relate to, right? You start talking about the theology and you know the blood of the lamb and then sacrifice, you know, I can see some people might be put off or might be apprehensive to kind of talk about it or you even share their thoughts about it because they don't want to, God forbid, they don't want to sound like they don't know anything about the Bible or about Jesus, right? But with the movies, man, you can always there's always something that people can relate to. Uh, and to me, that's where I find uh uh a lot of joy in sharing uh our hero's journey through our series.

SPEAKER_03 1:07

Absolutely. And you know, the we're on the Martian today, and I love this one. This is incredible hero's journey about the individual and God's creative ability inside the individual human being, but also the desperate need for community because we were created for community. So you get this great combination in this story, Obi, that God loves us individually and uniquely as each uh child of his, each special creation. And you see that through the astronaut Mark Watney and in the time that he spends alone, but you also see that deaf, def, desperate, and definite need for community because God created us to live in community with one another. And and I, you know, what do you think about that, Obi, with your own individual journey and then your joy about the MLC and brotherhood in Christ with other men?

SPEAKER_02 1:53

No, uh, this is why I'm so passionate about that, because we were not meant to do life alone. And now, more than ever, surprisingly, with the rise of our ability to communicate instantly with each other anywhere across the globe, um, it's created the opposite effect, right? Now it's isolated a lot of people, despite having the ability to communicate with each other instantly at all hours of the day. And so now more than ever, um it I'm I'm I'm very passionate about making sure that people know, especially as brothers in Christ, that we are not meant to do life alone. We're a communal people, and and especially these men.

SPEAKER_03 2:34

Yeah, and we're gonna see where that immediate uh communication is actually cut off in the life of Mark Watney and what that does to him as an individual and not being able to communicate with others and then the great joy that overwhelms him when he finally hears Commander Lewis's voice come across the radio for the first time, you know, after a year and a half of being on his own. So pretty incredible stuff. We're gonna jump right in. Great movie. Uh, awesome to bring you guys into this one. This is the Martian. We'll give you a couple of tidbits about the movie itself and then some really unique trivia, once again, which we always like to do, and then we'll jump into the movie.

SPEAKER_02 3:09

Yep. And Andy, while I'm doing this, can you sit me as uh co-host?

SPEAKER_03 3:12

Oh, yeah. I always forget how to do that. So let me jump right back in and they they they look, I'm learning I'm learning how to use all the buttons, guys. So this is well, they keep moving in in your defense, they keep moving the buttons, you know, and and and readjusting them.

SPEAKER_02 3:26

So yeah, I understand.

SPEAKER_03 3:27

I do not have quite the the uh unique uh brain that Mark Watney has on knowing how to you you have the you have the heart, you know, you have the heart, and that matters.

SPEAKER_02 3:38

Uh so The Martian came out 2015. It's a 12-year-old movie, uh, epic science fiction survival film, known for being visually stunning, scientifically credible, and immensely likable, thanks in large part to Damon's funny, uh touchy performance.

SPEAKER_03 3:56

Yeah, you know, and this is uh, you know, we're gonna see throughout, you know, different aspects of the movie. It's very scientifically credible. It has a couple of aspects of it that are not, which Andy Weir himself has come out and been very forthright about. He wanted it to be scientifically sound, but there were certain aspects of writing a novel where he threw things in for the drama that wouldn't actually have happened on Mars, like the storm itself, you know, with the low pressure that's on Mars, that kind of wind storm uh really wouldn't take place. But he knew that he was fudging with that just a little bit to get a little bit more of the drama in there.

SPEAKER_02 4:30

Mm-hmm. Which I appreciate it. You know, you gotta have some element of that. Um, and as you said, it's been on Andy Weir's 2011 novel of the same name and was directed by Rodley Scott. You can definitely look at the motif of this movie and and see that it looks like a Rodley Scott movie.

SPEAKER_03 4:48

Yeah, a little bit of that aliens, Ridley Scott. And and you know, Andy Weir is now just another novel has been turned into a movie recently. So Project Hail Mary, I think, is actually just surpassed the Martian and box office sales, uh, which was kind of a big deal last weekend. So Andy Weir's doing pretty good.

SPEAKER_02 5:06

Yep, I think so. It stars Matt Damons alongside an incredible ensemble cast featuring Jessica Chistain, Jeff Daniels, Kristen Wig, uh Chew Whittle, Ijufor, Sean Bean, Michael Penn, Kate Mara, Sebastian Stan, and Mackenzie Davis.

SPEAKER_03 5:23

I mean, it is a I mean, this is a big film.

SPEAKER_02 5:25

Yeah, it is. Uh it depicts an astronaut's struggle to survive on Mars after being left behind and NASA's efforts to return him to Earth.

SPEAKER_03 5:35

Yeah, pretty cool. So big cast, big movie, big story.

SPEAKER_02 5:40

During a man mission to Mars, astronaut Mark Watney struck by flying debris during a fierce storm and presumed death. Dead. Um, facing imminent peril, the remaining crew takes off for their orbiting vessel, the Hermes, to return to Earth. Uh, Watney awakens then after the storm, having narrowly survived his injuries and finds himself marooned and alone.

SPEAKER_03 6:03

I love that. How often do we get to use the word marooned on the Friday morning call? Marooned.

SPEAKER_02 6:09

Uh, as he recovers within the cruise surface habitat, Hab, he begins a video diary to document his thoughts on survival. Unable to communicate with Earth, his only chance of rescue is the next Mars mission in four years.

SPEAKER_03 6:24

Can you just imagine, though, like your hope is based on figuring out how to live by yourself on a planet for the next four years? You know, and you know the thought is overwhelming.

SPEAKER_02 6:36

Well, it's a thought over it's overwhelming, you know, in in on Earth. You know, we watched, you know, a lot of us here uh watched alone, and and you know, you kind of put yourself in that situation. I was like, could I make it alone here on Earth at any given place? And that's a difficult task as it is, but being on you feel the desperation and the hopelessness I did when he wakes up and he sees that everybody's gone.

SPEAKER_03 7:01

They did it just the short-term isolation and in and even being with family during COVID uh caused me anxiety and depression, some significant mental and emotional health and wellness issues. So I can't imagine thinking about, well, I gotta make it four years by myself and then I'll see somebody again.

SPEAKER_02 7:20

So with only meager supplies, he must draw upon his ingenuity, wit, and spirit to subsist and find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive millions of miles away. NASA and a team of international scientists work tirelessly to bring the Martian home while his crewmates concurrently plot a daring, if not impossible, rescue mission. As these stories of incredible bravery unfold, the world comes together to root for Watney's safe return.

SPEAKER_03 7:48

And I think that's really cool, especially when China gets involved. We see the entire world and in our manly man brotherhood of mankind want to come together and actually serve one another. So you see that that great community moment when the CNSA gets involved and actually helps the United States of America.

SPEAKER_02 8:08

Yep. Uh this film is the first genuine Mars movie. It is the first movie that attempts to be realistic and that is actually about human beings grappling with the problem of exploring Mars as opposed to various movies set on Mars that are essentially either shoot-em-ups or horror films. It does not engage in fantasy, no monsters, no magic, no Nazis.

SPEAKER_03 8:30

I know. Yeah, on Mars, there's no Nazis on Mars. It already sounds great, so that's good. No, but I mean it really is considered the first genuine movie about Mars that doesn't have some plot line uh that involves fantasy, but actually has to deal with real humans and real human problems while you know investigating a planet that we don't live on.

SPEAKER_02 8:53

Yeah, and kudos to the writing, right? That's a challenge. You take away all of those things you have to rely on, storytelling, uh, and making sure that you're feeling what the uh protagonist is feeling going through. Um the film involves a dual journey to the outer and inner space, a trip that takes you into that immensity called the universe and deep into the equally vast landscape of a single consciousness.

SPEAKER_03 9:20

Yeah, that's what we're talking about just a minute ago with the individual and then community and all these things. So, what a great way to have that tension uh between the outer universe and the inner landscape of our own individuality.

SPEAKER_02 9:33

Yep. For this accidental castaway, space is the place where he's physically marooned, but also where his mind is set free from a film director whose great persistent theme is what it means to be human.

SPEAKER_03 9:46

Yeah. And so when people ask, well, why would you be discussing, you know, a sci-fi movie like The Martian on a Friday morning in a faith-based executive entrepreneurial leadership group that wants to know about being Christ-centered and all that we do? Well, this is a movie at its core about what it means to be human. So this is a really good one for us to look at, especially as men and as leaders.

SPEAKER_02 10:08

Yeah. The film opened to critical acclaims and quickly became a financial success, as well as it grossed a worldwide total of 630.6 million against a budget of 108 million. So I that's a that's a those of big numbers. Um, it was a 10th highest grossing film of 2015, as well as Scott's highest grossing film to date. Um, named by the National Board of Review and by the American Film Institute, one of the top 10 films of 2015. The Martian received numerous accolades, including seven nominations for the at the 88th Academy Awards for Best Picture, Best Actor, Best Adaptive Screenplay, Best Production Design, Best Sound Editing, Best Sound Mixing, and Best Visual Effects. The visual the film's other nominations include eight British Academy Film Awards, nine Critics Choice Movie Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards, winning two.

SPEAKER_03 11:02

And we'll talk about those two awards that they won at the Golden Globes and how funny that is. Get it? Well, here's some great trivia for you. I love look at all these movies up here. When you're talking about at the movie series, man, here we go. Look at all the movies that are connected to The Martian.

SPEAKER_02 11:19

Uh, the opening title, Word of the Martian, um, they vanish bit by bit on every letter. It is the exact opposite as the title of Ridley Scott's Alien in made 1979. It appears bit by bit on every letter till the title is fully readable.

SPEAKER_03 11:36

So a little Easter egg there. Uh, get it, Easter egg to Alien.

SPEAKER_02 11:40

This was this was Scott's first Oscar nomination in 14 years since Black Hawk Black Hawk Down in 2001. I can't believe this. Man, The Martians are past Gladiator in 2000 as Scott's highest grossing film. Isn't that crazy? It includes two Oscar winners, Matt Damon and Jessica Chastain, and three Oscar nominees, uh Chewetal, Ajafor, Kristen Wig, and Sebastian Stan.

SPEAKER_03 12:09

So having you see that cast there, you see so Jessica Chastain won for the eyes of Tammy Faye. She played Tammy Faye Baker, and of course, Matt Damon won for the screenplay of Goodwill Hunting. So going all the way back to that. And I have a simple question for all the guys on the MLC Obi, based on what we're looking at right here, on the at the movie series, Are You Not Entertained? Oh no. Okay, let's move on.

SPEAKER_02 12:36

Matt Damon and Jessica Chastain previously appeared in Interstellar in 2014, though they didn't share any scenes. Both sci-fi, both are sci-fi films. Several of the actors had appeared and would later appear in the MCU. Sebastian Stan portrayed Bucky Barnes, the Winter Soldier. Kate Meyer portrayed Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman. Michael Pena portrayed Luis in Ant-Man. Donald Glover is the voice of Miles Morales and Spider-Man, and both Joel Idifour and Benedict Wong appeared in Doctor Strange. Matt Damon appeared as Loki actor in Thor Ragnarok. And Jessica Chastain portrays the villain book in the X-Men-based film The Dark Phoenix.

SPEAKER_03 13:23

Wow. There's a lot of people involved in the MCU. That's right.

SPEAKER_02 13:27

It's cool to be a superhero, guys. Yeah, it is. One second, my screen got cut off. Watney Lycans cutting a hole in his suit glove to create a reaction control thruster to in a in reference to Iron Man in 2008.

SPEAKER_03 13:41

Yeah, it's so great. Yeah, so we'll see that in the movie itself. All right, a little Lord of the Rings, baby. Not only MCU, but Lord of the Rings. Lord of the Rings. They went everybody get your nerd on. Come on.

SPEAKER_02 13:53

That cloak and dagger meeting to propose the Rich Purnell's maneuver is dubbed Project Elrond after the Council of Elrond and the Lord of the Rings. When this name is questioned, the first character to explain it is Henderson, played by Sean Bean, who played Boromir in Lord of the Rings, the Fellowship of the Ring in 2001. And he was present during said council. During the Council of Elrond discussion, Teddy Sanders states that he wants to be called Glorfindale. There is actually a major character from the Lord of the Rings, the Silmarin named Glorfindale, who is one of the high elves that battled Sauron and who later participates in the council as one of Elrond's chief advisors. His name means golden-haired, and actor Jeff Daniels has blonde hair. So a lot of thought went into that.

SPEAKER_03 14:41

Great Lord of the Rings trivia.

SPEAKER_02 14:43

Yep. External scenes depicting Mars were filmed in Wadi Rum, UNESCO World Heritage Site in Jordan, which has been used as a location for other Mars movies: Mission to Mars, Red Planet, and The Last Days of Mars. Damon said that he and Scott were inspired by the documentary film Touching the Void, which featured Trap Mountain climbers. A special Mars rover model was built for the filming. The film cast and team presented the rover model to the Jordan to Jordan in return for the hospitability they received. And the rover is now exhibited in Jordan's Royal Automobile Museum. If you're ever in Jordan. Actual potatoes were grown in a sound stage next to the one used for filming. They were planted at different times so that different stages of growth could be shown in the film scenes.

SPEAKER_03 15:33

Pretty cool. So potatoes grow pretty quickly, so you can see that. Oh man, a science fiction film wouldn't be complete without a little showing from Neil deGrasse Tyson. So wait to see him pop up.

SPEAKER_02 15:45

The film emulates actual missions to Mars that NASA is planning for the future. NASA actually decided to help the filmmakers with depicting the science and technology since it saw potential in promoting space exploration.

SPEAKER_03 15:58

Which is a big deal because NASA has turned down several films and actually helping them. This is the first one where they saw an Andy Rear script and what they were doing. This is actually based on science that we're working on. So NASA got involved in a way to actually promote space exploration once again. So this is a big deal for NASA to be involved so closely.

SPEAKER_02 16:18

Yep. NASA answered hundreds of questions on radioisotope systems, the look of potential habits, Habs or habitats, and more. NASA also provided hundreds of real images of Mars and control centers down to what the computer screens look like.

SPEAKER_03 16:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:35

The Martian was screened on board the ISS uh 250 miles above the Earth's surface on September 19th, 2015, and also at the Johnson Space Center in Houston and at the Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral in October 1st, 2015.

SPEAKER_03 16:52

That's pretty cool stuff that it was actually filmed viewed up on the International Space Station.

SPEAKER_02 16:57

Yep. Astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson has said that this is the most accurate film he has ever seen in regards to astrophysics and how Mars would be if inhabited. It was released several days after the announcement of NASA's discovery of water on Mars' planetary surface, which may have aided in boosting its opening.

SPEAKER_03 17:17

Isn't that pretty cool? So as uh, you know, just a few days after recognizing there was evidence of water on Mars. That's pretty neat.

SPEAKER_02 17:25

Yeah, so get it it gets in a little controversy here. Solonum Watney, a species Solano Watne. It's a species of bush a bush tomato from Australia. It has been named after the character of Mark Watney to honor the fictional heroic botanist portrayal. It is a member of the same genus as the potato, Solanum. Nice. One of the panoramic shots shows Olympus Mons, the largest discovered volcano in the solar system.

SPEAKER_03 17:54

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_02 17:55

It's almost three times larger than Mount Everest and is about the size of Missouri. It's also twice as tall as Everest, extending to a height well beyond that of the atmosphere. Yeah. So there was some controversy when the movie was accepted by the Golden Globes Eligibility Committee in the category comedy or musical, and subsequently won Best Motion Picture, Comedy or Musical, and Best Actor in a Comedy or Musical, Matt Damon. Many filmmakers, such as Judd Apto, criticized the producer's decision of submitting the Martian as a comedy as a way of not having to face a strong competition in the best drama category. The controversy led to the rule, uh rule change, which states that drama with comedic overtones should be entered in dramas and not as comedy.

SPEAKER_03 18:41

So it actually won as a comedy for all of Matt Damon's humor. So you guys decide is the Martian a comedy? Is it a is it a sci-fi film? What do you think? Yes. Good job, Obi. Hey, and now we've got some of my brother-in-law Jason Cajer's favorite music. That's right. Here we go. Here's here's Jason's, you know, uh list that he has in his truck.

SPEAKER_01 19:06

Yeah. What what what music is that, brother-in-law? Yeah, BGs, disco.

SPEAKER_03 19:14

There we go.

SPEAKER_01 19:15

Oh yeah. Yeah. A running gag in the game. I'm gonna put on my bell bottom my bell button pants and do some dancing for you boys. We need a pro. Need a big fro. Well, I I yeah.

SPEAKER_02 19:28

Go ahead. Go ahead. Uh a running gag in the film is Commander Melissa Lewis's love for a 1970s song, especially of the disco genre, which apparently Watney hates. It's the only music available to Watney on Mars. Uh when Mar Watney's pre preparing the rover and Mav for the final part of his journey, Abbas Waterloo is played as background music. Uh and finally the exit music, which includes Don't Leave Me This Way and I Will Survive, is a commentary on Watney's situation on Mars.

SPEAKER_03 19:57

Yeah, pretty funny when you look at the exit uh, you know, credits and everything. They're playing Don't Leave Me This Way and I Will Survive, which is kind of a musical overtone to the whole movie. Uh and this one's pretty cool. A little bit about Matt Damon, you know, and his acting in the film is pretty neat.

SPEAKER_02 20:12

Yep. Matt Damon admitted the scene where Mark was getting emotional up on hearing Commander Lewis's voice was genuine. He had filmed solo for five continuous weeks, often reacting to pre-recorded voices rather than live actors. And when Damon began to think about how his character had been all alone on Mars for two years, alongside how he was only hearing pre-recorded voices of his co-stars who had already finished their scenes, he began to tear up. Ridley Scott was so impressed with Damon's performance, he he did one take. Only did it in one take.

SPEAKER_03 20:43

Yeah, so that was real, like Damon experiencing that loneliness of filming for five weeks by himself.

SPEAKER_01 20:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:50

While the script initially called for his character Mark Watney to become emaciated, director Ridley Scott forbade Damon from undergoing radical weight loss due to the actress's past health complications from similar transformations. 50 pounds of for courage and under fire 1996. Uh, instead, a body double was used for the scenes where Watney appears emaciated.

SPEAKER_03 21:11

Yeah, so I thought that was pretty interesting that, you know, Matt Damon had some significant health complications after Courage Under Fire, and Ridley Scott wouldn't let him do it again. So when we see those scenes toward the end of the movie where he's emaciated, that's actually a body double. Little CGI on his face.

SPEAKER_02 21:27

Um, Watney's story about how JPL got its start after a group of Galtic students almost burned down their dorm is mostly true. Frank Molina, Jack Parsons, and Ed Foreman are the students in question, and they were kicked off campus after the incident. They continue their experiments and later form the jet propulsion laboratory.

SPEAKER_03 21:45

How cool is that? That's pretty neat. Yeah. Again, something pretty awesome out of an explosion. Guys, don't forget in all these at the movie series, we talk about the hero's journey being wrapped up in the true hero's journey. That's Jesus from Philippians 2. 5 through 11. Make sure you always go back and reread that over and over again about Jesus' journey from heaven down to earth, incarnate as a baby, grown as a man, teaches as a rabbi, dies on the cross, rises from the dead, and ascends back to heaven and reigns and rules over all things right now. So we always want to see ourselves caught up in that hero's journey of Jesus Christ, even as we look at each of these individual movies. Well, Obi, let's get started. We'll jump into the opening scene, uh, which jumps right into a lost signal, lost contact. Uh, you know, I I love this first phrase from Mark Watney at the very beginning. He says, Constant communication is the hallmark of any team that, and he gets cut off by Commander Lewis. And it's just so ironic for the rest of the film what that phrase right there means, and how much constant contact is important to the hallmark of any team. Uh, and yet that's what he loses right away.

SPEAKER_02 22:54

Yeah. And uh, you know, you you see the devastation uh of that storm, you know. Once again, we hear we see the uh we heard about the not being able to do the this the storm in the uh you know in Mars, but this is one of those creative elements that I think adds really it's also like a metaphor for that storm that's coming, right? And you see the the what's about to happen, and you see that you know that now we have a loss of signal, we are stranded, we're we're ready to to take off, and decisions have to be made.

SPEAKER_03 23:28

Yeah, so the Commander Lewis makes that decision to leave. You know, they had that quick conversation in the bottom left still right there where Mark Watney actually says, let's wait it out, and Commander Lewis says, No, we're gonna abort, we're scrubbed. Uh, she makes the decision to leave, uh, carries that burden throughout the film, then, uh, you know, that that they left him behind. And I love the the still on the bottom right scene of the five of them without Watney, his chair is open. Uh, and just a great visual representation of the weight that they feel as they're actually rising uh and leaving the planet Mars. They're taking a whole lot of weight with them of leaving uh one of their teammates behind. So pretty big deal there. But a great start, lost signal. Uh the importance of constant communication runs throughout the entire movie. Um, and then I thought Psalm 39 does a really good job of kind of this is David talking about what it what it feels like when he loses communication with God uh because of sin or brokenness or just situations that are going on in the world around him, you know, and how it feels. So I thought this was a pretty good scriptural interpretation of what Mark Watney is gonna feel with that that that lack or that loss of signal, that that loss of content communication.

SPEAKER_01 24:44

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:45

I'm like the deaf who cannot hear, like the mute who cannot speak. I have become like the one who does not hear, whose mouth can offer no reply. Lord, I wait for you. You will answer, Lord my God.

SPEAKER_03 24:56

Yeah, so you can begin to see then in the movie his desire to reconnect throughout the entire movie, even though he uh grows in his individual abilities and who he is as a person, he's he's always reaching forward toward that desire to reconnect because until he does, he feels like one isolated, deaf, and mute by himself. So yeah. Second scene opening up for scene one. I love this surprise.

SPEAKER_02 25:23

Oh well, you know, he understood what that meant. The fact that he had survived and then he saw um that the crew was not there, he understood that he was presumed dead because they wouldn't have left otherwise. Yeah. Or it was so bad that situations were so dire. So he knew right away that that he was alone. Uh, and I think the the reality of it hadn't quite set in because he's still kind of in survival mode, right? He still has which I thought was really interesting. That you know, they all the movies always they always show that uh the piercing to the side. Um and so I I I saw kind of like this this the birth of a or you know, this birth of this new man when he wakes up from being presumed dead, kind of like a reserve resurrection scene.

SPEAKER_03 26:14

You get a little resurrection, a little bit of the spear in the side of Jesus up on the cross kind of moment as the one who sacrificed for the rest of the team, right? They sacrifice him in order to escape. And you know, this is the first, I think this is one of the first movies we've had that uh, although rated PG 13, it had some it had some manly language in it, some some salty language, a little uh seaworthy language in it. And I can only imagine if I was having to staple myself shut the way that Mark Lotney was. There might be a word or two that might escape that isn't meant for church. So, you know, just wanted to point that out, you know, a couple of those moments. But his his inner desire, his inner um giftedness by God to survive is pretty powerful. When you look at just the ability for him to extract that piece of metal and then actually staple himself together is pretty impressive.

SPEAKER_02 27:07

Yeah, and I like that last sale that you put on here. I'm not going to die because I think the circumstances surrounding him really were impossible. And you either choose to sit down and wait for death to come to you, or you do everything that you can and you know, go out with a bang and trying.

SPEAKER_03 27:29

Yeah, and he makes these constant throughout the throughout the film, he makes three or four times these constant movements of, hey, this seems impossible, but for hope's sake, I'm gonna keep going and I'm gonna keep trying. And that's what we have inside each and every one of us with the Holy Spirit and Jesus at work, is we have that ultimate hope that keeps driving us forward in Christ. And he has that, I'm not gonna die, I'm gonna keep trying. And if I die, I'm gonna die trying. So he's got that inside of him. And I thought, you know, this is a pretty good one for surprise by hope from Jeremiah 29, 11, uh, that keeps us going even in the most dire of moments. Remember, the people of Israel are in Babylon. Uh, they've been exiled, they're gonna be there for 70 years, and yet there's hope. And I recognize, you know, Mark Watney exiled on or marooned on Mars. He doesn't know how long, but he has that same hope inside of him to keep driving forward. And I thought this was a great verse for us to think about this morning.

SPEAKER_02 28:26

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord. Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

SPEAKER_03 28:33

Yeah, and even when we think things are at the bottom or you know, we we've reached rock bottom or things are at their dire end, uh, God has greater plans for us in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. And I think we need to remind each other of that each and every day. Because just like Mart Watney, every guy on this call is going through something, OB, in some way. You know, it may be family or it may be work or it may be something to do with our local community, or it just may be some of the stuff that we deal with in our own fractured, splintered uh humanness inside us. That we may have guys on the call like me that are struggling with anxiety or depression or mental or emotional issues that are going on inside us as human beings. Uh, and no matter where it seems the most dire, God's got good plans for us and he's leading us forward in hope. And I want to encourage each and every man on the call about that. Obi, you and I talk about that often with each other just in our private texts and our private, you know, WhatsApps, uh, you know, going back and forth on encouraging one another each day. Uh, when we may be going through what some other guy may seem as may seem minor to them, like going up the elevator in a high rise and looking out the window, may seem like something normal to the rest of us. Uh, that's a dire moment for you and where you need encouragement from other brothers that God's got a plan for you, even when you're struggling with your anxiety at the highest.

SPEAKER_02 29:55

Yeah, and I think, you know, I still carry my little, my little Jasper stone that old foster gave me that's in my pocket. And there are times when the terror, when I feel the building sway, that the terror is almost paralyzing, you know, and and and fear overwhelms me. And I think, how am I gonna live the rest of my life with this? But I hold on to that little that's that stone and I rub it and I'm reminded that regardless of what happens here, my hope is in Christ, my hope is in the resurrection. And that drives me, that keeps me put going forward, knowing that my future's secure.

SPEAKER_03 30:32

And you're never alone. And we're gonna realize in the movie, Mark Watney realizes he's never alone. He does have a faith. We're gonna see that in the the uh scene with the crucifix coming up in just a minute. And he knows that he's not alone, he knows that Christ is with him, and I love the way that that uh engages the film. So I love this one. Let's begin with food and feces. What do you like? How do you do you like that for a scene title, Food and Feces? So here we go. Uh, but that's exactly what he figures out in the scene is he's gotta figure out how to make more food. He knows he doesn't have enough food to survive for the next four years, but he's God's given him a gift. I love that, you know, and you see that still on the left side in the middle. Uh, he's a botanist. God's given him the skill of botany, and he's gonna figure out doggone how to grow more food. And he recognizes that. I love what's really unique about this scene in the still at the bottom left. He pulls out the potatoes, right? But what he is looking for is before he opens the door, the door says, Don't open till Thanksgiving, which is a nice little nod to when he opens that door and he sees the potatoes, he gives thanks for the gifts that are there that he can work with. You know what I wonder if we stop and we give thanks for the gifts that are there that we could work with, even if it's uh potatoes and poop. Yeah, food and feces, potatoes and poop. I'm just trying to throw all those in there this morning, Obi. But do we stop and recognize the the significance of the most mundane things that God places in our path each and every day, like potatoes and poop, that there's something that he's given us that we can create something out of, right? Which is pretty neat. The ultimate creator of all things has placed stuff in our pathway, Obi, for us to create things out of. And he finds joy when he sees us utilizing the gifts that he's given us to create new things out of the things that he's put in our path.

SPEAKER_02 32:28

Yeah, and and not only that, you know, I I really do want to be uh want the Lord to create in me a heart of gratitude, you know, that that that I see things that he's given me, that I'm grateful for all of that. Well uh we had a session on Wednesday, uh, and I had never heard this one of my friends from church named Taylor, he talked about, you know, looking at taxes, and he's like, you know, there should be gratitude whenever you have to pay taxes here, because man, it means that the Lord provided an income for you. And and I hadn't heard anybody say that before. And I was like, you know, this is not really a popular thing, dude. Right now, but it it it really is the reality of the is that if you are paying, you know, especially if you have an overage where you have to pay, uh, odds are that the Lord blessed you in a way that you had, you know, uh a substantial amount of income to to do that. And I want my heart to be grateful for the things that I have and not focus so much on what I don't have, which is easy to do.

SPEAKER_03 33:28

Well, and great, and in and in a still there on the right in the middle to connect taxes with poop, you know, sometimes when things stink, there you go, Obi, God is still providing opportunity for us. And I love Matt Damon's humor uh with the character Mark Watney, that even when things stink, he still has some sense of humor about him, recognizing that there's good stuff in front of him. And that phrase, Mars will come to fear my botany powers. I love that in connection with do we think that way? Are we that hopeful about the gifts and talents that God's given each and every one of us? Uh, because he's blessed each and every one of us individually in unique ways. And Psalm 139 really points out there scripturally what Mark Watney is saying about, and Mars will come to fear my botany powers. Nobody else on that Aries team of astronauts had the power that he had, had the gifts and talents that he had. So do we recognize the giftedness, the talentedness that God has given us from Psalm 139? And do we celebrate that each and every day?

SPEAKER_02 34:31

Yeah, and I will tell you that Jeff Presler, that's one of his gifts and talents. Uh, when you talk about a contrast between the fall of man, the the curse of the land of growing thorns and thistles, that's me. We can't grow anything in our we can we can't do anything. We'll kill plastic plants. But Jeff, he has got a potato crop growing right now. Uh, everything that he plants just blossoms and blooms and it's beautiful. So, anyway, just a little contrast there that he's that the Lord bless him with. So, Psalm 139, 13, 18 says, For you created my innermost being, you knit me together in my mother's womb, and I praise you because I'm fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body, all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, God, how vast is the sum of them. Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand when I wake, I'm still with you.

SPEAKER_03 35:34

I love there's almost every aspect of this set of verses, Obi, is intimately involved in the Martian, intimately involved in Mars, the grains of the dirt that he has to utilize, right? You know, that he's digging his hands into the earth. I love each and every aspect of this. So pretty awesome stuff about Mark Watney utilizing his gifts and talents. And God has given each and every man on this call uh gifts and talents to be utilized. Well, we call this scene fire and water, Obi. I love this one. Fire and water. He's gonna learn how to make fire in a place where it's impossible to make fire, and he's gonna learn how to make water in a place where it's impossible to make water.

SPEAKER_02 36:18

Yeah. He mentioned specifically that NASA doesn't make things so that they don't burn, and uh reference to a tragic accident back in 1986, I believe, of the Challenger. Um, and so now he's gonna try to figure out a way to make fire so that he can make water because he knows a recipe to make water. So you see him looking for things, trying to find something that um that is that can make a fire, and he stumbles across this wooden wooden cross, which is a great reference, right?

SPEAKER_03 36:52

Um and so he begins to try to Which he says, Martinez, I wouldn't have gone through your stuff if you hadn't left me on this planet for dead.

SPEAKER_02 37:00

Which is great. Shows you his you know the the mindset that he has, and you see him trying to begin to his attempt to make uh something uh beautiful out of something deadly, something life-giving out of something that gives, you know, that that's associated with death. So he you know, he blows himself up. You see, I'm trying to uh trying to start a fire, and it launches him, and and then you see this beautiful scene where um he's praying and he says, I'm counting on you.

SPEAKER_03 37:31

Yeah, and I love that. He says, I'm he he's looking at the crucifix and he says, I'm figuring you're gonna be okay with this considering the situation that I'm in. That he's gonna whittle the bottom of the cross for wood, right, to burn. So I love that. And his relationship with Jesus, like I'm figuring this is gonna be okay with you, and that this isn't desecration, but this is actually me utilizing who you are in my life in order to survive and thrive and move forward. And I love that. Do we have that same relationship with Jesus where we're gonna utilize that relationship with him to survive and thrive and move forward? And I love that. I'm counting on you. Uh, so you get this great statement of faith, and then of course, out of that, after he blows himself up, you see all the water, and then, of course, hey, there, you can see uh the potato plant is growing. So great scene there that throws us all the way back to the very beginning with Genesis 2, verse 15.

SPEAKER_02 38:28

The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

SPEAKER_03 38:33

Yeah, the original calling to cultivate the land, he's actually brought back to that now on Mars as the only it it is Genesis 2.15. He's the only man on the planet. Uh, and the first thing that he's called to do is actually to cultivate the ground, and that's what he's working on. So, meanwhile, back on Earth.

SPEAKER_02 38:54

They find out that you know, uh, he's alive. Yeah, sincerely, NASA.

SPEAKER_03 39:01

I love that dear America. Remember that astronaut we killed and had a really nice funeral for? Turns out he's alive. Arbad, sincerely NASA. Again, great humor there. Uh, but really isn't that's kind of the way our government handles stuff. Hey, Arbad, you know. Careful, Andy. Careful. I know, I know. Okay, I'm sorry, a little cynical, but there's a little cynicism from Watney in the movie with his comedy.

SPEAKER_02 39:26

Yeah, so now um the shift has changed from uh-oh, we we from grief, we've lost someone to what are we gonna do about it, and now to a plan of action, what are we gonna do? Right? Uh and we see I love this L you put on there, we're working on it.

SPEAKER_03 39:43

Yeah, that's and I I love how media media relations and how things work actually take uh a front view for a few minutes instead of actually rescuing the astronaut. Like, what are we gonna tell people? Like, okay, how about the truth? No, I forgot. That doesn't play with government. Oh gosh, I did it again, Obi, I'm so uh yeah, but yeah, and and then you know, we get that great uh, you know, how much he hates disco music. No, I am not going to turn the beat around, you know, as he's listening to Turn the Beat Around. So just that great humor in there, which actually plays off of then it's supposed to be humorous. Then the very next scene you see Teddy Sanders say, Well, we're working on it. Uh yeah, that's pretty, pretty hilarious. So uh stay focused. Meanwhile, even while even while things are are falling all around, 1 Peter 5, 8 through 11 encourages us to stay focused.

SPEAKER_02 40:37

Yep, be alerted and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, stand firm in the faith because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of grace, of all grace, who called you into his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast. To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.

SPEAKER_03 41:05

And I think especially verse 10 really hones in on Mark Watney's journey and that he's going to have to suffer for a little while, but at the end, he himself will be restored and made strong and steadfast. And I I love that, not only for his journey, but for the way that God's at work in each and every one of our journeys, to stay focused on Christ at the center because he is going to restore us even as we go through seasons of suffering. Uh, so then we run into some problems, then. I love this. So Mark Watney, time after time after time, runs into different problems and he immediately becomes a problem solver. I love that. Uh, and and that great line, I'm gonna have to science the bleep out of this. So again, he's going to come in and he's going to uh utilize his gifts and talents, which is his ability to understand science, which is a gift from God, Obi. Here we go. He's gonna utilize that gift of God that he's given us called science uh to figure out all the different problems that he's gonna run into.

SPEAKER_02 42:03

Main one and trying to make the batteries last uh for that long journey that he has to make to the rendezvous point of the next mission to Mars. And one of those obstacles is the heat. Well, you know, the running the heater drains the battery significantly. Uh, and so what does he do?

SPEAKER_03 42:23

He digs up a big box of plutonium, which you're which again, NASA says you're not supposed to do. So now he's created fire, which you're not supposed to do according to NASA. Now he's digging up the big box of plutonium, which NASA says you're not supposed to do. So sometimes you gotta throw the rule book out.

SPEAKER_02 42:41

Yeah, and maybe a little creative. And I love the I I just love the the the scene where he's driving and he's got the thing of plutonium behind him, you know.

SPEAKER_03 42:52

And he's and the song in the background is this the disco song Hot Stuff. Does everybody get that joke? Plutonium, hot stuff? Yeah, yeah. I I got it, Andy. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 43:04

I just wanted to make sure so so now he's testing. Now he's now we see him testing, and uh everybody's kind of trying to figure out what he's what he's doing. You know, they can see the overhead, they they can see satellite imagery of him moving, and they're trying to figure out what he's doing based on what his where his rover, where the rover is.

SPEAKER_03 43:25

And what are we gonna tell people? They're still trying to figure that out. So James 112, I think, is a great verse. Problem solvers, right? So this is a great verse that describes Mark Watney and his journey, but also a great verse that describes us as faith based leaders.

SPEAKER_02 43:41

Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.

SPEAKER_03 43:50

Yeah, pretty good. So, what do you think of that, Obi, for Mark Watney's journey?

SPEAKER_02 43:54

Let's persevere, you know, and he does have a lot of trials.

SPEAKER_03 43:57

Yep. All right, so here we go. We're bringing In a little bit of that science and a little bit of that math, a little bit of what God provides for us, the hexadecimals to the rescue.

SPEAKER_02 44:07

Isn't that crazy that out of a game they figure out a way to communicate? Right? They they finally get access to the to the camera, the communication, and he sees that they can see him, but there's a problem they can't they can't hear. So he figures out a way, uh using hexadecimals to create kind of like a code, like a ring code, or what are they called? The code decoders might be before decoder ring might be before one another. Yeah. Um and uh they use it to communicate. And so using this method, they get him uh they uh enable the ability for him to type and to send uh text messages across the the void of space.

SPEAKER_03 44:52

Yeah, he finally ends up in the rover, and no longer are they using the hexadecimals, but now he's able to actually text them. And as they're communicating for the first time, he finds out that they they still haven't told the rest of the crew that he's alive. And I I love he's typing for the entire world to see what the bleep is wrong with you. What a great scene! Like, why can't you just tell the truth? You know, so just his shock at them not telling the world that he's alive. But I love this from his ability to use science, math, and all these gifts, Obi, are the laws of creation, the laws that God has put into the way that He's created the planet, and especially see this at work in Psalm 19.

SPEAKER_02 45:36

The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing to the soul, the statues of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple, the precepts of the Lord are right, giving joy to the heart, the commands of the Lord are radiant, giving light to the eyes, the fear of the Lord is pure, enduring forever, the decrees of the Lord are firm, and all of them are righteous.

SPEAKER_03 45:55

Yeah, and I love that we can think that this only applies to God's word, it can only apply to spiritual things, but actually Psalm 19 applies directly also to the laws of creation in the way that God has ordered things, which includes science, math, and all these other gifts that Mark Watney is not only depending on but utilizing. But then, of course, there's always Murphy's law at work in the world of human beings.

SPEAKER_02 46:24

So we see that he colonizes Mars, uh, and you get this feel-good moment. And you know, I really, as I was watching this, I felt like sometimes I saw my life in that, you know, how sometimes everything's going well, you know, you have these challenges, it happens, you finally get a plateau, everything's going great, you know, you're growing potatoes, you're thriving, and then all of a sudden, uh, worst case scenario, it blows himself up, not only him, but also all of his potatoes, and they're frozen, and it just seems hopeless, you know.

SPEAKER_03 46:56

Murphy's law is right when it's going great, something is gonna go wrong. And actually, this scene is really important because it blows him right back to the beginning of the movie. So it's a he has to start all over again. Uh, and again, that perseverance, though, not to stop, that hope to keep moving forward. So he's blown back all the way to the beginning, right? Uh, where he was in the very beginning of the movie. And that's Murphy's law. Something's always going to go wrong in a broken place and and with broken human beings. And uh, trouble is guaranteed in our lives. John 16, 33, Jesus makes a promise, Obi. He says, You're gonna have trouble in this life, but take heart, I've overcome the world. Um, but I like also Job 5 here, 6 through 7. Job, of course, went through hardships, right? And he talks about it in a in a unique way of just being the aspect of part of being human is you're gonna run into trouble, guys.

SPEAKER_02 47:51

Yeah. For hardship does not spring from the soil, nor does trouble sprout from the ground. Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.

SPEAKER_03 48:01

And Job's point is it just comes to humanity as broken, sinful human beings living in a broken place. Uh, but there is hope. Uh, and that's where we get now rebooting. Uh, so Watney does not give up. He he get he continues to rework the hab, right? And then we run into Rich Purnell for the first time, uh, which is really cool. He's gonna use math, right? He's gonna use uh aerodynamics, astrodynamics, and math to figure out a way uh that that actually they can use the Hermes uh to get Mark Watney in half the time of what it would take waiting for the next Mars mission.

SPEAKER_02 48:41

And I really love that line that you put, dying for something big and beautiful and greater than me. I can I can live with that. It reminds me a lot of I think it was Manzell that said, I want to be poured out until there's nothing left in me. Yeah. You know, and so it really a nice throwback here to what happens now that they have figured out a way, uh-oh, to get the get get him back in half of the time. You know, they're gonna do some radical things, and you see him having to uh ask for resources to have the computing power to try to figure out a problem bigger than he knew that he could solve. So um, and and again, I love the the the reflection shot that he had where he's where uh Watley's just sitting down and and that sunset sure looks different from there, right?

SPEAKER_03 49:32

And that's where he says that great line. He's telling Commander Lewis to check in on his parents if he dies, but tell them that dying for something big and beautiful and greater for greater than me, I can live with that. And that ought to be, you know, as faith-based leaders, that ought to be the mantra in each and every one of our lives with Christ at the center, because that's John 15, right? No greater love has a man than this, uh, than to pour out his life for his brothers. You're dying for something greater than yourself. Um, now NASA, of course, had a plan in place that LOS means loss of signal. It didn't work out. So enter China's space program. China sees this going on, and lo and behold, China decides to help. So I thought that was pretty cool. And this is where I wanted to run into uh one of Mark Watney's statements about what it means to be a human being, OB.

SPEAKER_02 50:23

Yeah. Every human has a basic instinct to help each other out. If a hiker gets lost in the mountains, people will coordinate a search. If a train crashes, people will line up to give blood. If an earthquake levels the city, people all over the world will send emergency supplies. This is so fundamentally human that is found in every culture without exception. Yes, there are plague holes who just don't care, but they're massively outnumbered by the people who do.

SPEAKER_03 50:50

Yeah, what a great reminder. And not only in, you know, uh the understanding of uh his perseverance, but now China becoming involved and you know, him recognizing that he's dying for something greater than himself, China wanting to get involved in something greater than themselves. We're all on this journey uh of, you know, pouring out our lives for others. So Galatians 6, 7 through 10 for all mankind. If you guys don't know, that's a pretty big astronaut phrase, you know, that we're doing this for all mankind. So Galatians 6, 7 through 10 talks about this attitude of living life for all mankind, and that's what we're here for on this planet.

SPEAKER_02 51:27

Do not be deceived, God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh from the flesh will reap destruction. Whoever sows to please the spirit from the spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

SPEAKER_03 51:53

Yes, let's keep doing good. Let's persevere in that perseverance in doing good. You know, OB, that's what we're supposed to be about as brothers in Christ. Now we come to that great Lord of the Rings scene. I love this. Project Elrond.

SPEAKER_02 52:06

Here we go. Uh finally figured out a way, and finally finally figured out a way to do this. The results are in, the the computations have been completed, and now uh I love the way he interrupted him and says, You should hang up. The phone right now, I know how to save Mark Watney.

SPEAKER_03 52:26

Who the hell is Rich Purnell? I love that.

SPEAKER_02 52:31

But but I I really do like that we see hope in the midst of hopelessness, right? Uh like I told you, this movie gave me a lot of ups and downs. I felt uh the weight, the pressure of it. The they did such a great job of portraying hopelessness, uh, those situations where things seemed hopeless, but then given us that hope throughout the whole movie. Uh, and we see that the plan is to slingshot the Hermes around the earth and fling it back um so that they don't decelerate. Because apparently the acceleration is really what what they had to do. The the uh the problem was was accelerating it.

SPEAKER_03 53:10

That's where the majority of the where you get the gravity assist. Uh, and I love Donald Glover there. If you don't know, he has a alter ego called the childish gambino, and he's acting childish in this scene as he's running around uh, you know, them showing them what gravity assist will look like. So pretty cool, and that that they do a little play on his alter ego there too. Um, so they they show that it can work, but they decide not to do it NASA. No, we're not gonna do it. Uh, so they secretly send uh Rich Purnell's uh math, you know, air astrodynamics, his math, his gravity assist plan up to the Hermes. They get it and they make the decision that they're going to not listen to NASA, but they're gonna do it. And I love, you know, when Commander Lewis says we're talking about mutiny here. It really is mutiny, and we get our first kind of sign of a space travel scene of seafaring. Uh, so we're gonna see a little bit more of that with piracy there. But they're gonna commit mutiny at sea. They're not going to listen to NASA, but they're gonna follow Rich Purnell, uh, who is utilizing once again God's gift, the grace of gravity. And here we are back at Psalm 19, one through four. And once again, don't under, you know, don't underestimate the beauty of the heavens declaring the glory of God, the beauty of gravity declaring God's glory. And did you know the grace of gravity that it is a gift from God that works for our benefit? And Obi, did you know we still don't even fully understand what gravity is or how it works? Isn't that crazy?

SPEAKER_02 54:46

The heavens declare the glory of God, the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day, um, they pour forth speech. Night after night, they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words, no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.

SPEAKER_03 55:05

Isn't that amazing? So, this is exactly then what Rich Purnell is doing. He's a scientist in astrodynamics, and he's utilizing gravity and his understanding of gravity, the revealed knowledge that we have of it, that has no words and no sound, and yet reveals itself to us, uh, glorifying God. So, to think of gravity as one of the things that actually glorifies God in our lives day in and day out that we take for granted, right up until we desperately need it. Pretty cool. So now we get to the space pirate, right?

SPEAKER_02 55:38

And yep. Uh now we're talking about the plan, right? What what's what is what a plan. What a plan. Uh so I mean it it's an aud it's a big, hairy, audacious plan. I was thinking about that, right? They're gonna he's gonna have to leave the atmosphere um of Mars, connect with the Hermes, and they're gonna catch him.

SPEAKER_03 56:04

Yeah, and they're gonna, I guess they're gonna catch me in space. Yeah, I love that. And the top left scene, if you see that on the top left, this is the third time. You know how I like to do things that happen three times in a movie. You may have missed it, but this is the third time that Fonzi's thumbs up A is given. The first time is when he's actually watching Happy Days while he's looking at the crucifix, it's in the background, and Fonzie gives the A. Uh, the second time is when they the NASA's media person, Kristen Wieg, asks for a photo and he takes a photo of himself doing the big A. But now here's the third time in the movie where he gives the Fonse thumbs up. So you get three times, you get the Fonz. There you go. Another little bit of trivia. He gives that thumbs up, uh, you know, where he's like, okay, what a great plan. They're gonna catch me in space. He then gives that description of maritime law, where actually he is now a pirate according to maritime law and wants to be known as Captain Blondbeard. I love that. Really awesome. And this is where you begin to see the scenes of him emaciated from now his rations have been cut less than a third uh from what he was on at the beginning of the movie. So he loses a massive amount of weight. And then you really get to see then I love scenes like this in the bottom right where you really get to see laid out in one little picture, Obi, uh, the entire movie. And those are all the days that he's been there that he's kept track of as he's saying goodbye to the HAB. And he's gonna go out to the rover and now make that 3,200 kilometer journey, you know, to the to uh the the uh uh in the rover to the mav to leave the planet. And he talks about everywhere I go, I'm the first one uh to do it. So you see again a little bit of throwback to Genesis uh and him being the only one on the planet and his desperate need to reconnect with the crew on the Hermes.

SPEAKER_02 57:59

The Lord God said, It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.

SPEAKER_03 58:04

And now all of the entire plan is based on the Hermes being able to catch him uh in space. So another pretty good joke about him being the fastest man. And now, you know, Wong, Bruce, the character Bruce's plan, which is to send him up in space under a tarp.

SPEAKER_02 58:25

Yeah. You know, and I love the way he realizes that they're saying the fastest, you know, he's like, you know, you're saying it that way because you know that I that that I'm I'm for it. I want to be the fastest man alive. And you're right, you know, you're right. It sounds awesome.

SPEAKER_03 58:40

I want sending me to space without no roof. Uh no, but you're saying you'll be the fastest man alive. Okay.

SPEAKER_02 58:47

He's like, All right, I'll do it. I'm in, you know.

SPEAKER_03 58:49

And once again, he typed for the entire world to see.

SPEAKER_02 58:52

Yeah. So you bleeping me. So here we go. The plan unfolds, and this is really I I I I could hear myself breathing, I could feel my heart beating, because it's such an intense scene. Uh, really, the the the camera work, you know, spinning him around, disorienting. It's show I mean it it really is intense. Um, but he actually does poke the hole and he does the throwback to Iron Man. Um, and you know, they are they tell them we're gonna be off by like you know, 300 feet or something like that, right? I think we're yards. I don't and they're moving, and he has to, you know, make the decision to launch himself out towards them. And and really the breathtaking scene, it really was, especially when they she he flies past her and he's grabbing the rope with the the the line, you know, and trying to catch it. And I was just on the edge of my seat holding my breath the entire time.

SPEAKER_03 59:53

Um well and again, what beautiful imagery, the bottom right, Houston, we got them. And you you don't just see that she grabs hold of them, but you see this beautiful visual imagery of community that they're being wound together by this golden thread, right? Which is really running through each and every one of our lives, is this red thread of Jesus' blood that connects us all with one another. And you see that visually laid out really beautifully here, Obi. So once again, we get this Romans 5, 1 through 5, the power of hope that connects us all in Christ.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:28

Praise be to God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with a comfort we ourselves receive from God.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:41

So I love that. So He comforts us so that we can comfort others. Our very last scripture, which comes in the next scene, we're almost done, so that we can comfort those in trouble. God gives us the comfort of his son, Jesus Christ, so that we can recognize him bringing us through our sufferings uh in hope, so that we can then help others that are going through sufferings to learn how to go through them in hope in Christ.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:05

And that's what we're about here, really. That is that is what we're about here. That is what we do here. Um and so if you haven't, this is just one opportunity for us for me to tell you that if you're not part of that, uh please, please, I'm encouraging you. Um for just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we're distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation. If we're comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm because we know that just as you share in your sufferings, you also share in our comfort.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:42

Pretty cool. So you see that as they're captured, wrapped up in that line together. And then we come all the way back to the beginning, day one, back on Earth, uh, and you see this great scene where he reaches down and he sees the the green leaf coming up out of the ground on earth and says, Hey there, uh, to the new sprout, just like he did on Mars, but now he's back on Earth, and he's now teaching other astronauts the survival skills that he's learned through his sufferings to teach them how to have comfort and hope in their sufferings in that great line. You can either accept it or you can get to work. And Obi, then we'll wrap up. Then this is actually 2 Corinthians 1, 3 through 4, which is the same, was actually the verse that we had just a second ago. Sorry, I did it twice. The other one was supposed to be Romans 5. But read this one just once again because what I think is really cool is now he's sharing what he learned with others, and that's really what we're supposed to be doing.

SPEAKER_02 1:02:44

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation. If we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same suffering we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:19

That one was worth sharing twice, wasn't it? Yeah, no problems. Well, Obi, that's it. If you don't mind, just wrap us up with a prayer, and then uh we'll hang on for the guys that have time to continue to talk.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:29

Uh Lord, I'm thankful for every person that's here. I'm thankful for um the cross, and I'm thankful for the resurrection. Uh, and I'm thankful that we have hope that regardless of our circumstance, regardless of the trials and tribulations that surround us in our daily life, being part of a broken world, our hope is in you. And that hope uh does not disappoint us, your word says, and that hope will sustain us, and that hope will fill us with joy, even in those times where uh it's hard to come by. Thank you for loving us despite us. Thank you for each person that is making an effort here to know you more, to know each other more, um, and to and to run with brothers towards the cross. We love you. Be with each and every one that's here um over the weekend and for the following week. In your name we pray.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:21

Amen. Thanks for joining and listening. We hope that you were truly blessed. Now you can join the live call every Friday morning at 7 a.m. Central Standard Time, and please bring a friend. And to learn more about the MLC, visit our website at the mlc.life. That's the mlc.lif e. Have a great day.