So I have a small confession to make, which seems appropriate for 12:15 am. Some of you may already know this about me, but I have a weakness for medium quality science fiction shows. I also enjoy fantasy stuff, like Lord of the Rings (the highest quality in the genre). Lately I've been watching the Legend of the Seeker. The premise and plot can be cheesy at times, but there are several underlying themes, some of which are almost biblical. This series is based on a book by Terry Goodkind (which I have not read, so if any purists are reading this cut me a break).

The medieval settings in which these worlds take place are typical: pastural landscapes, helpless village-folk, endless bad guys in scary uniforms (often faceless), and a few heroes who are always immensely outnumbered and unrealistically attractive. Ok, hobbits are not exactly the most attractive heroes, but stick with me. Think of Orlando Bloom and Cate Blanchett.

But one thing I really enjoy about these shows is the way in which they extrapolate intangible human problems and make them palpable. Frodo's ring overpowers him and corrupts him absolutely, in the same way that sin slowly leads to death (James 1:15). In the Seeker, the hero Richard Cypher must conquer rage, lust, and greed on a daily basis or his life and the very fate of his world are at stake! In reality these evils, these sins do have incredibly serious consequences but we often gloss over them in our skin-deep lives. Granted, a whole village of innocent people may not die because of our sin, but we do have to take it much more seriously than we usually do. Ignoring or glossing over the way sin erodes our conscience, distances us from our Creator, and harms our earthly relationships is about as useless as a rabbit thinking that sitting still is an effective ruse against my Cavalier.

Ok I'll stop pontificating with poor metaphors. More anniversary trip pictures on the way!