300

Last night I went to see the movie 300. I had been waiting to see this movie for months. First of all, it was based off of graphic novel (i.e. a longer version of a comic book) written by Frank Miller. I love his style and the movie looked like it was going to be true to the original vision. Plus, I love visual eye candy. Second, it was based off of one of my favorite historical events, the Battle of Thermopylae.

I first heard this story when I was a camp counselor five years ago. I was in charge of the high school program and our program ran Friday till Friday with only a 36 hour break (or less in my case). Basically, it was easy to burn out. The four of us that were running the program were tired. It was near the end of the summer. It had been a hard week and the campers had just not been getting it. The program director saw this and took us aside and started going through this story. I found out that 300 Spartans had stood up to an army of hundreds of thousands and had held their own. And though they had lost the battle and their lives, it had made all the difference. And we were told to stand firm against these unsurmountable odds and to keep fighting the good fight. And we did. We finished the summer strong and gave it all we got.

I then learned about it in detail when I took my Greek History class for my Classics major. I learned about the Spartans' fighting style. How their shield was not used to protect them but the person standing next to them. They had the life of the person next to them in their hands. The best compliment a Spartan soldier could be given was that their shield did not falter in battle. They kept their neighbor, their comrade, their friend, safe in battle.

There has always been something about this story for me. Maybe it was that the Spartans stood up and fought and never gave up, even though it was clear that they were going to lose. Maybe it was that Leonidas, the King of Sparta, had been told by the Oracle of Delphi that he would have to choose: his life or the life of his people, and he chose to die so that the Spartans and Greeks could win the war. Maybe it's when I first heard this story and I could see myself as a Spartan as well, but on a different battlefield where the enemy wasn't an army of Persians but instead the majority of the world that tell us that we don't need a God or a Savior. Maybe it's because I'm realizing that the church is fighting an uphill battle against the culture that does not line up with our values as Christians. But, I know that it's not my time or actions that will ultimately win the war. Instead, it's the one I follow. The one who by his sacrifice guarantees our victory. It is my king, Jesus, who made the ultimate sacrifice in order that the war may be won.