Lessons from an Ogre

   For those of you who don’t know, I like to find quotes with good meanings in movies. One movie quote that I really relate to, and I’m sure you can as well, is from Shrek. Shrek and Donkey are sitting under the stars and Shrek says: “I’m not the one with the problem, okay? It’s the world that seems to have a problem with me. People take one look at me and go, ‘Aah! Help! Run! A big, stupid, ugly ogre.’ They judge me before they even know me. That’s why I’m better off alone.”

   It sounds bad but I used to feel like Shrek a lot, and I still do at times. People look at me and think that they know me right away. Well, they do not. I have asked people what their first impression of me was and then I asked them what they think of me now. Usually their answers are different. It’s like if people would just stop to get to know other people, rather than just judging them, the world would be better off. It was like the other day someone told me a joke and I didn’t laugh. The person then said that I never laugh. Uh hello, I do laugh. Everyone laughs at one point or another in their life. I just don’t have the same sense of humor she does. It’s situations like these that I need to get away from people because I get really down.

   Though I get away from people, mostly to think and also because I’m an introvert, I realize that I need to go back to them. God made us to be in community. If He didn’t, why wouldn’t we all have our own planets? Anyhow while people may annoy us, judge us, and make us angry; it is important to remember that people also love us, want to help us, and can be kind to us. It may seem easier to run from our problems, but then we would end up like Shrek. If Shrek didn’t have a loyal friend like Donkey he would never have gone to stop the wedding between Fiona and Lord Farquaad. It’s like I always say everything happens for a reason. God brings people and situations in our lives so we learn things.

   So, back to the judgment thing. Don’t you think it’s time we start getting to know people before we make generalizations about them? If we did then our walk as well as our light would be a whole lot better off. So the next time you look at a person don’t go off your first impression. You may just find a good friend that you wouldn’t have normally found. And the next time you feel like Shrek remember that people out there do care about you. Also remember that the only opinion you should care about is God's. True, words do hurt. But, God loves you and thinks you are special no matter what other people think about you.

   Romans 2:1-3, Psalms 62:8