The other night while channel surfing, I had to stop when I saw one of my all-time favorite movies, “Mr. Holland’s Opus”. I have seen is several times and it still hits me as hard as it did the first time. It is powerful, moving and full of truth.

In case you have never seen it, Richard Driefus plays a young musician/composer  who takes a job as a high school music teacher out of necessity. Before he knows it, 30 years have gone by and he is still teaching. All those years, the symphony he was writing never gets completed. He never has the time. The end of the movie finds Mr. Holland being let go due to cuts in the arts program of the school system. On his final day at the school, he is surprised by an auditorium full of past and present students that were somehow touched by his life.

The movie ends with a group of the students performing his symphony as he directs it for the first time. It is quite moving. The scene that stood out to me most this time around was when he first walked into the filled auditorium and saw all of the faces of lives he had impacted. I remarked to my wife that “I wonder if that is what heaven will be like one day”. I pondered that thought the rest of the evening.

I couldn’t help but think that God has called each one of us to make that kind of impact for his kingdom. He is asking each of us to fill an auditorium with faces that came to know him through our journey, our servanthood, our lives and our mission. This is not for our glory, but so that the message of Gods grace, mercy and salvation would be taken to a dying world. The final symphony will be one of praise and honor to the one that is deserving of so much more.

The tag line to the movie is a quote from the late John Lennon. “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”. Lord, don’t let the opportunity to advance your kingdom be missed while we are busy making other plans.

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