LOST and FOUND
So, for the last few years I’ve been following the TV show LOST. I’m not a pastor who uses his favorite shows as the foundations for sermons—I think the Bible is the best place to start there—but I don’t mind posting a few thoughts about it in a personal blog. (WARNING: If you have not seen the finale and intend to watch it, the following does contain SPOILERS)
1. Mystery: This show has taken viewers through a massive mystery. What is the smoke monster? What is under the hatch? What brought everyone to the island? But if you’ve watched it you realize the answers to all of those mysteries (and more) was not a “what” but a “who”.
One of the tensions created by this show was that though the sci-fi and mythological mysteries didn’t all get answered, the character arcs did find conclusion. People who wanted satisfaction regarding all the ‘why’ questions didn’t get them (See this TED talk to better understand original LOST creator J.J. Abrams’ take on the importance of cultivating and keeping mystery in a story).
At the end of the day, I’m reminded that in real life we don’t always get the answers we seek about what is happening or why it happens; our real job is to focus on the, ‘who’. Who is it we need to worship? Who is in control? Who is it that we get to live our lives with? Who do we need to encourage and support? That leads me to my second thought.
2. Community: In the end, this show was really about the important connections that are made between people.
“Live together or die alone” was a common refrain for the survivors of flight 815. When they didn’t know what was going on they knew they had to stick together or they were done for. Though a theme that emerged is that every one of the individuals on this show was a deeply flawed and broken human, each of them could be accepted as part of the family, with a clean start, if they chose to join the community.
The touch and connection that came through community was a part of the path of redemption for these messed up characters. And this was the core of the deep spirituality found in LOST.
3. Death: Speaking of spirituality, although it was an extremely spiritual show, LOST only borrowed from Christian spirituality. Ultimately there were great theological flaws because it liberally picked from false spiritualities as well.
However, LOST was a great window into how our pluralistic culture may feel about certain spiritual issues, especially about death and what happens after death. As Jack’s dad told him in The End, “Everyone dies sometime, kiddo”; but usually our culture does not encourage people to look hard at what they believe happens after they die. As it wrapped up, one of the big themes of this show seemed to be that while we won’t get answers about why and how things like death happen, they are going to happen, and we’d better learn to prepare for the inevitable.
While LOST suggests that we prepare for the end through community, and reconciliation, and forgiveness, and redemption, and sacrifice, and selflessness, and right choices (all ideas that can be found in Christianity), it stops short of revealing relationship with a personal God as the doorway to these things. The message of the gospel is that humans are not good enough to earn redemption on our own but that we need a Savior, an unflawed Shepherd who will sacrifice Himself to purchase forgiveness and redemption for us.
That redeemer was Jesus Christ. And for a culture not used to really thinking much about what happens after they die, the finale of this show might have opened a window in our culutre for Christians to share the truth with others.
4. Good TV: Finally, we need more TV that is well written. Though I’ve admitted that I didn’t always agree with the worldview of LOST, it was written well and well produced. It was intelligent TV that made you think even if you didn’t like the answers, or non-answers, it provided. It inspired spirited conversation and encouraged communal experiences with groups of people getting together to watch, and then dissect, every show.
In fact, I won’t miss LOST as much as I will miss the small group of friends who gathered at our house every week to watch the show, eat popcorn, and share life together.
Because by next January, when we would normally be gathering on a Tuesday night to start a new season, someone else will be living in our house that just sold, and many in our group will be scattered all over the country due to new jobs and ministry assignments.
It’s even possible that this unique group of valued friends may never all get together in the same way again: Maybe, not even until we die. But because we all know Jesus, the day will come when we can sit in the same room and enjoy our community once more…
…and maybe then we’ll even understand why Walt was so special!!!