The Interest

There aren't many good television shows- this one was a good one. This is from June 30, 2013. Several days ago, in one of the infrequent times when I check my voice mail, I found a message from our WCS middle school principal,  Casey Farris, asking me if I'd seen the new CBS show, Under The Dome. He said, and I quote, "That's your kind of show there, brother." WOW- I feel typecast by my administrator. But, he's right. It's exactly the type of television show I like- realistic with some science fiction and characters you can't quite decide on mixed in. Casey knew I was really caught up in NBC's The Event, which ended after one season and Revolution, which also is on NBC and which will begin its second year in the fall. I'll get to see one more episode of Under The Dome before my mission begins to Vietnam one week from today. It's based on a Stephen King novel where a small town on the east coast is suddenly and mysteriously cut off the world by an invisible force field. It promises to be an updated version of Lord Of The Flies with adults.

I do have a new favorite show that has some characteristics of the others. I've been watching it for about a year. My first viewing was last July on the flight from here to Moscow to Singapore to Saigon. They have screens where you can watch episodes of American shows and I found myself watching Person Of Interest. Do you know how I found out about the show? It was suggested to me by Casey's wife, Tammy, the head of our WCS math department. (You see a common thread here?) If you are a stranger to the drama, it's about a machine that can predict crimes based on the fact that we are recorded constantly by various means of surveillance. There are four main characters but the two who come into play most are Harold Finch, a reclusive billionaire who invented the machine after September 11, and John Reese, a former Special Forces/CIA operative who tries to prevent the next crime from occurring. Reese, played by Jim Caviezel who portrayed Jesus in The Passion Of the Christ, is almost super heroish in his fighting abilities. When the machine spits out the social security number of the person who the machine randomly spits out, Finch and Reese don't know if the heretofore stranger will be the victim or the perpetrator. I can't say I'm addicted to it yet but I will admit to having a very high level of, you guessed it, interest.

You know, with all this NSA stuff going on and the federal government increasingly spying on the citizens, the story lines in Person Of Interest seem plausible. (Just a side-note here but next Monday, I'll be in the Moscow airport where  accused NSA leaker Edward Snowden is allegedly laying low!) These headlines keep the news sites buzzing but being watched isn't new! From the beginning, we are told that our Father in Heaven, who never sleeps, keeps a watchful eye on His children. I like these two passages from the Psalms:
"The Lord will keep you from all harm--he will watch over your life; the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." 
Psalm 121:7, 8 
"I lay down and slept,  yet I woke up in safety, for the Lord was watching over me."
Psalm 3:5
in the Gospels, Jesus tells us that God knows how many hairs are on our heads and that the Father knows what we need before we ask Him! I could go on and on but you get the drift. Whether or not I'm under electronic surveillance or not in the physical realm absolutely will have no bearing in eternity. But the thought that I am a person of interest to the One who created the universe cannot be overstated. My steps are numbered and even when I fall on that path that His word is lighting for me, He knows. And He cares. And I am safe. There's no randomness in that protection.

Applicable quote of the day:
 "In the end, we're all alone and no one is coming to save you."
John Reese (Person Of Interest Episode : Mission Creep)

God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
www.hawleybooks.com
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com