End of the Spear

Last night, my wife and I watched the relatively new movie End of the Spear for the first time. Although I was a little disappointed with the lack of clarity in the movie concerning the reason why these missionaries wanted to reach the Auca (Woadani) tribe in Ecuador (they simply kept repeating that they had to reach them but never discussed why they had to reach them--i.e., their burden to reach an unreached people with the good news of Jesus Christ [actually, I don't recall the name Jesus Christ even being mentioned]), on the whole I thought it was a fantastic film. Telling the story about Nate Saint, Jim Elliot, Ed McCully, Pete Fleming, and Roger Youderian from the perspective of Nate's son Steve was particularly gripping. The movie succeeds in demonstrating the sacrifices made by the five men and their families in order to reach the Woadani for Christ. I heartily recommend that you see it, although I don't think I'd let my kids watch it for quite some time. The opening scenes, in particular, are quite intense for younger eyes. Jim Elliot's oft-repeated phrase kept coming back to me as I watched: "He is no fool who loses what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose." May the Lord raise up men and women like the Saints, Elliots, McCullys, Flemings, and Youderians today!