This weekend, international filmmaker Pierre Morel is poised to perhaps top the Superbowl-weekend boxoffice with Taken, the action packed thriller set in the dark underbelly of Paris, the most romantic city in the world. Taken tells the story of Bryan (Liam Neeson) a former U.S. government emissary and his plight to rescue his daughter, Kim, from the hands of some ruthless human traffickers who have set up shop in the underworld of Paris. It is a classic action flick to its core with plenty of gunfire and explosions to grip and entertain its male audience, but also has the soft touch of a father/daughter relationship that will interest and intrigue the traditionally female audience headed to the theater this Superbowl weekend.

As the movie opens we see an opening montage of Kim in her younger years that provides an early inside look of sorts into Bryan's mind and personality. Once a U.S. government spy, he has been left by his previous career with little more than mental anguish and a family life in shambles. Determined not to allow his life to remain in ruins he has moved closer to his ex-wife and her new husband in order to establish a deeper relationship with the one person in his life who matters the most, his daughter Kim. It is quickly apparent that reasserting himself into Kim's life is not an easy task. Despite his best efforts to spend time with Kim over lunch, at his place, even at her birthday party, he is frequently put on the backburner for her new family life and the extravagant gifts of her stepfather.

As I sat and watched a poor desperate father all but beg for a relationship he never had with a daughter that mattered the most to him, I couldn't help but think of our Heavenly Father. How many times does He sit in the distance, quietly asking us to spend time with Him, just for us to put Him on the backburner for the wonders and extravagant gifts of the world?

As Kim gets ready to take a trip to Europe, financed and encouraged by her mother and stepfather, Bryan knows that his daughter is not making the smartest move. He may not know exactly what will happen to her in Paris, but he is well aware it is not the best choice. In fact, he knows what the best choice is. He knows his daughter wants to be a singer, and after his dramatic and coincidental rescue of a pop diva (a la Britney Spears), he has the chance to offer Kim the opportunity of a lifetime to become a singer; but she doesn't want it. For Kim, a trip to Europe with her friends is what she wants, and even though Bryan knows it's not the best for her, he lets her have it.

In the same way, God sometimes lets us have our own way. When the world around us encourages us to go our own way in spite of what God has led us to do, often He lets us do it... even though He always knows what is best for us. When we want to do the things we want to do and leave Him out of it, He is well aware of the snares that will entangle us along the way. As Hebrews 4:13 says, "Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." He lets us make the choice to do things He knows will end badly. When Bryan gets the call from Kim that she is watching the kidnapping of her friend by violent men and he knows that she will soon be taken as well, I wonder if that is the same way Christ feels when He watches us get carried away by sin. He watches and listens in full terror as the enemy takes us away. Just as with Bryan, His heart, the heart of a Father, is ripped out.

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