Act Of Valor (movie review)

February 13, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

I have always had great respect and appreciation for the soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines that keep us safe. After seeing Act Of Valor, that level of appreciation has gone up significantly!

This is a realistic movie. It’s not a Hollywood-stylized action film. It portrays that way our teams operate in the field to keep our country and her citizens safe. And it shows the real men and women, and the real emotions they have to deal with as they do a very dangerous job.

This movie is rated R for very realistic combat scenes, and some language. But for your teenagers that think they know what “real combat” is because of the video games they play, take them to see this movie and use it as a discussion of what’s really real.

Go see this film. And then thank an active duty service personnel or a veteran for their incredibly selfless service to our country.

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October Baby (movie review)

February 8, 2012 — Craig T. Owens

Betsy and I were privileged to see an advanced screening of October Baby last night, and I’m still trying to process all of my thoughts.

It was emotionally moving, but not sappy nor sentimental.

It was thought-provoking, but not philosophically deep.

It was laugh-provoking, but not a comedy.

It addressed a woman’s struggle, but it’s not a chick flick.

It addressed parenting, but it’s not a dry documentary.

It is just a GOOD movie.

The script was good, the acting was good, the cinematography was good, even the soundtrack was good. The message that all life is precious comes through clearly, but not in an in-your-face, shove-it-down-your-throat way.

The movie is rated PG-13 because of the subject matter (a girl on a quest to find her birth mother, after discovering that she’s the survivor of a failed abortion attempt). But because of the purity of the movie (not a single swear word, zero sexuality), I would recommend families see this together.

This is a story that needed to be told, and the Erwin brothers did a phenomenal job telling that story.

Send a message to Hollywood, go see October Baby on opening weekend, March 23-25.

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Calendar Update

November 11, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Great things happening around Cedar Springs again this weekend:

Veterans Day Celebration → A huge Chinook helicopter will be landing on Skinner Field at 11am, a memorial service at Veterans Memorial Park at 1pm, and a special American Legion flag raising ceremony at Metron at 3pm. Come honor our veterans.

Overflowing With Thanks → We’re kicking off a brand new series at Calvary Assembly of God, as we lead up to Thanksgiving Day. There is such a power when we live our lives focused on all of the blessings we have received. When thanksgiving is a lifestyle — not just a day — we’re living the way God intends. Join us at 10:30am on Sunday morning.

Courageous → The Cedar Springs Ministerial Association has partnered with the Kent Theatre to offer a special showing of Courageous on Monday, November 14, at 7pm. If you cannot make this one, this incredible movie will be shown throughout the weekend (check the website or Facebook page for exact times). Tickets are just $3.

I hope you have a great weekend relaxing and recharging for another productive week!

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Community Involvement

October 21, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Have I mentioned lately that I ♥ Cedar Springs? I do love my city! So I’m thrilled whenever I can be involved in things happening around our town. I hope you can join me in some of these great events.

Night Of Worship / CD Release Party—I’m so happy to introduce Dilip to our community! This anointed musician is truly gifted. We get to share his amazing music with our community on Friday, October 28, in a FREE concert at Calvary Assembly of God.

Light The Night / Spooktacular—This is the fifth year that the businesses on Main Street have provided a great night for families on Halloween. This will be the second year that Calvary has joined in to help light the night. If you would like to help us be salt and light on October 31, we are still in need of smiling volunteers in our carnival, those who will cover us in prayer, and those who can donate some candy for us to pass out to the kids.

Courageous—I am so thankful to Dan at the Kent Theatre who is going to hold Courageous over for an extra day! On Monday, November 7, there will be a special showing of the amazing movie Courageous for our area churches. And tickets are only $3 each!

Veteran’s Day Ceremony—Thanks to the tireless efforts of my neighbor Jack Price, we have a huge twin-rotor Chinook helicopter flying into town at 11am on November 11. Then we will have a Veteran’s Day memorial in our memorial park at 1pm. I am honored to have been asked to close this ceremony in prayer.

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Do You Have Weekend Plans?

October 7, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Do you have plans for this weekend? If you’re around Cedar Springs this weekend, let me suggest a few great things you might be able to do:

1.  Take a bag (or two) of groceries to North Kent Community Services. This is the last week of the county-wide food drive. Your food donation will help two food pantries right here in Cedar Springs.

2.  Go see Courageous. The movie had a great opening weekend because it is a great movie!

3.  Come to Calvary Assembly of God on Sunday morning. We’re starting a new series called Total Freedom, exploring the incredible freedom that comes through forgiveness. I cannot wait to experience this freedom with you on Sunday.

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It’s Time To Be Courageous

September 30, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Courageous opens today. I cannot urge you strongly enough to go see this film this weekend.

Leaders in every sphere — political, medical, educational — have acknowledged that the breakdown of the family is one of the leading factors in the breakdowns in government, physical and emotional health, and in our schools. This movie deals with our family situations head-on. More to the point, this movie calls on men to make a bold, courageous stand for their families.

I had a chance to view this movie several months ago, and I still can’t wait to go see it again. You will be challenged and energized by this film. Find showing times near you by clicking here.

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Courageous Countdown

September 16, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

I cannot wait for Courageous to open… just two weeks from today! I had the opportunity to see an advanced screening of this movie, and it is phenomenal. Please go see it on the opening weekend (September 30), as that is the weekend that Hollywood and the media pay attention to.

And just to get you ready, check out the opening scene from this movie —

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Calling Out Manhood

August 1, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Last week I shared about the outstanding movie Courageous which opens on September 30. This movie will be enjoyed by everyone in the family, but Dads especially are going to be challenged to take their fatherhood to a whole new level.

I recently read Secure Daughters, Confident Sons by Glenn Stanton, and these two quotes from that book tie-in so well to the message of Courageous—

“When a relationship between a boy and his father is loving and warm, as opposed to critical and stoic, those boys are indeed more likely to develop healthily in more masculine ways.”

“The girl who doesn’t have the power and beauty of her femininity affirmed by the first and most important man in her life [her Dad] will grow into a woman driven to flaunt it in the face of every young and older man, constantly making the very public and insecure statement, ‘I desperately need you to notice me as a woman!’”

Here’s a powerful 1-minute clip from Courageous…

Make your plans NOW to see Courageous when it opens on September 30.

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Plugged-In Parenting (book review)

July 27, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

Media saturates our lives. But it’s even more of a factor for the lives of our children. For years I’ve trusted the insights and movie/TV reviews from Focus On The Family’s Bob Waliszewski. Now in Plugged-In Parenting we get to go behind the reviews to learn the whys of the reviews.

In today’s world, we look at our presidents, our prime ministers, our princes and our potentates and we describe them as our leaders, but they’re not. They’re merely our rulers. The leaders are the people who change the minds and stimulate the imaginations of the public, whether children or adults. That means the movie makers, the people who make TV shows, the entertainment people in the business. —Douglas Gresham

Bob lays out some practical, biblically-sound principles that will help parents develop a framework for making sound decisions about media consumption. His approach is not a top-down, because-I-said-so approach, but one that involves even the kids in understanding why these decisions need to be made.

One of the more thought-provoking chapters is about developing a family constitution which gives the guidelines for what types of media are acceptable or unacceptable for your family.

I would recommend this book for every household who wants to ensure that only the highest quality media is being viewed in their homes. In addition, I appreciate the Plugged-In reviews both on their website and on the handy iPhone app.

I am a Tyndale book reviewer.

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“The Best Movie Of The Year”

July 27, 2011 — Craig T. Owens

For a movie that won’t even open until September 30 to already be labeled “Best movie of the year,” you might think is merely marketing hype.

When you hear that the one who called it “Best movie of the year” is Pastor Rick Warren, you might think it’s a churchy movie.

But you’d be wrong.

I had a chance to see Courageous and I can tell you that this will be the best movie of 2011, and that it is definitely NOT a churchy movie.

Set against the backdrop of a city battling gang-related issues, four sheriff’s deputies struggle with being good dads and good law enforcement officers. In the process they learn what it takes to excel at both: it takes courage.

Courageous opens on September 30.

DO NOT MISS THE OPENING WEEKEND!
This is a movie that will challenge your whole family, but will be especially impacting for dads.

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