David’s Rocks

FOUND:

David, God’s Champion (VHS)

Another Wiser Family video to add to my thrift store finds collection. This time the Wiser puppets delight us with the story of David.  We hear stories of how he was able to take on Lions and Giants, despite being a small guy. So many Bible stories read like old Roman mythologies.

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Wiser family wants us all to know that God still talks to you today, every day! If you don’t hear God (and I hope they don’t mean audible voices), then you aren’t listening. This means kids will either believe they hear something, or they will make themselves hear something. Otherwise, they aren’t real Christians. That can lead to some really dangerous, or at the very least, confusing thinking.

God Will Talk to You

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The David & Goliath story is fun. I found it funny that the Wiser family chose to tell the story from the point of view of David’s sling rocks. Haha, really?  They teach that no matter how small and seemingly pointless you are, you should let God use you. Well, that’s certainly a unique interpretation.

But when God doles out purpose filled lives,  you can’t all be hard blunt objects to bash a man’s brains in. ewwww.

God wants to Use You too!

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The David and Jonathan story is one of the great love stories in the Bible. Naomi and Ruth would be the other one. Mary and Joseph to some extent, but not nearly as romantic. David and Jonathan obviously loved each other, and the Wiser video helps illuminate that.

“Davathan”

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To end their video, the Wiser Family Puppet Band gives us a lively rap. I can’t get enough of Christian rap. Whether it’s homophobic DC Talk,  side hugs, or born-again puppets, I’m all about it.

Set Us Free

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Am I feeling some Sugarhill Gang influence in there?… Hotel! Motel! Holiday Inn!

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A Little Wiser Family Trivia

The Wiser Family videos were written and directed by Peter Enns. Not the Peter Enns, who was recently suspended from Westminster, after causing some controversy.

But the Canadian Peter Enns.

He’s a Poet, and a media producer among other things. He even wrote President G.W. Bush to tell him about a dream he once had…

THE MAJESTIC EAGLE! CD WAS BIRTHED BY A DREAM AND A LETTER FROM PRESIDENT G.W. BUSH.

Writer/Producer Peter Enns says, “On June 18, 2002, I had a dream. In the dream, President G.W. Bush visited Tulsa, Oklahoma. Going down the receiving line, when I met the President, he said, “Peter, I like what you write”. In my dream, at the President’s invitation, I rode with him in his motorcade.
Sitting in the back of that big black limousine, I wanted to share a Good Word For America! with the President. I was embarrassed, when I forgot the lines, so I offered to send him some of the prints from my Good Word For America!  writings. The next day, as I was thinking about this most unusual dream, I decided to write a letter to the President. In the letter, I shared my dream and enclosed the prints I had promised to send to him.

Two months later, August 24, 2002 on a Saturday morning, I sensed an urgency to produce a Patriotic CD featuring my Good Word For America! That morning I wrote the title cut, The Majestic Eagle! Sunday afternoon, August 25, I was reminded of my earlier dream of the President. I prayed, “Lord if I have a letter and a photo from President George W. Bush & The First Lady in the mail tomorrow, I will produce the Majestic Eagle! CD.”

When I checked the mail on Monday, my heart skipped a beat!  I saw a large envelope from the White House, post marked Crawford Texas.  As I opened it, there was a letter from President Bush, dated August 16, 2002, with an autographed photo of the President and First Lady Laura Bush.

At this point, I felt I had no alternative. With studio musicians and back up vocalists I recorded my Majestic Eagle! CD, With a Good Word For America! The Majestic Eagle! CD is now available through radio and television interviews, bookstores, online and by calling a toll free number.

 

Now I’m not saying that this guy needs a reality check… but, okay maybe I am.  If a signed form letter and a picture from the White house is a message from the ultimate power of the Universe, well, color me surprised. Just my opinion of course. Some people hear God and see God every day, and think God plans for them to defeat Giants.

The other big player in the Wiser Family Videos is the animator. The animation sequences were done by Lock Wolverton. He is/was? an animator for Disney, and was even part of the Disney Institute Animation Events that ran from 1998-2003.  The brochure from the 1998 event said of Lock:

Lock is a graduate of Ringling school of art and design in Sarasota, FL and Famous Artists Schools. His experience as an independent animator spans more than eighteen years. Lock taught animation at the college level as an adjunct professor at Oral Roberts University, Tulsa OK. Lock has received numerous awards for animated productions, including eight regional Addy’s, three Telly Awards, the Golden Ring and the Silver Spur to name a few.

http://i-animate.org/event/1998/pdf/1998%20Information%20Packet.pdf

I’m actually a little surprised that the animation was done by somebody who worked for Disney. The animation isn’t horrible, but not particularly good either. Maybe the equipment he was working with wasn’t very sophisticated, or more likely, he wasn’t being paid much.

What was the Disney Institute Event about?  Here’s a video if you’re interested (sorry about the bad VHS quality):

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“David, God’s Champion” was your typical Wiser Family Video. Now go out there and fight lions, fight giants, love your brother, and follow your dreams!

You can send the President your dreams at:

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20501