Family Movie Devotionals: Monsters, Inc.

Read:
At the beginning of Monsters, Inc., the monsters scare kids to power their city. But as Mike and Sully spend time with Boo, they find out that laughter is more powerful than screams. By the end of the movie, Monsters Inc. decides to stop scaring and start telling jokes, and they have more power for their city than ever before. What Mike and Sully discover is also true in God’s Kingdom: joy is powerful than fear.

We all get scared sometimes, and we are all afraid of different things. Maybe you’re afraid of things like spiders or loud noises. Maybe you’re afraid of not making friends at school or not knowing what’s going to happen in the future. It’s okay to be scared sometimes, but God loves us and wants to help us when we’re scared. Jesus is more powerful than anything we’re afraid of, and He promises to be with us all the time.

The Bible says, “God has not given us a Spirit of fear, but one of power, love, and self-control.” (2 Tim. 1:7). That means that because we have God’s Spirit in us, He helps us to be brave and kind when we are afraid. He helps us love people who seem scary, but are just different than us. He helps us make hard decisions when we are afraid we might make the wrong choice. God’s perfect love takes our fears away (1 John 4:18).

When Mike and Sully first meet Boo, they are very afraid of her. But Boo shows them that she is sweet and funny and that she loves them. As they laugh with her and learn to love her, all their fears go away. No matter what we’re afraid of, God’s love and the joy He brings us will always be more powerful than fear.

Discuss:

• What are some things you’re afraid of?
• How can God help you when you’re scared of those things?
• What are some things that make you laugh?
• Take some time to pray to God to thank him for all the things that make you laugh.

These devotionals are resources you can use to teach your kids about Jesus! Movies have a unique ability to connect to and influence children, and we want to use this to advance God's Kingdom. These are designed for you to read with your children after you watch the movie. We pray these will be used to teach children in fun ways that they can easily understand. We hand these out at our monthly Community Movie Nights, where we show a free family-friendly movie (see our events page for upcoming dates).