I was born into the golden age of the Disney musical, and I will always have a soft spot in my heart for a princess with a dream in her heart and a showtune up her sleeve. I went to see Moana recently to soak in some of that good old Disney nostalgia.

I walked away, however, with something much more than that.

At its heart, Moana is a call story, like those we find in our Bible—like Samuel’s, Mary’s, or Paul’s. It is the story of a girl who follows her call, and through that journey, discovers who she is—and who her people are. In a way, that’s our story as Christians, too.

 

We begin at the water.

Early in the movie, Moana sings what is usually the “I want” song in a Disney musical—Ariel wants to be human, Belle wants adventure, Anna wants love. But for Moana, it’s less about what she wants and more about what she feels called to—which often conflicts with what would be easiest. Her parents want her to stay safely inland and train to be the next chief, but she is captivated by the endless ocean. Torn, Moana sings

I wish I could be the perfect daughter
But I come back to the water
No matter how hard I try

We also begin our journeys at the water—not the waves of the ocean, but the water of baptism. God calls us to the water—to baptism—often long before we are even conscious of it. At the water we receive our commission as Christians—to take the grace of baptism out into the world. Throughout our lives, we are called back to the water, to be reminded of that grace, and that call to share it.

 

We respond to the call.

In the waters of baptism, we are called to be agents of God’s grace. It may take years, though, before we discover what that will specifically look like in our lives—what it is we’re called to do in Jesus’ name.

Moana struggles with her call until a crisis appears—the goddess Te Fiti’s heart has been stolen, and until it is returned, the islands are slowly dying. She is called to restore the heart. Once she discovers what it is she is called to do—what specific task—she follows her call eagerly. She isn’t necessarily perfect at it—if it weren’t for the ocean’s help, her limited sailing skills wouldn’t have gotten her very far. But she is willing to go, and that is all that is needed.

We too don’t need to be perfectly equipped before we respond to God’s call—we just need to be willing to go. God’s grace will help us get there.

 

We discover who we are.

The most important piece of Moana’s journey, it turns out, is not that she solves the crisis by getting rid of the villain—that storyline almost takes a backseat. The most important part of her journey is that she finds out who she is—what her identity is.

At a moment of despair, when Moana doesn’t know what to do next, her grandmother’s spirit asks her what seems at first like an odd question: Moana, do you know who you are?

Moana isn’t just called to do; she’s called to be. To be fully herself, someone with particular gifts and skills and experiences. “I am everything I’ve learned and more,” she sings

And the call isn’t out there at all
it’s inside me
it’s like the tide
always falling and rising

 I will carry you here in my heart
you remind me
that come what may
I know the way.

 I am Moana!

 This is where I started crying in the movie theater (fair warning: I cry at movies a lot). This is the deepest part of our baptismal call—not just to go and do, although our service is valuable; but to recognize who we are as God’s people, to claim our identity as God’s children. To look at ourselves with all our individual personalities and preferences and gifts—and not-gifts too—and say that we are first and foremost children of God. One way we know that we are doing what we are truly called to do is the feeling that, while we do it, we live and move and have our being in God. That is our first identity: God’s good creations, called into being for God’s own delight.

 

We invite others to join us.

The real victory of Moana is not the moment she confronts the villain (although that is a pretty powerful moment); the real victory is when she returns home to share with her people what she’s learned, and leads them to reclaim their own identity as voyagers. Moana’s people set sail together to go explore the world.

As Christians, our individual journeys and calls are important, but we are not designed to be Lone Rangers. We’re called to journey together, and to invite others to go into the world with us, to discover who they are and who they’re called to be. We’re called to sail together on the waters of God’s grace.

Christians are people of grace, people of the water. We are voyagers too. So this week, I hope you’ll spend some time thinking about these questions: What is God calling you to do? Who is God calling you to be? And who is God calling you to invite along for the journey?