Hey folks! You’re welcome to the review of Heart Pain, YouTube-released on May 2, 2021 from the stables of the Mount Zion Film Productions. It was written and produced by Evangelist Mike Bamiloye. It tells the story of Nelson, a minister of God who is away from his home performing ministerial exploits, while he spares little or no thought for the welfare of his family.
Straight off the bat, I’ll say that my catchphrase from this movie is The enemies you are fighting on the ministration field have gone home ahead of you (as well as The demons I’ve been casting out on the field have gone home to attack my family). Heart Pain is a filmic attempt to guide children of God everywhere who are being used by Him, in the paths of wisdom for carrying out the work.
The film brilliantly portrays the dynamics of contrast in Nelson’s life. Ably played by Temidayo Ayodele, Nelson enjoys honour unlike anything I’ve seen portrayed in any Christian film; there is so much regard afforded him: so many accolades are lavished on him, so much bowing and curtsying, and gratitude are expressed for the work of God in his hands. All these go to corroborate what Apostle Paul said about the office of a bishop being an honourable position. Unfortunately, those closest to him cannot regard him that highly because he is hardly ever around and so, we witness a plethora of issues on the homefront for him.
The display of his human and mechanical entourage is a stark contrast to the loneliness he’s put his wife into. The exquisite cuisine presented to him contradicts the dire financial need his wife and children seem to be in. The editing in those scenes cut between these two conditions to aid this portrayal.
One thing that stuck with me here is that when people we minister to are blessed, we shouldn’t take the glory and let it get to our heads. After all, we’re just like the colt that Jesus rode on into Jerusalem: were the people praising Jesus or the colt? How mistaken we would be to think that it’s about us!
In Nelson’s case, we see that he had given in to some level of covetousness. He “humbly” asks the room attendant: “How do I surmount all these mountains of food before me?” and then, still requests for fruit salad as dessert. Why, you may ask: because he was watching his weight! (Yeah, right! In my mind, I was like O jebi.) He thought himself to be the psalmist: “Thou preparest a table before me”, when he should have commanded the mountain to be moved.
I also realised that perhaps, the word ‘ministry’ needs to be understood as serving other people in the way that God has planned for our lives. Since that’s the case, our families, I believe, ought to be the first partakers of that blessing. After watching Heart Pain, I thought to myself that this understanding would do the family unit a world of good. I think it would give children the opportunity to know the God of their parents, to see Jesus in action firsthand through their parents, which would ensure that godly marriages actually produce godly children. It therefore places the onus on parents to model Christ correctly to their kids. In all, ministers are urged to give quality time to their families; indeed, ministry comes first. And that ministry is your family.
Something else that comes to my mind is what the Bible says about Jesus and Samuel: that they grew in wisdom and in stature, and in favour before God and man. I believe they grew in favour because they had good behaviours and a good number of people liked them. For Nelson, though he was ministering on the field, his character was quite questionable. He showed himself as a man lacked integrity, because, when he said he would call his wife back, he didn’t, which is why I believe when he tried to cast out ”Ishabakha” (lol, that name though), it had no respect for his word because Nelson himself had no regard for his own word. Christianity isn’t merely about displaying spirituality but living out contentment with godliness which is great gain.
In terms of cinematography, it is worthy to note the Dutch angle shot which duly portrays Mrs Nelson’s frantic situation was an inspired choice.
All in all, Heart Pain is a touching movie with a God-given message, and ends with a new number, “Letting Go” I believe, from Jay-Mikee. I recommend it for your watching blessedness and pleasure.
Alright, we’ve come to the end of this review. Have you seen Heart Pain? What did you think about it? Please let me know your thoughts in the comments section below. The link to the movie is in the description.
Till the next review, stay blessed!
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