Buying Fields During the Siege

Stories have a unique power to help us understand life’s deepest truths. Think about the last time a movie suddenly made something click for you—maybe a character’s struggle mirrored your own, or their journey gave you hope when you needed it most. Today, we’re exploring how a beloved story reveals timeless truths about faith, courage, and transformation.

The movie “How to Train Your Dragon” first captured audiences when it was originally released as an animated film in 2010, and its enduring appeal has led to a new live action movie adaptation that was released this summer. If you’re interested in experiencing this story today, you can catch the live action version this afternoon at the McPherson Opera House at 2 PM.

The story follows Hiccup, a young Viking living in a world where dragons are the ultimate enemy. For generations, his village has fought these creatures. But when Hiccup encounters an injured dragon, his choice to help rather than harm sets in motion a transformation that will reshape his entire community. This theme of investing in restoration when everyone else sees only destruction connects powerfully with today’s scripture from Jeremiah.

This theme connects with an ancient story from the prophet Jeremiah. During one of Israel’s darkest moments, when enemy armies surrounded Jerusalem, God asked Jeremiah to do something that didn’t seem to make any sense: buy a piece of land. Both stories teach us what it means to invest in God’s promised future when conventional wisdom tells us to give up.

The world of Hiccup’s village operates on simple rules. Dragons attack; Vikings defend. This cycle has continued for hundreds of years. Young Vikings train to kill dragons. Success means bringing down your first dragon.

But Hiccup doesn’t fit the Viking mold. When he accidentally brings down a Night Fury—the most feared dragon of all—he should feel victorious. Instead, standing over the tangled, frightened creature, Hiccup sees something his culture has trained him to miss. He sees a living being that’s afraid and hurt.

What happens next defies everything Hiccup has been taught. He cuts the dragon free. But the dragon, whose tail was damaged in the fall, can’t fly away. Instead of simply walking away, Hiccup goes further.

Over the following weeks, Hiccup returns to where the dragon remains trapped. He names him, Toothless. He brings fish. He observes how dragons really behave when they’re not attacking. Most remarkably, he designs and builds a prosthetic tail fin that will allow Toothless to fly again.

This patient investment makes no sense in Hiccup’s world. He’s helping a Night Fury, the species Vikings fear most. He risks everything if discovered. Yet something deeper than cultural training guides his actions. He senses the war between Vikings and dragons might be based on misunderstanding rather than necessity.

Twenty-six hundred years before Hiccup’s story came out on film, Jeremiah faced an equally senseless decision. Jerusalem was under siege by the Babylonian army. Enemy soldiers had surrounded the walls, cutting off food supplies. Everyone knew how this would end.

Making matters worse, King Zedekiah had thrown Jeremiah in prison for telling the truth about the coming defeat. While other prophets promised miraculous deliverance, Jeremiah spoke honestly: Jerusalem would fall.

In this hopeless moment, God spoke to Jeremiah with what seemed like terrible financial advice. Jeremiah’s cousin would come offering to sell a field. Jeremiah should buy it.

Consider how crazy this is. The field lay in territory already controlled by enemy forces. The city faced certain destruction. Who buys real estate during a military siege? It would be like purchasing beachfront property while watching a hurricane approach.

Yet when his cousin arrived, Jeremiah did exactly what God instructed. He weighed out the silver shekels. He signed the deed before witnesses. He had documents sealed for long-term storage. He treated this wartime purchase with the same care someone would use buying property in peacetime.

Jeremiah even instructed his assistant to store the documents in a clay jar, “so they will last a long time.” He wasn’t making a symbolic gesture. He believed these documents would matter when normal life returned.

Both Hiccup and Jeremiah discovered that following inspiration often means standing alone.

When Hiccup’s village discovers his friendship with Toothless, his father Stoick feels personally betrayed. This man has led dragon-fighting efforts for decades and lost his wife to a dragon attack. To learn his son has been helping a Night Fury shatters everything.

Stoick declares that Hiccup is no longer his son. The entire village turns against him. Friends now view him with suspicion. Hiccup loses his place in the only community he’s ever known.

Jeremiah faced similar isolation. His land purchase became evidence he had lost touch with reality. Here sat a prophet in prison, buying property he couldn’t visit, investing in an impossible future. Family thought he had gone mad. Religious leaders saw him as a false prophet. Political leaders considered him a traitor.

Both Hiccup and Jeremiah experienced the loneliness of seeing what others cannot yet see. They invested in futures that contradicted present realities. This is often the cost of prophetic faith—standing firm in God’s vision when everyone else sees only conventional wisdom.

One of the most powerful connections comes in how individual acts of faith create community transformation.

In the movie’s final battle, the Vikings’ assault on the dragon nest goes wrong. They discover the dragons they’ve been fighting are themselves victims, controlled by a massive dragon that forces them to raid for food. Their traditional weapons prove useless.

In this desperate moment, Hiccup’s investment in understanding dragons becomes salvation. The young Vikings who learned to see dragons differently through his influence join him. They free the captured dragons and ride them—not through domination but partnership. The creatures Vikings tried to destroy become allies.

The final battle showcases transformation at every level. Stoick must trust the son he had disowned. Vikings must ride creatures they’ve feared. Their victory comes through the trust and partnership Hiccup’s patient investment created.

Jeremiah’s investment bore fruit over decades. His land purchase declared that exile wouldn’t be permanent. By buying property during siege, he proclaimed God’s promise: “Houses, fields, and vineyards will again be bought in this land.”

Seventy years later, when Jewish people returned from exile, they came back to a land where normal life could resume. Jeremiah’s action stood as proof that even in darkness, God was working toward restoration. His individual act became foundation for community renewal.

These patterns appear throughout our daily lives, calling us to recognize where God invites us to buy fields during our own sieges. In personal struggles, you might face situations that feels like Jerusalem under siege. Perhaps you’re dealing with a medical diagnosis that upended your plans. Maybe your career is crumbling due to forces beyond control. You might be battling depression that makes each day feel impossible.

In the midst of circumstances like these, God may whisper invitations that don’t seem to make any sense. Start that support group though you barely have energy. Reach out to someone even though past attempts at reconciliation have failed. Promptings like this might feel illogical, yet they carry the potential for transformation.

Sometimes relationships in our family our friend groups present us with dragons—subjects everyone avoids. The relative whose politics cause arguments. The sibling whose choices disappoint. The strained parent-child relationship. Hiccup’s patient work shows how transformation happens slowly through small, consistent actions. The first step might be asking a genuine question and actually listening. It might mean choosing curiosity over judgment.

Our communities face overwhelming problems. Homelessness. Racial divisions. Environmental destruction. Political polarization. Yet just as Hiccup’s friendship with one dragon changed his village, individual investments in hope catalyze transformation. The person who befriends someone from a different background might inspire neighbors to bridge cultural divides together.

We serve a God who specializes in bringing life from death, hope from despair. Consider Jesus, who invested everything in humanity when we seemed least worthy. He touched untouchables. He ate with traitors. He died for those who crucified him.

The resurrection proves God’s investments never fail. What might look like defeat can became a victory. This same power works today, transforming our small acts of faith into catalysts for incredible change.

The Spirit whispers as God whispered to Jeremiah: “Buy the field. Trust my promises more than circumstances.” These whispers come as nudges to forgive, ideas for service, feelings to reach out, visions for what could be.

God doesn’t demand perfect faith. Hiccup didn’t know his friendship would save everyone. Jeremiah couldn’t see how buying land would encourage future generations. They simply took the next faithful step.

This week, consider how God might be calling you to invest. Ask: “Where am I experiencing a siege?” Then: “God, what investment of hope are you calling me to make?” Listen without judging what you hear.

You might identify a relationship that feels dangerous—a dragon better avoided. What would one small step toward understanding look like? Send that text. Make that call. Start small.

Or perhaps God prompts you toward concrete investment. Volunteer with that organization. Give financially, even if the amount seems small. Start that postponed project. Take that faith-encouraged risk.

Remember, transformation rarely happens overnight. But every restoration begins with someone willing to invest hope where others see hopelessness.

The same God who spoke to Jeremiah speaks today. In every siege, God whispers of coming restoration. For every field available during battle, God provides reasons to invest in tomorrow’s peace.

What siege surrounds you? What dragon might become an ally? What field is God calling you to buy?

Will you pray with me?

God of impossible hope, we bring you every siege surrounding us. We name every dragon we’ve been taught to fear. Thank you for showing us you specialize in transformation. Give us courage to invest in the futures you envision when present circumstances counsel despair. Help us trust your promises more than our problems. Guide us to specific investments of hope you’re calling us to make. We pray in Jesus’ name, who invested everything in our restoration. Amen.

In crafting today’s sermon, I employed AI assistants like Claude and Apple Intelligence, yet the ultimate responsibility for its content rests with me. These tools offered valuable perspectives, but the most influential sermon preparation hinges on biblical study, theological insight, personal reflection, and divine guidance. I see AI as a supportive aid to enrich the sermon process while ensuring my own voice in proclaiming the Word of God.