Lessons From Scooby Doo and Friends

by LaNelle Martin

My 4-year-old grandson is a big Scooby Doo fan.  He loves watching Scooby Doo. He has checked out nearly all of the Scooby Doo mysteries from the local library.  He loves to play Scooby Doo, wearing some sort of disguise and pretending to be a monster or a phantom or a creeper.  After a certain amount of cringing in fear and running from the mysterious creature (sometimes longer than I feel is necessary), he wants me to “find out who it really is” by unmasking the villain.  So, after a lot of Scooby Doo saturation, I’ve decided there are lessons to be learned from Scooby and his friends. It starts with these observations: 

1. Threats appear continually in a variety of locations and amid a myriad of activities.  The Mystery Machine must be programmed to seek out spooky situations.  
2. Whatever apparition is involved, you can be sure that trickery and deceit will be used.  Things that appear to be very convincing will be shown as illusions when the mystery is solved. 
3. The villain appears most often when the group is separated.  Emmett pointed this out to me. When Shaggy and Scooby go one way and others go another, a scary encounter is coming up. 
4. Every threatening creature thrives because of fear.  No one wants to confront whatever is chasing or howling or groaning at them. Although the team has dealt with hundreds of similar situations, and although they appear fearless once the villain is trapped, it does not stop them from running or hiding.  The wild goose chase, back and forth and all around, is a predictable part of every episode.  
5. The appearance of the phantom or the monster or the beast is a huge distraction. It prevents everyone involved from accomplishing their purpose and throws all of the plans off course. 
6. It requires wisdom (thank goodness for Velma!) and courage to solve the problem.  Time and effort must be invested, and sometimes it isn’t much fun (requiring more Scooby Snacks!). While Scooby and Shaggy would prefer to leave, the other team members are determined to stay the course and put forth the effort required. 
7. The “best-laid plans” don’t usually work to defeat the threat.  The team can set up very complicated and ingenious traps, but the traps do not usually catch the villain. (Fortunately, Scooby usually catches the villain accidentally!)
8. When we find out who is really the one behind all the havoc, it isn’t usually the character we suspected. It is usually someone who is familiar, someone who should have been working on the right side of things. Often, it is the owner or manager who is under the mask.  (When we play, Emmett is very particular about who the guilty person can be.  It has to be Professor Jones or Captain Frye…not any name of a person he actually knows.) The motive always boils down to selfishness or greed. When the villain is revealed and the question “But why?” is posed, the answer always begins with, “I wanted….” Whether it’s recognition, underground oil, gold, or hidden treasure, greed and selfishness are the underlying motives. 

For those who are familiar with Scooby Doo, you might be shaking your head in mental assent. But how do these observations provide any life lessons for us? 

1. We are constantly threatened, wherever we are and whatever we are doing, by a sort of monster, too.  Although believers in Christ Jesus are set free from the power of sin, our sinful nature is constantly battling against God’s ways.  Paul calls this “the flesh.” Galatians 5:17 tells us that the flesh constantly battles God’s Spirit in us. 
2. We can be easily misled and deceived by our flesh. Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that the human heart is “deceitful above all things.” We must know the truth of God’s Word so we will not be taken in by any tricky schemes, regardless of how convincing they may seem. 
3. We are more vulnerable when we do not stay in close fellowship with other believers.  God has designed His church with various gifts so that we can help each other in the struggles we face.   Heb. 10:24-25 warns us not to give up meeting together, but to encourage each other daily.  
4. Fear can keep us from confronting and dealing with our sin. Fear can keep us in the vicious cycle of running and hiding, feeling like there is no escape. Paul reminded Timothy in 2 Tim. 1:7 that “God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” 
5. Our flesh will distract us from God’s purpose and plan.  We can easily be led astray by things that pull us away from Him.  Romans 8 reminds us that we are to set our minds on the things of God and, by the Holy Spirit’s power, live our lives in that mindset.
6. We need wisdom and courage to combat the problems that we encounter, and it will take time and effort. We may find it easier to run away or hide, ignoring the things that pose difficult challenges, but we must stay the course and continue the work.  God’s Word is our source of wisdom, and time with Him is what gives us courage and strength. 
7. We can never defeat the flesh by human effort, by our own plans and determination.  It is only through Christ that we can have victory.  Romans 13:12-13 shows us that it is only the “putting on the Lord Jesus Christ” that allows us to “cast off the works of darkness.” 
8. Our own sinful nature is the culprit, the “who it really is” behind a lot of the problems that we encounter.  Like Emmett, we’d rather put the blame on someone else.  James 1:14-15 reminds us that “each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire…gives birth to sin.” James also tells us that our own selfishness and greed are the motive behind many of our struggles (Ja.4:1-2). When what we want is in opposition to what God wants, the flesh tries to make an appearance. 

We’re not in a Scooby Doo episode, and our troubles are not simply cartoons with easy resolutions in half an hour. Sometimes, though, simple reminders can help us see things more clearly. Whatever struggles you are facing, I hope you can find some encouragement in these reminders. In one of Paul’s discussions about his own struggle with the flesh, he declares, “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Rom 7:24-25) Our hope and our victory are always found in Jesus! 

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