Dealing With God

The new movie Evan Almighty is a great movie. Being a visual person the plot gave me all kinds of illustrations and clips that once the movie is released on DVD I can share them with my church. But there is one episode that really impacted me.

God (Morgan Freeman) summons narcissistic newscaster turned congressman Evan Baxter (Steve Carell) to build an enormous ark in preparation for a devastating flood. Unfortunately, Evan's perplexed family interprets his latest hobby as a midlife crisis gone wrong rather than as a divine assignment from the man upstairs. They abandon him as do all others.

Then God appears to Evan's wife in a restaurant. God asks her if she believes that when people ask God for patience does God just get rid of the problem, or does he give them the ability to endure? If someone asks God to bring their family closer together (that had been her prayer), does God give them warm and fuzzy feelings or does he give them the opportunity to be closer?

What a theological statement. I want relief. I want the warm and fuzzy, but God gives me opportunity. What a God!

See your hardship, struggle, or battle as an opportunity. God is faithful. He will see you through. I'm betting on God instead of myself. What about you?

Sid