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Monday, October 31, 2011

Sacrifice

Sacrifice is about laying down your life when no one will even know.

Day 286

Sunday, October 30, 2011

Sunday Scriptures

But the Lord is faithful, who shall stablish you, and keep you from evil. ~ 2 Thessalonians 3:3

Day 285

Saturday, October 29, 2011

Saturday Sayings

Success consists of going from failure to failure without loss of enthusiasm.  ~ Winston Churchill

Day 284

Friday, October 28, 2011

Separate and Married?

I was sitting in the airport a couple days ago, people watching. And I saw several older couples who looked very cute together. They looked like each other, they talked similarly, and you could see that they loved each other. It seems this is getting more and more rare today. 

And I think some of it may stem from the fact that many couples lead separate lives. Husband works in his job and spends more time with his female coworkers than he spends with his wife. His wife works and it's the exact same issue. They both have different friends. Wife goes and hits the gym with her friends while hubby hits the bar with his. 

I think this is one of the biggest downsides to the industrialized and materialistic age. Husband has to be away from home for half of his waking hours, and the same for the wife. When being husband and wife is not about being one flesh, but both continuing your own little separate visions the marriage dies. 

For instance, divorce is a huge problem in the homeschool community. At first, that surprised me. But I spent several minutes reflecting on it and it all made some sort sense. Here's the wife throwing herself into her children and hubby doesn't get in the way. Eventually, wife is spending all her waking hours worrying about her children's education. Husband is not even connected and could care less whether she homeschools or not. And then he's not supporting her so she begins to depend on her children for emotional support. He doesn't support her so whenever he gets home from work she's frazzled and stressed. And then he goes looking for some woman who will take care of his needs and isn't always stressed/the internet. And that's the story..

This is a huge problem. People forget that they are one flesh. They live out separate lives and don't invest in the marriage relationship. I think it would be better to lose your children rather than to lose your marriage. But I think when you are investing in your marriage and work together as one flesh, the importance of raising your children as Godly men and women will come.

We need to stop thinking of marriage as a partnership where we are going into a merger for reasons that benefit both of you. I think it's much more than that. And now I'll go back to my state of not being married and quit posting on this.. <_< lol


Day 283

Thursday, October 27, 2011

Thankful Thursday

As I sat in an airplane yesterday looking out on the little mountain range of clouds and stared out on the beautiful blue horizon, it reminded me just how blessed we are.

When I lay down outside on our trampoline late at night listening to the Rockies play over the radio I see beautiful stars. And I'm just blown away that God made this for us. If God didn't create these stars and sent out the light, we wouldn't see them for thousands of years. (It saddens me when people try to turn the story of Genesis into an allegory. They try to reduce the amazing glory of God and don't believe that he could be God and all powerful in that way.)

And as I sit and watch stars shoot across the sky I remember that, that could be our sun. We could be snuffed out in a second. Then I think of how God has placed our sun in such a particular place that if it was any closer we would burn up, or if it was any farther away we would freeze. 

I hear the howl of coyotes in the distance and it reminds me of how many incredible species God has created. Strong elk, diligent little ants, funny otters, spectacular sea creatures, cute kittens, and wonderful dogs are just a small sample. 

And then I look up and see the tops of the trees and think of the multitude of useful resources we have been given. Gorgeous diamonds, rich oil, majestic trees, and hundreds of others are just another small picture of how God has provided for us. 

In the end, I look at how beautiful this world is and marvel at what it must have been like before the fall.  When the curse of the fall didn't make every step forward incredibly difficult and thorns didn't rip at our flesh as we till the ground. Seeing how God has given us this amazing world, I look forward to seeing the even more amazing work he has made for us in heaven. And all of it due to the work of Christ's death and resurrection. That's what gives me hope as I fight the good fight. 

What gives you hope today?
 
Day 282

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Types of Love

Love is an interesting topic. Today, it seems many associate the word love with the idea of lust or an Eros love. Whenever I read an article about some Father/daughter ball there's always some pervert in the comments saying that a father who loves his daughter is without doubt loving her in an Eros way. But why do they say this? 

Because this is all they can know or understand. They see a close friendship between men as running along the ragged edge of homosexuality. They can't see a relationship as being more than a way of satisfying ones' self.

There are basically three types of love. One is the love of Eros. It's lust, a selfish and fulfilling ones own desires in lust. Should one as a Christian ever have an Eros type of love? No. We aren't perfect of course and must lead a repenting life. But how about the marriage relationship?

Even in marriage, where sex is a good thing we do not have an Eros type of love. Why? Because it is selfish. It's a fulfilling of ones own desires. In the marriage relationship (which I have so much experience in.....) you are trying to follow the example of Christ and his church, laying down your life. You're not filling ones own cup of selfishness. 

As Christians we must practice an agape and phileo love. An agape love that lays down our life for others. (Ephesians 5:25) It loves even when we want to quit. Phileo love is the love that tenderly loves. The one that most friendships are built on. The kind that we have for our Lord. (John 16:27) A love for others. Not a love that is driven by lust and self satisfaction. And ultimately, I believe those who have not experienced the amazing self-sacrificing love and affection of Christ will ever be able to truly understand what it is.

Pic of the day:


Day 281

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Hunting

I went hunting. Yay! First time. Well, I didn't hunt, but I went with my sisters who had tags. There were several things I learned.

One, I learned that hunting is not necessarily about getting the animal. I kind of went into it wanting to get an animal, which is part of it. But because I set that as my end goal, I came away from the first day with some dejection. But then I reflected on the fact that God brings the animals. It's not as if we can control the patterns of an animal. God will bring them. We need to do our best to be there when the animals come. Know to sit downwind and all the other tricks of the trade.

It's the same as life. You can do your best, but at some point you have to realize that God brings the increase. It was a good lesson for me this week.

I also learned that safety is a good thing. It keeps you from shooting yourself/your friends. But it can also keep you from shooting the elk. Another lesson for real life. It's easy to use the wrong tools for the right situation. Or the right tools for the wrong situation. It's hard to be balanced.

I learned that I like fires. Especially when you're in the dark, on your twentieth match wondering if you're ever going to get the fire started.

I learned that I'm really small. Looking out on the long mountain range and seeing the many stars while shivering in the dark during the wee hours of the morning you remember just how wimpy and small you are.

Overall, a great time. I'll probably go next year. But I'm more of a hunter who comes for the fellowship, rather than the love for the chase..

Pic of the day:


Day 280

Monday, October 24, 2011

Lazy Day ----

Leisure is the time for doing something useful. This leisure the diligent person will obtain the lazy one never. ~ Benjamin Franklin



Day 279

Sunday, October 23, 2011

Sunday Scriptures

Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. ~ Philippians 2:4

Day 278

Saturday, October 22, 2011

Saturday Sayings

Justice is always violent to the party offending, for every man is innocent in his own eyes. ~ Daniel Defoe

Day 277

Friday, October 21, 2011

Awesome God

We serve an awesome God. Through him we've received freedom from sin, death, and hell. We need to take heart and trust in him. We need to love him with all that we have within us. Put aside your sin and run the race that is set before you. This takes putting off the old man and becoming new. How do we put off the old man and become new?

By loving the Lord will all our heart, soul, mind, and strength and loving our neighbor as ourselves (Luke 10:27). In other words, obeying the commands God has put down in his Word for us.

I'm so incredibly grateful for the saving grace that God has given to me.

Day 276

Thursday, October 20, 2011

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful for work. Otherwise I'd be bored, and that's never good. ^_^

Day 275

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Too Busy?

In a time long ago there lived a small boy. He grew up in a small village that was situated in a small valley. He loved his goats that he took out to the mountains day after day. He loved looking up at the mountains and admired the beautiful flowers that came in during the spring. He laughed and played with his friends in the cold mountain streams during the summers. He meandered through the trees as they glowed a final goodbye before their beauty hid itself for the winter. He loved staring at the fire while snow billowed outside during the winter. And he loved the people around him. It was a simple time. The people were simple. They loved their little valley. This small boy slowly grew older. Once he turned eighteen he heard stories of the big cities beyond his large mountains. He heard of the fun, the business, the trinkets, and the many people there were. He slowly became dissatisfied with where he was at now. What were these people doing? They were simpletons. And so he left. He left for the big city.

As he came into the city after a tiresome journey he looked around and marveled. "Such large buildings," he thought. So many people bustling around. He wandered around and stared in shop windows, admired the street vendors, and eventually ended up in the city square. In the city square there was what seemed to be a riot going on. There were people yelling. There were signs with expletives written all over them. And he wondered why these people were so angry. They had so much. They had their beautiful buildings. They had their big towers. Yet they still weren't happy. He wandered away and saw husbands working in offices. But where were their wives? In his village families worked together. And no one looked happy. They owned big houses. They had lots of trinkets. They had so much, yet they weren't happy. Why?

It seems like when we have much we forget about the simple time of life. Now we are so busy. We lose focus on the things we should focus on. We don't see the simple life as cool. But I do see some of its benefits.



Day 274

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Start the Relationship with a Lie

Have you ever caught yourself trying to be somebody you're not? I have. I want to look good in other's eyes. I want to act how they act. I'm trying to change my personality or get rid of my sin nature in order to look good in their eyes.

But the problem that I've run into is that you can't keep up your facade forever. At some point, people are going to figure out that you're a sinner (*shock*). But because you built your relationship on false assumptions at some point the relationship could end in disaster. People imagine you're one thing and in actuality you're a totally different person.

People tend to want to be accepted for who they aren't. Or they have a fear that who they are and what their personality is will not be liked. And honestly, we're sinners. We aren't super pretty. We sin. But if someone can't accept that you're a sinner they won't make a very good friend.

Now this does come with a caveat. You can't show up in a relationship and say I steal, cheat, and am addicted to pornography and then expect people to just accept that's you as a person. If they're going to be a true friend they will not accept sin as good. Why? Because they love you. If you were to die tonight without them calling you to repent of your sin, how horrible would they feel?

However, don't try to change your personality. Your personality is you. You should be willing to change things that are sin, a lack of character, or being unloving, and such. But don't try to become someone you're not. Don't try. You'll fail and be unhappy at the same time.

As friends we must push each other. And the only way to push each other is to know each other. If your relationship is built on a facade, how will you ever grow?

Day 273

Monday, October 17, 2011

The Race Card

I'm amazed at how often I hear about racism.  Thankfully, hating people for the color of their skin is still a sin in our post-modern world.  But it's hard to find a lot of rational thinking on the topic.


It's easy to play the "race" card, but the very sensitivity to "race issues" usually stimulates even more racism.   Just watch little children. Do they really care what someone's skin color is? No. But then we spend so much time talking about it, we all develop a big conniption about it and wallah, we're back to being racists.  Skin color.  How is it that any different from the number of eyelashes one person sports over another? If we spent hours upon hours talking about how we shouldn't think less of someone who has 100 eyelashes in comparison to someone who has 150, what do you think is going to happen? I used to care less about who has how many eyelashes. But now, I'm going to be checking everyone's eyelashes.


Couldn't we instead just say we are all created in the image of God? And then marvel at how amazing it is that God created a gene pool in one man and one woman that could have created so many different varieties in shapes, sizes, and skin pigments?


Oh wait, but they tell us that man evolved to his present state by natural selection. Now, we don't know which people are lesser or not. Are the Aborigines truly human? Or how about the wolf people? You see where evolution and the practical working out of Darwinism can end up leading someone? At one point Darwin and his eugenicist cousin Francis Galton slapped Africans, gorillas, Australian Aborigines, and baboons in the same general category.  These are the roots of racism.  If we cannot trace ourselves back to a common ancestor (ie. Adam and Eve), there may indeed be some genetic strains more advanced than others.  The Doctrine of "Survival of the Fittest" then puts the various people groups in competition with each other.


In the end, I think the confusion on different skin pigments/more eyelashes/more body hair, has its roots  in evolutionary dogma. When you start down the road of treating humans as nothing less than animals you're going to find fundamental differences in people groups, which will lead to dehumanization. 


Survival of the fittest?  No way.


"So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them." ~ Genesis 1:27


Day 272

Sunday, October 16, 2011

Sunday Scriptures

And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace. ~ James 3:18

Day 271

Saturday, October 15, 2011

The Courtship Box

A machine requires parts to run. In order to make sure you don't get junk as your completed product you need one thing. Everything that comes into said machine must be the exact same when coming into the box. I think some people apply the same philosophy to courtship. They create this machine called "courtship." Then they go to lots of classes/conferences on it. They read lots of books on it. They want people to tell them how to do it. They have then created their box. But we run into a small problem. The people coming into this box aren't boxy. People aren't widgets. It's rare to find a person who will fit into a box perfectly.

I complain about the education system. And one of the reasons is because people are individuals. They don't all learn in the same way and at the same rate. They don't fit into boxes. But then I go try to create a box for the courtship model?

The thing is, we have to remember the goal of courtship. I perceive courtship as a model that is trying to maintain honor/ purity with an end goal of getting married. You're testing the waters without breaking hearts. In theory. Yet, it seems everyone has a courtship story of a friend or family member who has had a huge blowup. And I think much of it comes from pride. Pride of the father, pride of the mother, pride of the boy, pride of the girl, etc. Plus the other thing is if one sees a courtship as inevitably ending up in marriage you're looking at it all wrong. It's a testing out period. It's not like it's different than dating in its goal, that is to get married. Will it inevitably turn into marriage. No. A successful courtship needs to be seen as one that honored God whether or not it ended up in marriage.

When we approach the topic of courtship we need to remember that we are to honor God, as in all things. People are not widgets. And we must love one another through it. Otherwise, go date. Seriously.

Now I'll take my own advice and take a hiatus from the courtship/marriage topic. *cough* ;-P Day 270

Friday, October 14, 2011

Friday Sayings

Love means to love that which is unlovable; or it is no virtue at all. --G. K. Chesterton

Day 269

Thursday, October 13, 2011

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful for God's Word and the wisdom contained in it. Without it, we would be lost. We would spend our days wandering along a cliff without a light not knowing which way to turn.


Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. ~  Psalm 119:105


Day 268

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

How to Love a Girl ^_^

I was painting today while listening to a sermon by Voddie Baucham for the fifth or sixth time. Typically, I only listen to these sermons while I work so I miss parts of them when I get really focused. But painting is so boring that.. *cough* ;-P

Anywayssssssss.

Something really hit me smack in the forehead. He said that, paraphrasing, if you really wanted to know if a potential son-in-law is really interested in protecting your daughter and her heart he won't tell her he's interested in her. Instead, he'll come to you first. You know, I kind of already knew this but it came home to me today. If I really did care about a girl and really did want to marry her why would I just want her attention? Of course I do lust after short lived attention and "love."

If I cared so little that I would try to circumvent the father in her life does that mean I really care about her? And even if her father isn't involved in her life I want to love her and protect her and still run it by him. Why? Well, because he should be involved in her life and he should be the man who most loves her and protects her.

Being a selfish person, I want to be loved and appreciated without the commitment. Or maybe I could call it a lust for those things. And starting a relationship with a young woman on a note where I could care less about her father is incredibly unwise. It shows that I really have no interest in protecting her. If I show that I don't care for her father up front, how am I going to treat her later?

The key to this relationship is love for others in Christ. The thing that I must not forget is that when I'm getting married I am getting married because I want to glorify God and I want her to grow more in Him. If she's not going to grow more in Him, then I am actually hurting her and am not loving her. At times, I see how there is a major focus on getting married around me. And yes, marriage is good. When you find a wife you find a good thing (Prov.18:22). A very good thing. But if you are not under Christ and are not going to point your wife to Him you are failing and should avoid stumbling her.

Day 267

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Fantasy of Life

I love movies. I love how so much action is compressed into such a small period of time. The excitement of an entire lifetime, for many of us, has been squeezed into a story of 90 minutes long. It shows us action, epic adventures, amazing romance, and exciting characters. Reading stories of elves, dwarves, and orcs set in a beautiful place is our pastime.

I've noticed as I spend too much time in these other worlds I begin to become dissatisfied with where I live now. The fantasy is getting out of control. Living your life in a virtual fantasy can be an unhealthy place to spend your time. I'm honestly one of the worst at this. At one time, I could spend five-six hours per day in a fantasy land. Being a reader, I would take all the stories that I had read and use them to make my little stories. I let my imagination run wild. To some extent I think having a good imagination is important to life. Albert Einstein once said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world." 

But we can't allow our imagination to control us. Imagination can and does create the most beautiful things. Somebody imagines something that all others say are impossible. And then he goes and creates it. On the other hand people spend years of their lives in a fantasy land of books, movies, and tv shows. Instead of spending time with real people and investing in their friends they spend most of that time reading, imagining, and wishing. They want to be one of those characters. They want to be friends with those characters. Why do you think actors are so famous? People connect with the characters, want to live with them, be part of the story, and then they end up worshiping the actor.

Imagination is important. But use it to honor God. Don't become dissatisfied with the life that God has given you because of the stories that you're reading. We still need to keep our focus on God and in the real world. If your imaginations and the books/movies/tv shows you're watching don't bring you closer to God and instead become an idol in your life you may want to take a break for a short time from them.

And honestly, the digital media has never helped my imagination. Books are definitely the way to go. ;-)

Day 266

Monday, October 10, 2011

Knowledge Vs. Wisdom

Is knowledge very helpful? Mmmm. Maybe. If of course it has wisdom attached to it. You could honestly have all the knowledge in the world and still make incredibly stupid choices.

My mind says yes, but my body says no. And that's knowledge. One needs wisdom in order to carry out a goal. You can have all the knowledge in the world and yet never accomplish anything with it. We were studying Joseph today and how he applied wisdom to the situation when Potiphar's wife tempted him. He knew that sleeping with Potiphar's wife was wrong and then he applied wisdom to the situation and left his coat in the hands of Potiphar's wife. He of course had the knowledge. But he also had the wisdom. 

Our emphasis on education in regards to knowledge is absolutely pointless unless wisdom comes with it. Otherwise, you're wasting your time. You get smart people who don't have any common sense. Like Mark Twain said, "I've never let my school interfere with my education." Schooling is wonderful and good. Knowledge is great. But unless you apply that knowledge it's pointless. 

If one were to know that fornication or pornography is evil and yet still participate in it, we see here that there's no lack of knowledge. There's a lack of wisdom. If one were to lay around the house watching tv, playing video games, and picks up his clothes every five days, and he understands what a sluggard is and the curse that comes with it, he's lacking wisdom. If one were to gossip, and know that gossip is wrong, and yet continue doing it that person lacks wisdom. 

But how do we get wisdom? Well that's why we own a Bible. 

"Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding." ~ Proverbs 4:7

"To get wisdom is better than gold; to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver." ~ Proverbs 16:16

But how?! 

"The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight" ~ Proverbs 9:10

That's it. We must fear God. Simple. Fear God. We must fear him. Otherwise we won't obey his laws. We won't take the knowledge and understanding that God gave us unless we truly fear him.

Day 265

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Sunday Scriptures

Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. ~ Romans 12:9

Day 264

Saturday, October 8, 2011

Saturday Sayings

A little love has made me willingly study, preach, write, and even suffer...
Richard Baxter

Day 263

Friday, October 7, 2011

Saying - Day 262

The soul is placed in the body like a rough diamond, and must be polished, or the luster of it will never appear. ~ Daniel Defoe 

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Thankful Thursday

Today I'm thankful for marriage. Good friends. Good counsel. Men. Fathers. Wisdom. Bathrooms. Skype. Computers working. The list goes on and on.

Day 261

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Epic Battles

I enjoy stories of battles. I've enjoyed reading the stories written by C.S. Lewis and Tolkien. The wars of good versus evil. The fights to the death that are had against orcs and ring wraiths. Reading of the times of medieval warriors who charged into battle and came out victorious. The epic tales of how one little man could make it into the enemy's camp to throw the one ring into the mountain of lava.

At times I've caught myself wishing I lived then and could experience the battles in the way they did. Where the battles were fierce and fighting was close hand to hand. But then I remember I do fight a fight just like that. It's a fight where we must fight or we will die. The enemy is large. The orcs are grinding their teeth preparing to destroy us. This is the spiritual battle.

It's a fierce fight where the ring wraith of lust launches itself at us. We must fight it off. The witch of ingratitude's haunt is nearby.. The werewolf of deceit and lies is running after us.  Our soul is on the line, defend yourself! The eye of pride watches over us. The orcs of anger are chomping at the bit to kill us. The Grima Wormtongue is whining and complaining in our ears. This is the spiritual battle.

It's a war that's waged inside of us. It's fierce. Many give up. Many will fall. We will not get through this life without a blood caked sword. We will sail through bloody seas. The question is will you make it? And the answer is, with God's help. We are called to fight that we will win. Fighting is rough and tough. It's not easy. But there is a finish. There is a golden crown at the end of this. And moth, dust, or rust will not corrupt the heavenly crown.

Day 260/365 - I'm going to start putting my day down here. :-)

Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Covering Another's Sin - Day 259

Recently I saw a blog where a whiny woman was angry with her father. She took herself to putting all her father's sins on display. Everything he had done against her that she could think of seemed to be put out there for the world to see. Sure, maybe he did some bad things. Maybe they should be taken to the law. I don't know. But one thing I do know is that she's walking around just like Ham who saw his father's sin and then went around telling everyone. Honoring one's parents is very important. It promises blessings. When one dishonors their parents it promises curses. We must be like Shem and Japheth who turned their backs and covered their father's nakedness. They honored him, even though he wasn't perfect. They covered his sin. The exact opposite of what this woman is doing.

One thing that did surprise me was how many people feel bad for her. Ham's son Canaan was severely cursed for what his father did. Many generations were cursed because of this folly. Maybe the situation is bad. But disobeying the express command to honor one's parents is much worse. Honor takes different forms. Maybe wisdom says to stay away. If they are murdering and raping people on the weekends you are called by the Word of God to be a witness against them. But do we run around laying out their sins for the world to see? No, no, no, no, no. And I pray I never fall into this myself with any of my family or friends.

I struggle with honor. I like to think I'm right all the time, an intellectual pride. But I need to honor. I feel it's so important. So many lives are ruined by the dishonor of parents. Fornication, robberies, murdering, etc.. Yet we still see the rebellion against authority as a good thing.

Let's be ones who are honorable. Trustworthy friends that others can rely on should be our goal. It's pretty rare nowadays.

Monday, October 3, 2011

Merry Monday - Day 258


He who laughs, lasts. ~ Mary Poole

So true. It's amazing how many comedians live a long time. The jovial ones at least.

Sunday, October 2, 2011

Sunday Scriptures - Day 257

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,” ~ 1 Peter 1:3 KJV

Saturday, October 1, 2011

Courageous the Movie Review - Day 256

Yesterday I went and saw Courageous. Overall, I was very impressed. Seeing the slow progression in quality and story by the Kendrick brothers over the past eight years has been quite an impressive journey. This was the first movie I didn't mentally cringe in. The acting was decent, the camera work was acceptable, and the story was much better than their other movies.

Normally, when I walk out of a theater after watching some big budget motion picture, there's some sort of filth dripping off me. Instead of walking out knowing that the movie I just saw on the big screen should not be repeated in my daily life, I was able to walk out of Courageous with a good message and an actual direction to head.

This is a story of reconciliation. The hearts of fathers turning toward their children and children to their fathers. It is a story with powerful plot points and great highs and lows. They mix the serious nature of life with humor fairly well. The story is very powerful and fairly well shot. My only complaint in regards to the filming, that was really distracting, was how much shaky-cam they used. It was too shaky. Some of the shots weren't super well framed. I saw an extra look into the camera. But all little things, I didn't feel they distracted from the movie to a degree that grated on me.

The story is good. One of the things the Kendrick brothers are good at doing is pulling at your emotional heart strings. I thought they did a good job of creating characters that one could connect to. The movie had some very emotional scenes and they did a great job with them. It was still a story that I could only watch once for the pure enjoyment factor. This was for two reasons. Number one, because the characters didn't have the depth to bring me back again to watch it. The movie was just not driven by the depth of the characters. Number two, the plot didn't have a large enough web for me to want to see it again. The ending was pretty much as we expected it. But, I liked it much better than their other three films in that it ended realistically. The other films ended with complete reconciliation and left no question in our minds as we left the  theater. But that's unrealistic. And I thought this film was much better. Instead of glorification which doesn't happen till the end, it ended with the message that even though life will continue to be tough, God brings difficult circumstances to sanctify us to be more like Him each and every day of our lives.

There were parts that were sub-standard and had a television feel to them. Some of the shots looked like a television show. It felt like they took about 6 plots and played them parallel. Which may have been why the depth of the characters suffered some. The film is much better than many films that dropped seventy million dollars on a much worse plot. I'm just grasping for straws here.


The ending was kind of disappointing. Instead of ending the film where it should have ended, instead there was a bit of an altar call at the end. Of course, it was well done. But I felt like it wasn't as good of an ending as it could have been.


Overall, an amazing movie. It's the best that a Christian director has ever pulled together. And for Alex Kendrick to play the main character and direct the entire film, I'm super impressed. So, go see it in theatres and support a Christian director and film.