Broken Crayons Still Color

During a recent interview with a co-star from Hollywood’s new dramatic film, Fury, Ellen DeGeneres said, “No matter how you’re reaching for it, everybody is trying to fill themselves up in some way. You’ve got to find out what that is  . . . to figure what [it] is that makes you feel whole.”

For those of us who grew up in the mid to late 90s, we knew him as a gangly, troublemaking, misfit teenager, who starred in Disney’s hit television show series, Even Stevens. But our parents might recognize him better from movies like Transformers and Disturbia.

Fans, friends and family might tell you that Shia LaBeouf’s acting career has been on quite the rollercoaster ride over the course of the past decade.

After being arrested more than three times over the last six years for misdemeanors including drunk driving and assault, LaBeouf told Ellen he has finally found a salvation.

A few months ago, LaBeouf decided he would publically apologize to his fans in L.A. for his criminal acts by allowing them to say, as well as do, whatever they wanted to him. After person upon person and fan after fan talked with him, LaBeouf became a little surprised by the acceptance and “forgiveness” he was receiving.

“It was very human.” LaBeouf said about his fans’ reaction to his ‘public apology’. “I got into this industry cause I had this void . . . so I thought being good at being an actor would somehow fill that void . . . a lot of entertainers are this way, and so I think people [his angry fans] just really want to make a mark. I think we suffer from the same thing, which is just a lack of attention and love.”

I read in another article online (separate from Ellen’s interview) stating that LaBeouf has found more than just salvation. He found God.

While it surprises me that a young, good-looking, successful, Hollywood actor has somehow managed to ‘find’ Jesus, it surprises me more that he understands a concept most people struggle to grasp over the course of an entire lifetime.

Here is a man who understands the beauty and magnificence of grace. Of mercy. Salvation and forgiveness.

As Ellen said, we all long for something to fill our empty hearts. To not be lonely. We all desire something to make us ‘whole’ and satisfied. But what if our desire cannot be fulfilled by this passing world?

C.S. Lewis said, “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

What if this simple, but mind-blowing statement is in fact the answer? What if the human race focused on laying up treasures in Heaven instead on this world? Would we be satisfied? 

Second Corinthians says, “For this light, momentary affliction [the world] is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond ALL comparison!”

David writes in the Psalms, “Because Your love is better than life, my lips will glorify You!”

And even the prophet, Jeremiah—in the middle of his suffering said, “Oh my God! FOR YOU SATISFY the WEARY and those who are hurting!”

Everyday, I hear stories of friends and family and coworkers looking for that one thing—that one thing to give them hope and comfort and love, maybe even salvation. And I think to myself, why do they not know about a God whose love is deeper than the ocean and more powerful than any amount of money or fame? Why is Christianity such a joke in my society? And worse, why don’t I tell people about Him more? Why don’t I love Him more.

Godliness isn’t a book or a religion or a title or a rule. It is a relationship, a friendship, a shelter; it is a love that cannot be broken by anything. To love God is to be filled up, to have hope; it is to suffer and to be persecuted at times—because He suffered for us. To be a Christian is to be forgiven and to be promised eternal life. It is the ability to lean on the Creator of the universe and to rely on Him, a Being who will never fail at anything. 

Christianity is believing in a God who is able to fix a 'broken' person, a screw-up, a failure. 

And this man-- this once broken and sinful man, who has the world at his fingertips, a pocket full of cash and a big screen career, credits this same God with the power that saved him. 

"As surely as I live, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that I am God." 

Romans 14:11

Warning, Graphic Image: Wake Up America!

I had seen the little yellow Arabic letter that some of my Catholic friends were/are posting as their profile picture on Facebook, briefly skimmed over articles about ISIS and the killing of Christians in Iraq and the Middle East, but I didn't fully understand the sheer brutality and utter wickedness of what is truly going on right now on the other side of the world until I saw this picture. 

Source: www.catholic.org
Islamists killing a woman by slitting her throat and capturing her blood in a bowl, holding her firm as her life literally drains from her neck. Such forms of execution are intended to intimidate others.

Now I know my audience isn't as large as per say Catholic Online, but the fact is, people should be aware of what is happening- and that is one of the biggest reasons for this post. Right now. Everyday. And we should care about it. Are millennials and those a few years older oblivious and apathetic to vile, current events such as this one because we are simply uninformed? Or is it because our generation has become numb to society, religion and politics in general? Or could it be because we grew up in American classrooms which banned prayers and the Bible? Is it because as children, we were told to put our heads under the blankets of liberalism and ignore the fundamental rights which were fully endowed to us by our Creator? Could it be because the Lord's name has been taken out of the pledge of allegiance and used as fowl language instead? Has the importance of religion and God been swept under the rug by our parents and leaders of our country? 

The picture above hits home to me for so many reasons. This unnamed woman is a young, Christian woman just like me. She had a family, a home, a life. But more than that, she gave her life so people would know our Almighty Lord is worth a violent death. 

Pictures such as this one, though terrifying to view, should be viewed. How else are hearts supposed to break for these people? What other way is there to light a fire beneath our complacent asses and finally take a stand for what is right? How else are we supposed to comprehend the sanctity of life, or the immeasurable, uncontainable value of the very God that is worth dying for? 

Elizabeth Elliot once said, "There is nothing worth living for, unless it is worth dying for. One does not surrender a life in an instant. That which is lifelong can only be surrendered in a lifetime."

As Christians, we are called to stand away from the darkness and be a light in the world. 

"You are the salt of the earth, but if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again . . ?" (Matthew 5:13a) 

If we lose our morals as a "Christian" nation, what then will we have to stand on? And if we continue to accept and allow our national genocide of unborn children, won't we eventually begin to accept our own Christian holocausts and the removal of American, civil rights? If we, as a nation lose our saltiness, how will we become salty again?

We must not so easily surrender what our forefathers fought so valiantly for. We must stand on our faith, no matter what the cost. 

So help give the next generation a fighting chance at holding onto their God-given liberties. 

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. 

Would it be Jesus?

Who are you at your core?

Who are you when no one's looking?

Who are you when you're all alone and you have no one. Who are you when it's just you. Just you and an open road ahead. Just you and a big dream on the brink of a horizon.

People always tell me that you are what you have.

As Americans, we live in the richest, most free country in the world. We have no idea what "poor" means. Even the poorest man in this country has some opportunities, especially now in this day and age. We have the luxury of clean and running water, indoor plumbing and even things like wifi- which we take for granted every single day.

If you're on the "richer" side of life, you have both of your arms. Both of your legs. All your toes, and all your fingers. You can see out of both your eyes, or you have working glasses or contacts that help you to see the birth of your first child, the beauty of a woman, movies, or even simple things like a sunset, crafted by the Ultimate Creator of all things beautiful.

Maybe you even have a car. Or a job. A college degree. A home. A dream to be "successful".

Maybe you are married. Maybe you're not. Maybe you're divorced. Maybe you've been brokenhearted. Maybe you're lonely.

What do you have? Who are you?

Lately I've been thinking about what is most important to me. What makes me happy. All that God has given me. Who am I. And what would I be if all of that was taken away.


What am I when no one else is around to encourage me, or take care of me. When it feels like there aren't any shoulders to lean on, and no one to laugh with. When it's just me and a puppy at my feet in the dark. We've all been there. We've all been lonely. Confused. Felt sorry for ourselves. Or compassionate for someone else. Cared too much, or not enough. Loved and lost, or decided not to love at all.

So what is it. What do you take pride in? What do you hold closest to your heart? What is important to you? What is it that drives you everyday and makes you wake up every morning?

And if those things were stripped away from you, what would be left? What would you have to lean on?

Would it be Jesus?

"Noah": Hollywood's Most Recent Derision of Christianity

From the talking rock monster angels to the beasts that were killed and eaten on the ark, Hollywood's new motion picture and derivative of one of the most famous Old Testament stories, Noah, is nothing short of a blasphemous joke on Christianity.

For the most part, I am not a fan of movies about Christianity or the Bible; one, because they're usually horribly depicted, and two because Christian directors and producers hire some of the worst actors out there. But when I first saw the trailer for Noah, I was instantly curious. Perhaps it was because growing up, the story of Noah and the ark was one of my favorite Bible stories, or because Emma Watson just happens to be one of my all time favorite actresses- (Russell Crowe isn't too bad himself).

Either way, probably like most Christians young and old, I wanted to see what spin Hollywood would take on this one particularly amazing Bible story.

I sat through the movie, most of the time on the edge of my seat, wondering what was going to happen next. It was somewhat thrilling and strangely enchanting in some scenes; it was an average story about a man built an ark to protect himself and his family from a storm. In the movie, Noah is portrayed as the man in control, an evil man at times who tells his family that they will bury each other once the storm is over because there cannot be any "sinfulness" in the new "Eden" and all of mankind must come to an end. But when Noah and his family are on the ark, Shem's lover, Eila, becomes pregnant. Noah makes a promise to the couple that he will kill the baby if it is a girl and the family develops a hatred for him and his two oldest sons even revise a plot to kill him. Of course, Eila gives birth to not just one, but twin baby girls, and Noah decides to disobey 'The Creator's' command to kill them and spares their little lives.

While watching the movie, I tolerated the talking rock monster angels who protected Noah and his family from Cain's distant relative and his army of meat-eating evil men.

"Rock Monster"

I didn't mind the story line of how Eila became Shem's mate or even wise old Grandfather Methuselah's giving of the seed to Noah to help him grow a forest to build an ark. While some of this never happened in history, from a non-Christian's point of view it made the movie a little more interesting.

However, Hollywood crossed the line as soon as they made the two biggest characters in the story of Noah and the ark look like two heartless villains. For the majority of the movie, I found myself hating Noah, and worse, wondering who in the world 'The Creator' was and why he was allowing innocent people to die.

First of all, the Bible says Noah was a righteous man, and that he was chosen to build the ark because he refused to follow the wicked ways of the world. He loved God and he was faithful to Him.

Genesis 6:9b says, "Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time and he walked faithfully with God."

We are given the story of Noah and the ark in the Bible for many reasons, but in my opinion, the most important one is to recognize the importance of obedience. In those days, rain was unheard of, let alone a flood that was going to be big enough to kill every living thing on the planet. God commanded Noah to do something that was crazy to almost everyone around him, but Noah humbly obeyed the Lord anyway. Although he was a sinner, Noah was not evil, he was a patriarch; his faithful story was amazing enough to be recorded down in a book to be preserved for more than two thousand years. Noah was a good man, a man that God deemed as righteous, and an example for Christians to follow. 

But Hollywood couldn't just stop there. God ('The Creator') had to be mocked too. You never see this mysterious creator and you never hear his voice in the movie. He doesn't answer to Noah when he prays to him. So for all we know as the audience is that the creator is probably number one, evil because he let innocent people be slaughtered by the flood and other ways and number two that he is not the controller of the universe because he allowed Noah to make most of the decisions as well as undermine him most of the time. The Creator quickly became the idiot.

To me it's not a coincidence that Noah was regarded as the mean girl in the movie and God was viewed as distant and unsympathetic towards mankind. Why wouldn't Hollywood do that? Why would they want to make God and an incredible Bible story look anything but good?

I always think that maybe these movies will help the cause of Christianity, not hurt it. Or perhaps if someone sees a movie like this, it will plant a seed in them which will cause them to desire to read God's Word.

Hollywood took the beautiful story of Noah and violently twisted it into a tragedy. It was like watching a fairy tale have an ending that wasn't "happily ever after" or seeing the bad guy win. It was taking the truth of the Gospel and turning it into something evil and diminishing.

 It's not a happy film, it doesn't make you feel good. It doesn't teach you or inform you of any truth or "moral" to the story. It does nothing except for make our God look like a peon to millions of people who will sit in comfy seats at the movie theater for the next month and a half or so.

How sad that Hollywood has resorted to insulting God through Bible stories, which by the way, need no embellishments to be entertaining and enchanting and life-changing. How dare they take a sacred, biblical truth and turn it into heresy. How dare they take an Almighty God and display Him as evil.

Sheesh. If you're going to try to re-tell a story, why not tell it the way it was told?