KICKASS MOVIE QUOTES

Holy shish kabobs! I haven't posted here in quite a while. Shame on...someone.

I was having a chat with someone today about memorable movie quotes. Sometimes, while catching a flick, I find myself struck in the face by a line that just jumps out at and resonates with me. I thought I'd take a few moments to populate this space with some of my favourites from my movie-going experiences over the years. Here they are in no particular order:

FIRE AND FAITH (PUBLIC SPEAKING EVENT)

UPDATE (July 17th): This event has been postponed due to an arm injury I've managed to secure. Details of a new date will follow in due course.

I'm hosting an multi-media event/talk, including live music, dealing with the beauty, value, and tenacity of hope in the face of all life's struggles.

Please note: While the theme of this group is motivated by a belief in Jesus Christ, you are welcome to join no matter what your personal convictions might be. Well, as long as they're not aggressively anti-Christ (skinning poor cats, chatting up demons, casting dodgy spells, etc.)  :) We may not always agree (which is perfectly fine) but you have my word that you will be met with respect, never judgment.

CONTEMPLATING THE INEXPLICABLE

A friend of mine recently asked me how I go about understanding God...what concretely defines my "handle" on him. If I was to go with the typical responses I'd expect to receive from many in religious or spiritual circles, I suppose there would be no shortage of trite and neatly packaged slogans and statements used to address the subject. The fact of the matter for me is that the business of attempting to define God falls into a similar kind of category to that of someone, blind from birth, being asked to describe what the sun looks like. There is little or no doubt that the phenomenon exists, but how to go about describing it when subject to such a limiting handicap would prove to be a very challenging task.

DIVINE INJUSTICE...

I came across this quote a few days ago that really spoke to me. It was at a time when I was struggling with intense loneliness and melancholy. The quote read: "I will not tiptoe through life only to arrive safely at death." I have no idea who this saying is accredited to, but the point remains nonetheless. I wonder sometimes about the nature of loneliness. What are its causes? What fuels and drives it? What is it an indication of? Sometimes no doubt, in my own life, it's a reminder of my insecurity; my dependency on relationships and need for community. Not necessarily a bad thing though, right? The line though between what is healthy and not there can be an indistinct one.

Could loneliness sometimes be linked to what I am to consider as part of partaking in the sufferings of Christ? In the so called First World, those of us who claim a devotion to Christ know relatively little of physical hardship for the sake of the Gospel. Perhaps our trials come in a more subtle, yet equally painful form. Rather than violently and swiftly inflicting their mark as a bullet or blade may do, they instead take up residence in our hearts and minds and steadily poison from within. The symptoms vary from a mild, numbing ache that we are barely aware of but never escape, to an inescapable, deafening sorrow that penetrates us in the midst of our solitude and into our very core. I wonder precisely how familiar Jesus was with this human condition. Surely, in the midst of his perfect communion with Abba, he must have longed for the unswerving affection and faithfulness of friends. Did he ever long for the soothing, comforting embrace of a woman he could love and who could love him in return? My theological mindset says of course not...but who knows? This Son of Man who was acquainted with grief; accompanied by sorrow...how much did the frailty of his own humanity cause him pain and woe? I wonder sometimes, in the midst of such enduring emptiness and sadness, how do I find my home; my sanctuary in the shadow of His wing? How do I defiantly sing in the midst of my storms, and stand on the rock that is Jesus as the tempests of life leave me unmoved and unshaken?

This mystery looms and lingers...inviting me to ponder it, wrestle it, unlock it. The days and nights roll by. Times of feeling isolated in the midst of a crowd. Times of emotional barrenness that no romantic companion was ever meant or equipped to address. A void within that so completely and unceasingly demands the person of Jesus, so as to render all other "remedies" pointless, powerless, pathetic and poor. I do not indulge much hope in my salvation from myself apart from the matchless, precious blood of Christ. "Prone to wander, Lord I feel it. Prone to leave the God I love. Here's my heart Lord, take and seal it. Seal it for thy courts above." Do you know that I love you? I hope so with all my heart. Because I often am unable to convince myself that I do...not nearly as faithfully and dearly as you deserve. Do you know that my heart of hearts is set apart for You and You alone? I wish that were true. Because I often live in ways that offend the notion of devotion to You. Do you know that if I could flick a switch...if it were as simple as that, that I would give you everything I have and am. I throw myself upon your love, mercy and grace. Deal not with me according to my deeds and choices. Give me what is not rightly mine. Give me a place at your table...a home in your presence. Give me your divine injustice...the result of a reward undeserved, and a verdict unearned. I am a babbling fool, a scrupulous wretch, a helpless infant apart from you. Lead me ever more to find you. I love you. Hopefully, more than I suspect.