"Crazy, Stupid, Love"

My roommate and I saw the movie "Crazy, Stupid, Love" last Friday night in a little theater that shows movies after they've already hit the big screen for the first time. We decided to see it on a whim, and I don't think either of us had read any reviews on the movie. We had both just heard it was funny. So we settled into the theater and waited for it to begin.

Before I begin with giving my thoughts about the movie, I will tell you this may contain some spoilers. The movie begins with a husband and wife sitting down to eat dinner in a restaurant. They both look uncomfortable as they try to order what they want. The husband asks the wife what she wants, and she looks up at her husband and says she wants a divorce. The husband is shell-shocked, not expecting that confession, especially in a public restaurant. The scene then flashes to a bar/night club when a very handsome, well-to-do twenty-something man approaches two young ladies sitting at a table in the club. The man comes on to one of the women, but wisely, she says she has to go and leaves the club.

What made me a little upset about the movie was when it started to devalue marriage. The man, whose name is Hal, shows up at work and his coworkers hear him crying in the bathroom. They think he might have cancer, but when they find out why he was crying, they all breathe a sigh of relief that "it's just a divorce." This upset me because many people in this society believe that marriage does not mean anything anymore. Movies like this are a prime example of why marriage does not mean as much in the eyes of the world as it should. Marriage is a union set up by God to be a reflection of Christ and the church. Movies like "Crazy, Stupid, Love" tell the audience that divorce is not that big of a deal when really divorce is one of the ugliest things known to man. It tears up families, friendships, love, relationships, and God hates it.

Throughout this movie, themes of infidelity, adultery, lust, and promiscuity echo in almost every scene. Some of this can be looked at for the audience to "learn a lesson" from. But why do these lessons have to be indirect, basically saying, "Don't do what you see in this movie." Why can't movies be made that are still funny but encourage moral themes? We wonder why society as a whole is going down the drain. Look at what we're watching and spending out time putting inside our brains.

What also makes this movie sad is that, of course, Hollywood has to make it funny. I will admit, I laughed quite a bit in the movie. The whole audience laughed a lot. And I hate leaving a movie thinking, "Well, that was funny, but it was horrible." And I think the topper on the cake that made the movie horrible was something that happened in the last scene. In the movie, a seventeen-year-old girl takes pictures of herself in the nude for a reason I will not name. But at the end of the movie, she gives the pictures to a thirteen-year-old boy who has a crush on her. Peachy, right? I was livid when I saw this. Right now, in this nation and around the world, pornography is a sickness in the lives of so many men, women too, but mainly men. Pornography wrecks the lives of so many individuals, families, homes, marriages, and men who are supposed to be leaders but who are brought down by this awful addiction.

And what did this crazy, stupid movie do? It practically encouraged it, condoned it. It basically told anyone watching, "Well, this thirteen-year-old boy can't date this seventeen-year-old girl yet, but she can give him pictures of herself in the nude for him to enjoy until he is old enough to date her." What the movie doesn't show was how horribly corrupt this boy will be before he is even old enough to date her.

So, yeah, if you're looking for a movie that will counter every moral belief you've ever held dear, this is the movie for you. Yes, in a way, it kind of has a happy ending, but overall, I would never recommend this movie to anyone. I know plenty of movies that are good, clean, and funny and still uphold what I believe. But if you're looking for a movie that will upset you and frustrate you as it has me, leaving you angry with Hollywood, then yep, this is the crazy, stupid movie that will do it.

I hope love never becomes crazy and stupid. I hope love always remains holy and pure as God intended it to be, something not to be corrupted, especially by Hollywood's cheap attempts. Lessons learned: 1. read reviews before watching a movie and 2. God created love in a way that is sacred, and it only comes from him. Thank goodness, because the love that was portrayed in that movie is nothing I want.

Still Thankful

Just a week ago I posted "Seasons." I mentioned in that post that God has put me in this particular season for a reason. Little did I know how quickly I would come to understand and feel the full weight of those words.

This past week has kind of been a whirlwind for me, a whirlwind of emotions and experiences, some good, some not so good. I know, though, beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Lord was with me and protected me through every moment of it. Sometimes the Lord puts things in our paths that grow us and make us stronger, even if that means letting us experience a little bit of pain. We don't know why these things happen, but they do.

But already, I have learned so much through this past week. I've learned, even though I already knew, how much the Lord really does love me and cares for every aspect of my life, even the things that I wouldn't think he cares about. I've learned how much my family, especially my dad, loves me. I could not ask for a better Dad. I know I've taken him for granted, and this past week showed me that. My dad had the opportunity to throw something in my face and say, "I told you so," but he didn't. He was gracious and loving as usual. I've also learned that I have the best friends a girl could ask for. Friends that have been with me through the thick and thin and who listen to me spill my life, even when it's not pretty. And this weekend, it wasn't pretty. I'm so glad I experienced this now with the people who are around me in this season. I don't why I had to experience it, but I know that I could've been hurt so much more. I know that the Lord had me in his hands the entire time, and my heart was his. I am ever so grateful for that.

Satan would love for me to bottle up and grow bitter and weary. I also know that is a lie. I've said it on this blog quite a few times, and I'll say it again, "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever" (Psalm 73:26). Forever. Not just when I want him to be or on the good days but forever. That does not mean any of this is easier. But it does mean that I know it happened for a reason and that someday the Lord will redeem that, and I'll be able to see that. I trust him. I trusted him before this happened, and he took care of me. He proved himself faithful once again. If this happened to draw me closer to him and build my trust in him, then so be it. I learned that lesson, just one of the many I know I have yet to learn.

So yes, I am still thankful for this season. The Lord is good. He has ordained this season. May my focus be on his kingdom and his glory, not myself.

Until next time,
God Bless

Seasons

I love autumn. I think the more I am at college and experience this season here, the more I love it. I know I've written about this in the past, but I love watching the leaves change colors. I love knowing that next year those leaves will return and will be made new again, with their striking colors and taunts for the eye.

I'm grateful for this season, this season of fall but also this season of life the Lord has me in. The Lord has a way of humbling me and making me eat my words so many times. He has quite the sense of humor. The Lord has shown me recently just how much he cares about every aspect of my life, whether I thought he did or not. He calls me to trust him with every aspect of my life, so he can prove himself faithful. And he always proves faithful.

Lately, I've been reading through the book of Jeremiah. The book is not one I read often, but I've been reading it since I returned from camp. Over and over again, the Lord sends out Jeremiah to tell the Israelites to turn away from their false gods and destructive ways of living or the Lord will destroy them. Jeremiah goes where the Lord asks him and says what the Lord tells him, although not always without complaint or danger. Jeremiah's life is threatened along the way. But the Lord is always there with him. So many wonderful truths are brought to life in the book of Jeremiah. "I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness" (Jer. 31:3). "'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord. 'Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future'" (Jer. 29:11). Along with Jeremiah, I've been reading a certain amount of Psalms that have been so ever true in my life. Psalms 57, 62, and 73 have been so true and profound in my life really since the beginning of the summer.

I know the Lord has me in this season for a reason. It's not exactly what I had planned, but the Lord never has the same plans I have, and thank goodness. Just like Jeremiah, I am called to trust, to love, and to go, wherever that may be. The Lord has sweetly surprised me and blessed me in ways I can't recount. He has let my relationship with my roommate blossom, let my relationship with my housemates also grow, and brought a new friendship into my life. It's humbling; I don't deserve this, but I thank him for it.

Well, hopefully soon, I'll be able to update more.

Happy fall.

Until next time,
God Bless