Welcome Back Readers~
Shortly after it opened, I had the opportunity to go see the movie
"War Room." Like other films produced by the Kendrick brothers, it
carries a faith-based message meant to encourage and uplift audiences to
consider their relationship with the Lord; in this case, believers are
persuaded to take a closer look at their prayer life and its influence on daily living. By following the characters of Tony and Elizabeth Jordan and Miss Clara, significant differences in their perspectives emerge - one based on on attitude of self-reliance, the other dependent on the Lord. Things quickly take a positive turn when an unlikely friendship is formed between the two women. A review from IMDb website explains it even better, saying:
" Filled with heart, humor, and wit, WAR ROOM follows Tony and Elizabeth Jordan, a couple who seemingly have it all-great jobs, a beautiful daughter, their dream home. But appearances can be deceiving. In reality, their marriage has become a war zone and their daughter is collateral damage. With guidance from Miss Clara, an older, wiser woman, Elizabeth discovers she can start fighting for her family instead of against them. As the power of prayer and Elizabeth's newly energized faith transform her life, will Tony join the fight and become the man he knows he needs to be? Together, their real enemy doesn't have a prayer."
Leaving the theater I was both challenged and inspired. What kind of prospective was I portraying to those around me - one of self-reliance or faith? If I'm honest, this is something I struggled with during my recent employment. On the one hand, having a job allowed me the opportunity to provide for myself and feel independent. On the other hand, I sometimes got so busy that I took for granted WHO provided it for me. This is a result of humanity and sinful nature- that we choose to rely on ourselves rather than the One that CREATED us. Being a Christian doesn't mean our life will be perfect and free of difficulty; it just means that we will strive to show God's character and point the way to HIM!
Now this process doesn't happen overnight; nor is it something we can do ourselves. True transformation only occurs through the work of the Holy Spirit, revealing our weakness and convicting us of our sin. That's only one reason why it is so important to pray. Here are a few others:
" Filled with heart, humor, and wit, WAR ROOM follows Tony and Elizabeth Jordan, a couple who seemingly have it all-great jobs, a beautiful daughter, their dream home. But appearances can be deceiving. In reality, their marriage has become a war zone and their daughter is collateral damage. With guidance from Miss Clara, an older, wiser woman, Elizabeth discovers she can start fighting for her family instead of against them. As the power of prayer and Elizabeth's newly energized faith transform her life, will Tony join the fight and become the man he knows he needs to be? Together, their real enemy doesn't have a prayer."
Leaving the theater I was both challenged and inspired. What kind of prospective was I portraying to those around me - one of self-reliance or faith? If I'm honest, this is something I struggled with during my recent employment. On the one hand, having a job allowed me the opportunity to provide for myself and feel independent. On the other hand, I sometimes got so busy that I took for granted WHO provided it for me. This is a result of humanity and sinful nature- that we choose to rely on ourselves rather than the One that CREATED us. Being a Christian doesn't mean our life will be perfect and free of difficulty; it just means that we will strive to show God's character and point the way to HIM!
Now this process doesn't happen overnight; nor is it something we can do ourselves. True transformation only occurs through the work of the Holy Spirit, revealing our weakness and convicting us of our sin. That's only one reason why it is so important to pray. Here are a few others:
- Prayer allows us to get to know, love, and worship God more fully.
- Prayer can help us understand God's Will and change our lives. As I said before,, this doesn't occur overnight but happens by the Holy Spirit's leading. According to the book The Battle Plan for Prayer: From Basic Training to Targeted Strategies, " As we pray, God reveals His will and ways to us, and then starts to align our hearts and minds with His. We don’t ask Him to configure Himself around the way we want to live. No, we bring ourselves up under His authority. In other words, the more time we spend getting to know Jesus, the more we learn to trust Him. It is because of the renewing of our minds, not by our own strength (Romans 12)."
- Prayer can help us to accomplish his purposes by pointing others to Him. Once again, this cannot be done through our own strength, for it says in John 15:5: "I am the vine, you are the branches. If you abide in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me, you can do nothing." Therefore, we must seek to know him first and he will provide everything else!
"War Room" is based on the following book The Battle Plan for Prayer: From Basic Training to Targeted Strategies by Stephen and Alex Kendrick for those interested in finding out more information on prayer and how to strengthen your walk with the Lord. It is full of wonderful resources to many to explain in just one blog (I am still reading the Kindle version of the book myself) ,
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