DEEP WATERS

In the 2008 film Seven Pounds , aeronautical engineer Tim Thomas is fighting a troubled past. Two years ago, while texting and driving, he causes a collision, killing his fiancee and six strangers in a minivan. Unable to rewrite history and save the seven lives taken by the fatal accident, he goes on a mission to save seven other lives. (Quick disclaimer: I'm certainly not in agreement with the film's take on suicide. My husband Anthony and I saw this movie with another couple, and the lady I saw this movie with said she was so saddened by the ending. Her heart -- and mine -- broke over the fact that this character didn't seek forgiveness and redemption in Jesus, but tried to find it by taking his physical life.) But the spiritual principal in this movie is amazing. Tim Thomas spent his final days on earth searching for people who needed a new lease on life. At his death, he planned to donate several of his vital organs to people that would die soon without transplant...

It's July 30th! Can you believe it? Our journey towards discovering and walking in our God-given purpose is coming to a close -- at least together. My prayer is that you and I will spend our lives here on earth walking in the purposes that God planned for each of us before we were born. But this small part of my purpose is definitely in its finale. After tomorrow, the curtain will close on this act, and I've got mixed emotions. On one hand, I'm exhausted. I don't think I'd be able to write a blog for August 1st if someone offered me a million dollars. On the other hand, I'm going to miss this daily interaction with my own mind and spirit, with my blogger-sisters Monique, Michelle, Cheryl and Jennifer and with you. It's been a joy sharing this journey with you. We've been encouraged together. We've been convicted together. We've certainly grown together. I can tell from your facebook messages, blog comments and emails. God has stretched us, an...

"Is this the day I die?" asks Li Quan. Growing up as a young boy in China, these are the words his father taught him to recite daily. A member of an underground Christian church, Li Quan must be prepared to die. On any given day, local government officials might raid his house church and kill every member present. Across the ocean in the United States, Ben Fielding lives a comfortable life as a business executive. His life is consumed with business deals, management team meetings and his palm pilot. When business takes him to China, he reunites with his old college buddy and roommate Li Quan. Ben hasn't seen his old friend in twenty years, and has no idea of the endangered life he's been living. Until he visits Li Quan's house church. From that day on, neither man's life is ever the same. Though a work of fiction, Safely Home , written by Randy Alcorn in 2001, speaks volumes about the persecuted church in China. For a North American girl that sits on pa...

My husband Anthony and I are history buffs, but we differ in the way we approach history. Ant spends hours watching the History Channel as they recount countless facts surrounding World War II or the Cold War. On the other hand, I love the stories behind history. I enjoy discovering the facts within the confines of a compelling story. He wants to know the facts. I want to know the people and how those facts affected their lives. So with that backdrop, I'll admit to a little trivia about me. Titanic is one of my favorite movie. Even though the story of Rose DeWitt Bukater and Jack Dawson is completely fictitious, I love the brilliance behind the weaving of their story into true occurrences of the Titanic. Rose, a feisty young woman, boards the Titanic with her mother and her fiance Cal, son of a steel tycoon. Her mother insists that Rose's impending marriage to Cal is necessary for their financial survival and social standing, but Rose despises he...

This weekend, my husband Anthony and I rented the action-drama Unknown . This new release stars Liam Neeson, and has a record fast pace from beginning to end. Scientist Dr. Martin Harris travels to Berlin with his wife Liz to attend a biotechnology summit, and by all appearances, they are a happily-married couple. After a series of peculiar events, Martin succumbs to a cab wreck. When he awakens from a four-day coma, Martin frantically sets off to reunite with his wife. However, when he finally reconnects with her, he's stunned to find she doesn't know him. Baffled, he questions his own sanity. He resolves to recapture his old life, convinced that there's an evil plot against him and his wife. Throughout the film, he wages a battle against the unidentified person that has devised this plot. His larger battle is against the unknown . This is a battle we too must face. When we set out on the road to God-given pu...

In Pixar's 2009 animated film Up , we watch young Carl Fredricksen grow from a quiet little boy with an adventurous spirit into an endearing husband and balloon vendor. Over the years we see Carl's dreams burst like the balloons he sells. He never completes an expedition around the world. He and his wife Ellie never have the children they've hoped for. And once he finally arranges their dream-trip to "Paradise Falls," Ellie becomes very ill and dies. When a series of unfortunate events sends him to court, a judge orders Carl to move to a retirement home. Fighting this fate, he travels in his house (being lifted by thousands of helium balloons) to Paradise Falls. Paradise Falls proves to be less than paradise in reality, and in the end, he must choose to let go of his house -- and his past -- in order to save those that matter around him. Like Carl, we too have a tendency to hold on to the past. Getting stuck in the past can be very destructive to walking...

Have you watched movies that create energy in your spirit? The Devil Wears Prada , a 2006 comedy-drama, does this for me. I love watching the drama unfold between fashion magazine editor Miranda Priestly and her fledgling assistant Andrea Sachs. Intelligent and talented, Andrea has recently graduated from college, and now she must graduate from the Miranda Priestly School of Hard Knocks. We watch Andrea succeed and fail at work, and we watch her fail miserably in her personal life. Wanting so much to prove her worth to herself and the world (with Miranda consuming the majority of her world), Andrea loses her man, her friends and herself. There's a scene that immediately came to mind when I thought of the issue of pride. Miranda and Andrea are in Paris discussing Miranda's decision to sell out loyal employees and friends in order to stay on top of the fashion business. Miranda (played by the phenomenal Meryl Streep) speaks with an air that matches her "Queen Bee"...

Acclaimed author Alice Walker wrote The Color Purple in 1982 for which she was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction just a year later. A few years later, Steven Spielberg directed The Color Purple for the wide screen, and now Walker's amazing story can be seen on theater stages around the world. The story follows the life of Celie, an African American female in the rural South during the 1930's. Celie spends the majority of her life being misused, rejected and overlooked. Sexually abused by the man she believes to be her father, she marries into a loveless, abusive relationship with "Mister." Without a shred of respect for his wife, Mister invites his mistress, Shug Avery, to stay in their home while she recovers from an illness. In a famous scene, Shug lays eyes on Celie for the first time, breaks into a wide grin and yells, "You sho' is ugly!" After years and years of emotional and physical abuse from those around her, Celie believes the insult...

In the 1988 comedy film Coming To America, Prince Akeem, son of a wealthy king in a fictitious African country, learns that he will soon marry a beautiful princess. His excitement quickly wanes when he discovers that his bride-to-be, a young woman raised from birth to complement him perfectly, has no mind of her own. When he inquires about her personal likes and dislikes, she repeats the same answer every time. "What kind of food do you like?" Akeem asks. "Whatever kind of food you like," she answers, with a bow. He tries again. "What kind of music do you like?" "Whatever kind of music you like," she says again, with a bow. And on and on their discussion goes. Whenever he attempts to discover what she likes, she repeats, "Whatever ________ you like." Oh, and she always follows her answer with a bow. This conversation gets old really quick. Akeem begs his parents to allow him to venture to the United States before his weddin...

In the 2006 film Akeelah and the Bee , young Akeelah faces the opportunity of a lifetime. An African American girl from Crenshaw, California, and the product of a single-parent home, she goes all the way to the national spelling bee. During her ascent to the bee, however, Akeelah must overcome fear, insecurity and peer pressure in order to win the spelling bee. A former UCLA English professor steps in as Akeelah's mentor or "Great Bellini." (Read my July 20th post Creating a Legacy of Purpose to discover this Bellini.) He coaches her in the art of language, not settling for his protegee simply learning how to spell big words. He teaches her to break words down into bite size pieces to discover their meaning. With Dr. Larabee's help, Akeelah becomes a master of words. In my favorite scene, Dr. Larabee asks Akeelah to read a poem that he has displayed on the wall. Here's the poem, written by Marianne Williamson, in its entirety: "Our deepest fear is no...

(Graphic courtesy of my son Kalin, who insisted this was cool, not scary!) We're two-thirds of the way to the finish line, and we've covered much ground here at "31 Days of Purpose." What's most exciting about this journey? I'm still discovering my God-given purpose, along with many of you. And while I've been writing this blog post over the last twenty days, God's given me more and more insight concerning this life-altering pursuit. Today I'd like to switch gears for the last leg of our journey. For the next several days we'll discuss what I call "Purpose Stealers." These purpose stealers can prevent us from discovering our purpose. They are either sent by our enemy or lurk within our own hearts. These posts may be convicting at times, but just know that I'm receiving a double portion of conviction before you read them! So hang on for the ride. It's going to hurt so good! Before I present our first Purpose Stealer, ma...

What's our greatest resource in this world? Is it oil or crops or solar energy? Think about it. What do we have with us today that will invest the most in our future as a nation and even the whole world? Two words: our children . Let's be honest.  If we're going to live life with God-given purpose as our priority, then we've got to nurture the same in our children. Now when I say "our children," I'm not letting any of you off the hook. Years before I had children of my own, I had two nieces, lots of younger cousins, and countless children and teens in my church, neighborhood and community. If you're over the age of twenty-one, you've got influence -- and responsibility -- in the lives of young people around you. Please don't waste that influence. As for my kiddos, my husband and I have already caught tiny glimpses of God's vision for them. (Notice I said God's vision, not our vision!) Each one is completely tailor-made with ...

"When God closes one door He opens another." For those of you new to faith in Christ or not well-versed in the Bible yet, don't rush to your Bibles to find these words. This saying is hardly a scripture verse, but I think it's kinda poetic. And it's often true. At least in my life. There have been several times in my life when I've been charging towards a doorway -- something that I just know God has for me -- and right when I hit the threshold -- BAM!!! The door shuts right in my face, just missing my nose. This has happened in relationships, especially with the opposite sex during my dating years. It's happened with job opportunities. And it's happened while pursuing my purpose. On May 29 in The Death and Rebirth of a Dream I shared at length about my recent experience at a writer's conference. I had attended the conference confident that I was the next breakout novelist. I was sure the editors and agents would be asking me to send them my f...