Akeelah and the Bee

So I've been wanting to see Akeelah and the Bee for quite some time now. Actually, I've been wanting to see it since I saw it advertised all over Starbucks a couple of Christmases ago... I've been sucked in, I know. Anyway, I was pretty impressed. I'd get my kids to see it... if I had any.

There was a powerful quote in the movie:

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It is not just in some of us; it is in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

The quote has mistakenly been associated with Nelson Mandela. Well, there's a connection... the quote is actually by Marianne Williamson. Claimed Christian with Jewish roots, I'm not sure I know enough about her to make an informed comment about her books. But I can say that the quote has an innate truth to it.

We all project God's glory. And our false definition of humility will often make ourselves hide the glorious image that God has placed in us. Our being forgiven for our sinfulness allows us to take pride in the cross of Jesus and allow God's glory to shine... and the result is liberation for all around us.

I often find myself shrinking, like I want to be a martyr.... the dirty secret to someone else's success. But this is not truth. God grants us a special confidence because leaning on him changes the way we approach the world. We are born to emit God.

"Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in Heaven." THAT'S the meaning of life. :)

Kimu Cast

Hey, check it out.... had an interview for the Kimucast. :)

Click here to go the podcast.

Building a Bear

Well, she built a cat, not a bear. But it was so nice to be able to be Auntie Somi for Kayln for her birthday. She's pretty much been reminding me of this trip since October of last year... and I hear it every week!

Truthfully, I've been looking forward to it almost as much. And how could you not with her being SO excited about it! There are times when you just feel like it's totally worth it, despite the expense.

The Real World

I enjoyed a long-desired past-time today... curling up in a Starbucks armchair with a latte and a geeky book. Yes, it was awesome. The book "The Eclipse of Biblical Narrative" was a book I had wanted to delve into for quite some time. I've started it at least three times.. I'm committed to finishing it this time!

Something in it struck me today. There was a section that talked about the way that Scripture had always been read. It was not that it was trying to reconstruct the whole ostensive (tangible) world of the past. Rather, it's trying to paint the appropriate perspective by which we should understand the past... God's perspective.

It's like watching a film. The writer and director is creating a particular world for the viewer to accept. For example, in Spiderman, we simply accept that it is possible for people to morph into monsters simply by scientific experiments going array... we accept that someone can fall several stories from a building and hit their head on a dumpster and result in just a bloody cut on the side of the head but still can run away from the scene without any broken bones. Or let's take it a step further... we can accept that even killing someone is an acceptable form of revenge so long as our hero remains "right" and the one killed is considered pure "evil."

Directors simply establish a set of truths, and if skilled enough, have the ability in that to redefine what is right and wrong. And if they are good at their craft, audiences will believe it for those 2 hours in the theatre, enough to lose themselves in the story. (which makes me cringe at the world we introduce to young minds when they watch horror films...)

In our every day world, we are bombarded by the world's standards of right and wrong. In our world today, premarital sex is just something everyone does for fun. Hating someone is OK if they "deserve it." Smoking is acceptable as long as you don't impose it on someone who doesn't like it. Swearing is totally a right every person has for themselves. The goal in life is to get married, have kids, buy your home, your car, your life... This world has painted its own moral strokes and every day, we get sucked into it.

The Bible does a similar thing. The difference is that it paints the world from the eyes of the One Who created it. God presents to us the accurate picture of reality -- the only true reality. As readers we accept that reality. As Christians, we must go one step further.... we are responsible to align our lives according to that reality -- and therein lies great freedom.

When we go too long from reading the world through God's eyes, we lose the sense of reality and get sucked into a false reality that takes us far from where we should be. And at moments when we stop to see where we are, we can find ourselves lost and far from where we should be. We find ourselves hating instead of loving our enemies. We choose self over others. We find ourselves criticizing rather than encouraging. We consent to lose our battles, instead of feeling energized to continuing to fight the good fight.

Somehow, we need to grasp the absolutely vital role that Scripture plays in our lives. God has allowed us to get a glimpse of His world His way... and what a tragedy that we stumble around in life feeling lost, when the real world is only a page turn away. We need to continue to remind ourselves of the way the world really is -- and it is a world that God has given His life for... a world damaged by sin -- but so loved by God.

Season Ending Blow

So that's the season. The Canucks laid a stinker for most of the first three periods until Burrows bailed them out with a sharp-angled goal. But I guess there was a glimpse of hope that made you think that you could see one more game in Vancouver.

I guess it wasn't meant to be.

And being the avid Canucks fan that I am, I'll mourn a bit, lick my wounds, transition into my denial stage, and in about a week, I'll be back to getting pumped up for the next season. I mean, after all, being a Canucks fan, this is my annual ritual. I'm just glad I got to do it a little later in the year than I have in the past few. :)

Good things that happened this year:

1. We got Bobby Lou!!
2. Bieksa is our new young up and coming prospect
3. Vigneault DID know what he was doing!
4. I've never seen the city rally around the team as much as this year.
5. Linden showed some evidence that he may end his career well.
6. Sedins are finally easier to watch.
7. Pyatt's a babe.
8. No "Bertuzzi" incidents this year
9. The best run I've ever seen from the Canucks from Dec 26th on!
10. First time watching hockey games in HD (dang!! you can never go back!)

The team gave me something to cheer about for the last several months. And now, I'm back. (Julia will be glad.)

We Are All Canucks

Looks like everyone's into the craze... I get to see this sign every day on my way to work.

Go Canucks Go!

Gotta hate those Leafs and Flames...



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(thanks for the photo laughs, preston... needed that after our disheartening loss last night...)