October 2014 Movie Wrap-Up

By Andrea Renee Cox

October always signifies the changing of seasons for me. Daylight lessens, though it may still be H-O-T here in north Texas, and I always get sleepy earlier because of the shorter daylight hours. Thankfully, this year a few cool fronts moved through and put a little nippiness into many days this month.

In other news, October brought my first back-to-back proofreading jobs. Being paid to read—my favorite hobby—is a dream come true, and I’m grateful God has blessed me with the talent and passion for the work. I’m so grateful that He’s increasing my clientele by word of mouth. That’s the best advertising I know.

Here are a couple movies I saw this month that really resonated with me.

THE GOOD LIE

When a group of kids survives the genocide that wiped out their village, their bond intensifies and they journey (on foot!) across the continent of Africa to find a safe place to live. After living in a refugee camp for many years, they finally get the opportunity to go to the United States. But when they get there, they are told the only female of the group must go to a different part of the country than the guys. After all they went through in their lives, this proves to be too much. One of the men makes it his mission to reunite his family, no matter what it may cost him.

I had heard of their story several years ago when I picked up a book called The Journey of the Lost Boys. I didn’t purchase it then, but I thought their story was incredible. Seeing it up on the big screen proved that I was correct. The neatest thing about the movie (besides the awesomeness of the story itself) was that the main characters were all portrayed by folks who had been refugees or child soldiers in Africa. They did a wonderful job, and now I know why. They had already lived the story once. All they had to do was recall those memories and feelings and live them out once again, this time to be captured on film. This truly is an amazing film that will find a spot on my shelves as soon as it releases on BluRay.

MILLION DOLLAR ARM

When a sports agent loses his last hope of signing a big-name client, he’s got to think outside the box in order to save his business. So, he goes to India to turn cricket players into baseball pitchers. Daunting task as it is, he recruits a little help and heads off on a journey that changes his life forever.

Although I wasn’t a fan of the soundtrack to this movie (I don’t like rap music), I still loved the story. I’m a sports fan (NBA and NHL are my favorites, followed by lacrosse and volleyball), so I watch almost any sports movie that comes around. (See this post for my favorite football movie of all time.) This one was interesting because it took guys out of what they knew and into something they didn’t know anything about.

That resembles my faith more than I realized. Before I became a Christian, I didn’t know what having faith and being born again meant at all. I heard the Bible stories in Sunday School and big church, but until Jesus opened my eyes to the fact that I was a sinner, I didn’t understand what it was all about. But then He showed me that I was a liar. I lied all the time, and my family and friends never knew when to believe me. I remember getting called out on this once when I was seven years old and, backing up against the wall, feeling like the room was caving in on me. Jesus confronted me, which was the most incredible feeling. My parents were in the room across from me, but at that point, it was like I could only see Jesus standing between them and me (it was more like I could sense His presence there). Like He was the one telling me I was in the wrong, instead of my parents. That’s when I told Him I didn’t want to live that way anymore. I didn’t want to tell lies. I wanted my family to be able to believe me. So, in that very moment, I asked Jesus to enter my heart and change my life. Ever since then, I’ve been living for Him, and let me tell you, He did change my life in so many ways over the years. I now don’t lie. I sometimes have trouble with exaggeration, but I’m working on it because stretching the truth is too close to telling lies for my comfort. I used to be a pessimist, but now I’m an optimistic encourager. God has changed my life. Have you allowed Him to change yours yet?

Readers, how has faith played a part in your life? When you struggle to overcome your faults, how does God reveal His great love for you?

Books have always been a passion for Andrea Renee Cox. She can't remember a time when she didn't have one nearby. While reading them for pleasure remains her favorite hobby, she now also writes them, learning more about the craft with each new manuscript she completes. Since grammar was her favorite subject in school, it makes sense that she'd combine that with her favorite hobby and become a professional proofreader, as well.

Thanks for stopping by today! I look forward to hearing your thoughts in the comment section below. And don’t forget to drop by next Monday for my latest article.

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