My 2nd oldest daughter got to enjoy her spring break last week and since her two sisters had already been on break, there were no fancy vacation plans in place for us. The only outing that she was very adamant about was going to the movies. Being that she is only 8 years old, I was certain that she was going to opt to see Jungle Book or another animated movie. But she insisted that we see “Miracles From Heaven” and I’m grateful she did.
Miracles From Heaven depicts the story of a young girl named Anna who has a chronic illness that has no known cure. After dealing with severe pain, constant vomiting, and other side effects, her mother takes her to one of the world’s best pediatric gastroenterologists in hopes of getting her daughter some help. The most interesting part was how the help came and all those outside of Anna who would ultimately be helped.
I thought this remarkable story of hope, prayer, love and faith was simply going to inspire us to believe in miracles. That lesson in itself is priceless, yet it taught me so much more. Here are three valuable faith nuggets that I took away:
1. Faith sometimes is work. – I borrowed that line from one of my favorite Kirk Franklin’s song “Everyone Hurts” because it is so relevant to the situations in this movie. The dad in the movie made this profound statement: “Faith is operating under the assumption that it’s all going to be ok.” As hard as it is, we have to move past hurts, disappointment and fear and just assume that all will be well. I truly think that is why it is written that if we just have faith as a mustard seed, we can move mountains. God knew that we would face some adversity that would make it difficult to believe. In those trying times, if we can just hold on to that tiny seed of faith we can make it through whatever life throws at us.
Also Related: Motivational Monday: Replace Fear with Faith
2. Grow your faith by giving it away. – At one point in the movie, Anna was hospitalized and sharing her room with another little girl who was gravely ill with cancer. Anna chose to give her roommate a cross necklace as a symbol of hope. The necklace was of utmost importance to Anna and she had never taken it off because for her it meant that Jesus was right there with her. How many of us can honestly say that we could have given away the very thing that was giving us of a glimpse of hope? However, the greatest thing about sharing your faith is that when you give it away, God increases your faith all the more.
3. Not everyone is going to believe. – Knowing what you do about the all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful One, at times makes it difficult to fathom that someone doesn’t know or even doesn’t want to know Him for themselves. Anna told her mother, “Not everyone is going to believe. That’s alright. They’ll get there when they get there.” On so many issues, we tend to think that our moment of enlightenment needs to be everyone else’s aha moment. But remember, at some point you were in the dark as well. It is just your job to keep believing, keep sharing and keep praying.
As much as I was surprised that this was my daughter’s movie pick, I am so elated at her choice. Every now and then we need reinforcement on our faith journey and my dose of “Miracles From Heaven” was precisely what the Doctor ordered!
What has helped you when you struggle with your faith?
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