Aronil - Evan Almighty; - Obedience and God’s Favour

It’s been a while since I wrote about a movie, but I’d like to write on ‘Evan Almighty‘. Not so much by giving a review on the film, but more so what were values it had, which I thought were quite relevant. You can see the review on it on Christian Today Movies

Genesis 6:14: Make thee an ark of gopher wood; rooms shalt thou make in the ark, and shalt pitch it within and without with pitch.

Just like it’s pre-successor, Bruce Almighty, Evan Almighty (Steve Carell) is about a man, trying to find his way in the world of politics and hoping to change the world. Guess what he wanted to do it by himself - exception of his family - and then his wife tells him “Hey, it ain’t all bad to pray. I prayed for our family to get closer. What about you?” Evan hesitates. Then later on at night he gets down on his knees and prays - a rather odd prayer but a prayer no less.

**God appears before him the next day.. and the rest you have to watch the movie!

Along the way, of course there were issues and all, to the point where Evan who was trying to do god’s will cause he knew it was his calling, was abandoned by everyone, whom he trusted and loved. The connection it makes between obedience to the Creator and care for his creation, is one of the strengths of the movie.

Deuteronomy 28: [ Blessings for Obedience ] If you fully obey the LORD your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations on earth.

After having left him, god brought his family back, and it was through what was said that left me quite in a thought. God (Morgan Freeman - not the real God!) said to Evan’s wife, as he faked being a waiter,

“Let me ask you something. If someone prays for patience, you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If he prayed for courage, does God give him courage, or does he give him opportunities to be courageous? If someone prayed for the family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings, or does he give them opportunities to love each other? “

….I love this line…

Evan Almighty is not a fantastic movie, but it’s great for laughs and is definitely more wholesome for family viewing compared to Bruce Almighty which was a bit more vulgar and sloppy. Albeit entertaining.

Exodus 9:29: Moses replied, “When I have gone out of the city, I will spread out my hands in prayer to the LORD. The thunder will stop and there will be no more hail, so you may know that the earth is the LORD’s.

We pray. But prayers are not magic. They are not meant to be answered like a pagan’s chanting. Though some prayers are answered instantly - which to me anyway, I consider them miracles. But yeah…I don’t know if it relates to some of you, it does for me.

With the opportunities given, I reckon, the ‘prayee’ will then become a better person and better Christian. Everything is allowed for a reason. Even the bad things. In Evan’s case, his political impression and stand was at stake, not to mention his whole family had thought he had gone nuts and left him. But cause, he was doing god’s will, you can say he was honored in the end.