When I was little, my mother used to make stew periodically. It was her way of cleaning out the refrigerator and saving money. She put in stew meat, then whatever vegetables had been left over during the week and inhabited those various plastic containers. The stew was pretty good, but you never knew what vegetables you would find in it. You did know, however, that the stew meat would always be there to give it a good, hearty taste. Without the meat, you would be disappointed.

I went to see Bruce Almighty last night and felt the same way about it. I went partly because I read that the writer was a Christian and tried to convey a message about God in the movie. The overall theme of the movie was probably the best thing about it. God brings Bruce to a place where he surrenders to God’s will, recognizing that God knows best. Along the way, you got some slapstick, some crude sexual humor, some cussing, some general crudeness, and some humanism. The ending is sort of humanistic, actually. Although Bruce surrenders to God’s will, he proceeds to take God’s advice to “be the miracle”. The surrender to God’s will produces a life more dedicated to others, and less selfish, but not necessarily to glorify God. So, the message was a little mixed, seemed good, but left you yearning for more.

God does more than just sit up there and listen to us and try to figure out what is best for us. For starters, he sent his Son to die for our sins, giving us eternal life. Then, he sent the Holy Spirit to help us live here on earth in a Christ-like fashion. Surrender to God’s will is great. But the first thing surrender means is surrender to Christ. Then, the surrender is played out in the changes God makes in us, to bring Glory to himself and to bring others to Christ. Maybe the movie will cause some to think more about God, and that is good. But, at the end, I felt maybe Mom had left the meat out of the stew.