My wife, baby, and I are on vacation up in Utah between my school quarters. It's a great feeling to reunite with family. I find it interesting that we seem to always appreciate things after we have gone with out them for some time. Tears just welled up in my eyes when I embraced my Mom and Dad, in the tiny front room filled with laughter and noise. I feel family is home. It really is where my heart is, no matter how much of a difficult time I've had with my family we have also had some really great times, and I love them!
Movie ideas seem to rush through my head daily and I can hardly think without plugging an experience I have or others have into a movie. The more I'm learning how to write stories, the more I see that stories can have a purpose far beyond merely to entertain or make money. They can potentially change the mind of a person. It may not seem like a big thing, but to me, changing someone's mind is a huge deal. Change of mind can be the start of a whole new adventure that leads us happiness, better relationships, better citizenship, or even just more respect for ourselves.
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Thursday, June 17, 2010
The Hook
There have been so many things that have confirmed to me recently that God loves us. He knows when we are discouraged and He knows how to lift our spirits. There are a couple of scriptures that have really illuminated this truth for me.
The first comes from the Book of Mormon in Moroni 9:25. Mormon, a prophet historian & commander of an army writes to his son Moroni illustrating atrocities committed by his men and ends his letter with enthusiasm, "My son, be faithful in Christ; and may not the things which I have written grieve thee, to weigh thee down unto adeath; but may Christ lift thee up, and may his sufferings and death, and the showing his body unto our fathers, and his mercy and blong-suffering, and the hope of his glory and of eternal life, rest in your cmind forever." The world around us is sinking fast under peer pressure and the pressure of living a materialistic debt encumbered lifestyle, but we don't need to sink with it. According to this scripture it is Christ that will "lift thee up". And thinking about it, it's not necessarily hard times that have made my life unbearable, it has been when I forgot to put the Lord first in my life, and ambitions.
The second scripture is Philippians 4:4-7. It teaches me not to be excessively worried about anything. To "rejoice in the Lord [always]", and that if we put our trust and faith in Jesus Christ then "the peace of God that passeth all understanding shall keep [our] hearts and minds [forever]."
What ever line of work we choose, or degree path, friends, marriage companion, etc. we will need to place our trust in God if we are to complete our mortal journey with joy and minimal regrets.
My girls are sleeping while I type. Lindsy, my beloved is asleep on the couch with an open book in her hand, and Katie is sound asleep on the floor dreaming, probably about tearing paper I'll bet. Life is good. It is, in the words of Stephanie Nielson, "O so good."
The first comes from the Book of Mormon in Moroni 9:25. Mormon, a prophet historian & commander of an army writes to his son Moroni illustrating atrocities committed by his men and ends his letter with enthusiasm, "My son, be faithful in Christ; and may not the things which I have written grieve thee, to weigh thee down unto adeath; but may Christ lift thee up, and may his sufferings and death, and the showing his body unto our fathers, and his mercy and blong-suffering, and the hope of his glory and of eternal life, rest in your cmind forever." The world around us is sinking fast under peer pressure and the pressure of living a materialistic debt encumbered lifestyle, but we don't need to sink with it. According to this scripture it is Christ that will "lift thee up". And thinking about it, it's not necessarily hard times that have made my life unbearable, it has been when I forgot to put the Lord first in my life, and ambitions.
The second scripture is Philippians 4:4-7. It teaches me not to be excessively worried about anything. To "rejoice in the Lord [always]", and that if we put our trust and faith in Jesus Christ then "the peace of God that passeth all understanding shall keep [our] hearts and minds [forever]."
What ever line of work we choose, or degree path, friends, marriage companion, etc. we will need to place our trust in God if we are to complete our mortal journey with joy and minimal regrets.
My girls are sleeping while I type. Lindsy, my beloved is asleep on the couch with an open book in her hand, and Katie is sound asleep on the floor dreaming, probably about tearing paper I'll bet. Life is good. It is, in the words of Stephanie Nielson, "O so good."
Sunday, June 13, 2010
INT. DAY 1 Sunday June 13th
We just got home from church and I was watching the story of Stephanie Nielson, and it has moved me to start a blog of my own. I am so impressed at her and her husband's good attitudes and natures. My wife and I are praying for them. I believe the Lord God allows bad things to happen to good people sometimes to help the rest of us to get it together and live for Him.
Real life has been pounding at the door recently as we've made a leap of faith and moved to Arizona a few months ago. Good friends of ours, the Garretts, allowed us to bunk with them for 3 weeks until we found a place to live.We knew the Lord would help us figure everything out as we went along. I've started attending Film school on top of all of our unknowns. It has been interesting to learn just a small bit of how much one has to work to stay faithful in such a crooked industry. My occupational goal has been getting in the way of our eternal goals. I believe this can be said of so many of us. We can start feeling empowered and recognized for our good efforts and somehow replace our family with worldly success, and the venture after it.
Having my very own family is amazing! My very own wife who loves me! having an 8 month old daughter who loves us both (and loves to be held and so my one handed typing skills are being sharpened :) ) is truely the greatest story to be lived and told to those who are yet to come to earth. True we need jobs, but when this life ends God is going to be more intensely concerned about how I did as a father and a husband than how good my movies were made, or how good my acting was.
I know God loves all of us. I know we're all different, but I know He loves his little children.
Real life has been pounding at the door recently as we've made a leap of faith and moved to Arizona a few months ago. Good friends of ours, the Garretts, allowed us to bunk with them for 3 weeks until we found a place to live.We knew the Lord would help us figure everything out as we went along. I've started attending Film school on top of all of our unknowns. It has been interesting to learn just a small bit of how much one has to work to stay faithful in such a crooked industry. My occupational goal has been getting in the way of our eternal goals. I believe this can be said of so many of us. We can start feeling empowered and recognized for our good efforts and somehow replace our family with worldly success, and the venture after it.
Having my very own family is amazing! My very own wife who loves me! having an 8 month old daughter who loves us both (and loves to be held and so my one handed typing skills are being sharpened :) ) is truely the greatest story to be lived and told to those who are yet to come to earth. True we need jobs, but when this life ends God is going to be more intensely concerned about how I did as a father and a husband than how good my movies were made, or how good my acting was.
I know God loves all of us. I know we're all different, but I know He loves his little children.
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