The other day I watched the movie “Eat, Pray, Love” on Netflix. I thought the movie was wonderfully made and I just love the performance of Julia Roberts. Her smile & laugh truly lights up a room and the woman knows how to show emotions. When she cries, I feel her pain.
However, something was troubling me about the movie. It was a journey of a woman finding herself or quest for God or maybe it was self-forgiveness or was it self-love? Maybe, it was all the above, but as a Christian I would make a different journey. It would probably be called: Repent, Pray, and Love.
I would travel. I think traveling and changing how you see the world is absolutely a beautiful experience but my destination would be different. I would go to Israel. To walk where Jesus walked, see the great Jerusalem-the city of David, and where Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead. I would get a tutor in the Hebrew language to be able to converse with the locals and enjoy the culture. I wouldn’t go on rampage eating everything that was pleasurable because that would be gluttony. I would practice balance and moderation because I know that too much of anything is not good nor healthy.
I would Pray. Not once or twice but truly pray, “Lord, reveal yourself to me. Teach me your ways. Let me feel your presence.” As a Christian, Jesus lives in us through the Holy Spirit so I would pray & ask God for a sign. I would ask for His love to grow so big that it spreads to others and that they would see Jesus in me.
I would search my heart & life and repent of my sins. I would ask God to help me forgive. I would surrender and forgive & release all who have hurt me. Not an easy thing but absolutely possible with Jesus.
I would spend my days touring Israel, taking tons of pictures, and reading the scripture. I would enjoy great food with wonderful people. I would share the great love for my Jesus not because I’m on an evangelistic mission but because if you speak with me long enough, it would just be a matter of time before you discover the source of my joy. I would look for other Christians and find a place to worship and pray.
I would laugh, eat, dance, drink a little wine because there’s a time and place for everything. I wouldn’t get drunk and I wouldn’t practice sexual immorality. I would uphold God’s commands for righteousness. I wouldn’t seek self-love & pleasure, I would seek true Love, true joy, and relationship with my creator.
I would then go on a missions trip to Nicaragua, Honduras, or Guatemala. A place where I could use my Spanish skills to serve, share the gospel, help feed & cloth the poor through a church organization or volunteer program. It would be here where I could grow in humility, give kindness, serve, and where love is seen in action not just words.
I would then return to my life, changed, renewed and with a smile because in this search for God, is where I would find true happiness. This is what my version of Eat, Pray, and Love would look like from a Christian’s perspective with the subtitle “a woman’s journey in finding a deeper relationship with God & true happiness. It would be renamed “Repent, Pray, Love”!