Like a Twig on the Shoulders of a Mighty Stream

We watched Planes, Trains, and Automobiles for the five billionth time this Thanksgiving, and I'm always amazed at how a movie with that much swearing can get to the heart of the Gospel.

But alas, God is everywhere.

One of the protagonists, Del Griffith (played by John Candy), has a bigger story going on than what meets the eye (and I will not ruin it for those of you who are quitting work early just to go watch it. Also, shame on you. Also, good call), but what's even more intriguing about Del, is the way he always rolls with the punches.

In contrast, Steve Martin's character, Neal Page, has never found a punch he hasn't taken straight to the face. Instead of adopting a thankful heart like Del, he instead is very not thankful for the little everyday inconveniences of life.

And it's a wonder the movie doesn't involve a scene where Neal suffers a stress-induced heart attack.

This movie reminds me of two Scripture verses that came into play for me this past week.

The first one is from James and reminds me of Neal's character (or more accurately, the exact opposite of Neal's character):

"...because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires." Huh. I know it's easy to read the Bible and not actually follow it, but what if we took verses like these to heart?

What if whenever we got angry, we realized this wasn't producing godly fruit but a demonic hold that hurts families, ruins friendships, and causes more trouble than we ever intended to be part of in the first place?

The next verse reminds me of Del:

Again, what if we acted on a verse like this? What if the next time you were deeply annoyed, heartbroken, sitting in a big ol’ stinking pile of fear, you gave it all to God and thanked Him that you are alive, breathing, and given the beautiful opportunity of bringing Heaven to others right down here on earth?

Wouldn't life for you (and for everyone) be a little bit different?

There are a lot of favorite parts from Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (otherwise, I wouldn't have watched it five million LITERAL times), but this next little scene says it all.

Neal's miffed after he's left in a parking lot with keys for a nonexistent rental car, and he must trek three miles back to the airport. Del, on the other hand, easily gets a rental car, and this is their exchange:

Neal: Well Del, you're a charmed man.

Del: Nope.

Neal: Oh, I know. You just go with the flow.

Del: Like a twig on the shoulders of a mighty stream.

"Like a twig on the shoulders of a mighty stream." May we all live such wisdom.