Almost 10 years ago, 2007ish, I
picked up a book that was the latest New York Times Best Seller, The
Shack. I was a sophomore in high school and was fascinated with learning
more about the Holy Spirit. I read this book and loved the way this creative
author portrayed the Holy Trinity.
I passed this book on to special
people in my life and found that it was easier for some non-believers or people
who struggled in their faith to read this book than it was for them to read the
Bible. One of those being my precious cousin, Hank. Hank was an awesome guy, a
believer, but not a big reader. Yet, he found interest in this book. Every day
over the course of time that he read this book, he would text me and tell me
how much he loved it and how it was speaking to his heart. He loved that God
would present himself to a man, to spend a weekend with him, just to show him
that He is a good God. Hank longed for that kind of weekend in his life.
Fast forward 5 years, and my
precious cousin in his 40’s passed away on March 26, 2011, due to a heart
attack. I was devastated, beyond devastated. He was the first person that I was
extremely close with that I ever lost. However, I watched God use that book, The
Shack and teach Hank over the course of those 4 years. I watched Hank grow
more in those 4 years of his walk with God than I had ever seen. God used The
Shack to show Hank that He is a good God, and He cares for every need big
and small. God used that book to connect with Hank on a level that he had never
experienced. The book inspired Hank to read his Bible, to worship freely, and
to pray without ceasing. I will forever be thankful for this precious book that
sparked a fire in my cousin.
Now let’s fast forward 6 more
years, to Sunday night, March 5, 2017. The Shack was released as a theatrical
production! I was so excited to see it and have no regrets in watching it. It
was absolutely amazing. I loved every precious minute of this story. There are
many who choose to say that it is not correct, blasphemy, etc. Friends, I can
say that that’s not the case at all. This precious movie is a story depicting a
question of why do bad things happen to good people, believers even? And why do
we have to forgive those who hurt us? Why are bad people that make poor choices
still allowed into the kingdom of God? These are questions that are so hard for
a non-believer or a person who is struggling in their walk to fathom and
comprehend. This movie answers these questions so well and depicts the amazing
love that our Father in heaven has for us.
Do I think this movie is a
substitute for the gospel? Absolutely not! However, I can totally see
this as a tool to bring non-believers and those who struggle in their walk to
come into a deeper relationship with their Creator.
As I was watching this movie, I
pulled out my phone (yes I know, rude in a theater, but I knew I would never
remember these precious quotes if I didn’t write them down) and made a list of
some awesome points this movie makes. ****SPOILER ALERT IF YOU HAVEN’T READ
BOOK OR SEEN MOVIE*****
“After what you’ve been through, I didn’t think you could handle a
father right now.” –Papa, God
o This quote is when Mack is just realizing
who he is speaking to, and questions why God is a woman. He mentions that he
always pictured God as a white man with a long white beard. Mack is baffled and
confused about everything around him at this point, which is when Papa makes
this statement.
o
There are some very intricate and important
reasons why God takes the expressions and forms he does for Mack. This shows that it’s in his nature to
meet us where we are and to take us to where He is.
“When all you see is your pain,
you lose sight of me.” –Papa, God
o
Mack is having a conversation with Papa and
questioning how can He be good, if Missy was taken for no reason.
o
Papa explains to Mack that when we are focused
on what’s wrong in our life, we aren’t able to focus on Him. We have to seek
Him first for wisdom, instead of blaming. We aren’t able to look and see the good that can come from the bad, because
we won’t look up from our mess to see the Healer of all things.
“Love always leaves a mark.” –Papa,
God
o
Papa
shows the scars in his wrist that are there because of the crucifixion of His
son, Jesus on the cross at Calvary. He says that love always leaves something
behind. His love for us was so great
that He was willing to give it all, all, being His one and only son, so that we
might live. We were created in
His image and we too are left with marks, although they are not visible, are
still left with marks on our heart from the people we love.
“… You were created to be loved.
So for you to live as if you were unloved is a limitation, not the other way
around… Living unloved is like clipping a bird’s wing and removing its ability
to fly… A bird is not defined by being grounded but by his ability to fly.
Remember this, humans are defined not by their limitations, but by the
intentions I have for them; not by what they seem to be, but by everything it
means to be created in my image. Love is NOT the limitation; love is the
flying. I AM love. ” --Papa, God
o
In this scene, Papa and Mack are looking out of
this beautiful little “shack” and see a bird. Papa uses this as a teaching
point for Mack and tells him what his purpose was meant to be, which is to be
loved. We were never created to walk in defeat, failure, and self-loathing. We
were created to be loved by the Most High and let that love encourage those
around us and let it go back in praise to the Father.
o
God
doesn’t see us as our limitations or the things that we struggle with, God see
us as we can be. He can see what our finished product is. Our walk with Him
is constantly preparing us for what is to come.
“You’re trying to make sense of
your world with an incomplete picture.” --Sarayu, The Holy Spirit
o
Here, the Holy Spirit is speaking with Mack in
the garden and they are discussing the confusion and chaos of his life in
losing his daughter, Missy. Meanwhile,
they are paralleling this with his his work in the garden with the Holy Spirit.
Mack sees it as a huge disaster and mess. However, when you look at the garden from an aerial view you are
able to see the beautiful design that has been created. It is absolutely
breathtaking, when you look at it from that perspective.
o
Sometimes we can’t see the end in sight, we
can’t see what is coming next, but God does. We can’t put the full picture
together, but we can TRUST in the one who is working all things together for
our good, because HE IS A GOOD GOD.
“It’s wild, perfectly in process.
This mess is you.”---Sarayu, The Holy Spirit
o
God recognizes that we don’t have it all figured
out. He knows and sees that we are not the finished products that He has in
store. He sees that and loves us despite
ourselves.
o
The Holy Spirit, also named Sarayu, tells Mack
as they look at the garden again, that it’s okay to not be okay. It’s okay. We
are a process. We are a mess, but when we allow the Holy Spirit to work in us
and through us we are able to still be used through our mess.
“You’re letting it consume you, that’s
inside you. You look at me”--- the Son, Jesus
o
Mack is in a boat out in the water waiting on
the Son to come back from working in the shed. While out in the boat, he begins
to have a horrible hallucination and fright. He can’t seem to break free from it.
o
While in this horrible dream like sequence,
Jesus speaks this to him. He is telling Mack to focus on HIM! Focus on Jesus! Don’t let our problems, fears, defeats,
losses, and hurt consume our beings, instead focus on Jesus and we will
finish the race! When Mack finds the eyes of Jesus, He is able to let go of
that past regret and is actually able to walk on water with the Son of God!
“You’re imagining a future without
me and that future does not exist.”—the Son, Jesus
o
Jesus promises to never leave nor forsake us no
matter what. At this point in the story, Mack is trying to figure out how the
rest of his life is going to pan out without Missy. However, the Son explains
that He is going before us and with us throughout the whole journey.
“It was the work of evil, no one
in your world is immune to it.” –Saaryu, the Holy Spirit
o
Sarayu is explaining to Mack God is a good
God, but there is an enemy on the planet that seeks to kill and destroy.
There is no one on earth that can get away from it. We can have God’s hand over
us, but there is always going to be evil in this world.
o
This is one of the quotes that dispel the
argument that The Shack does not believe in the enemy or mention Hell. It very
well says that evil is searching to hurt the people of God. The Holy Spirit.
“ I can work incredible good out
of unspeakable tragedies, that doesn’t mean I orchestrate the tragedy.” –Papa,
God
o
I love this so much. It’s just the verse Romans
8:28 written in simpler terms, the NIV says, “And we know that in All things, God works for the good of those who
love him.”
o
God doesn’t cause bad things to happen, but
He can use them for good in our lives.
o
Mack is trying to process his loss, but is
starting to learn that God is not to blame for this tragedy. God does not cause suffering in our
lives, but He will use the suffering to bring even greater blessings.
“Look around, don’t forget to
enjoy the journey.” –
o
I just loved this because God is always using
things around us to bless us and give us hope. Mack is surrounded by this
beautiful lake, garden, and mountain throughout his weekend with the 3. God wants us to be captivated by His
beauty. He doesn't want us focused on the problem, but on our journey out of the problem with our eyes fixed on Him!
“For what we have to do today, you’re going
to need a Father.” –Papa, God
o
Later on in the movie, after Mack has dealt with
the painful past dealing with the disappearance and death of his daughter, “Papa”
is no longer seen as a woman. Instead, he appears as a man middle aged Asian
man, who provides incredible strength and guidance, as Mack finishes the
hardest part of his emotional journey. It once again shows that our Heavenly Father
knows exactly what we need, before we ever need it.
“Everything bears consequences,
I’m not asking to excuse what he did, I’m asking you to trust me.”—Papa, God
o This is special because Mack
is being asked to forgive the man who took Missy. God doesn’t say that there is
no justice. He doesn’t say that the man is off the hook. God says every thing has a consequence, which means He is the judge,
not us.
o It’s okay to be angry and
it’s okay to not understand, but we have to trust in Him to be our advocate and
our justice.
“The pain
inside you, is devouring your joy.”---Papa, God
o When we allow our pain and our
thoughts to take control of our minds, we rob ourselves of the joy we can have
in Jesus. Even if we are not happy, we can still have joy in the fact that we
are going to spend eternity with Him. We aren’t mean to live in defeat.
“It’s
crippling your ability to love.”—Papa, God
o Mack’s inability to forgive
was causing him to not be able to love. He couldn’t forgive himself and he
couldn’t forgive the man who took Missy, and he couldn’t stop blaming God. Papa
shows him that this was causing him to not be able to love his family, his
wife, his kids, his friends in the way that he is called to.
“You are
important, so everything you do is important.” ---Papa, God
o I saved the best for last. I
just love how God is reminding us that he cares about everything big and small
in our lives. He is interested in our hurts, our desires, our passions, our
disappointments, and everything in between.
o Just like the scripture says, “You have collected all of my tears in your
bottle. You have recorded each one in your book.” Psalm 56:8
o Sarayu, the Holy Spirit,
collects all of his tears in a bottle throughout the movie. It just shows in a
tangible way how intricate God is. It shows how He cares about detail and that
our emotions are real and matter to Him.
As
you can tell, I loved this movie it spoke to my heart. It was used to help heal
pieces in my heart that I didn’t know were still broken. It was a beautiful
representation of the trinity and the PURE, HOLY, JUST, KIND, ADORING, LOVE
that the Father has for us.
This
movie was never meant to replace the Gospel or say that God, Jesus, and the
Holy Spirit looks like those particular characters. It was meant to be a tool
to help people connect with the Living God. It wasn’t mean to tell you exactly
what they look like and how they will sound and talk, it was meant to show us that God WANTS US A RELATIONSHIP WITH US.
He is constantly pursuing on hearts and will do whatever it takes, even if it
is a weekend with a man in The Shack. He cares about You, You matter.
Put
aside your religious cloak, throw it down, and take a non-believer to this
movie. Then, take them out for coffee or
fro-yo after. Go help them understand that God is 3 in 1, He may not look like
those characters, but His character is evident in all of those characters' words and actions. Tell them He is pursuing their hearts and longs for a relationship
with them. Use this movie as a ministry tool.
Just go love people like Jesus did.
Living
to make Jesus Famous,
Amy
DuVall
Xoxox
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