Fireproof

Fireproof, the movie, was released on DVD yesterday. For those of you who haven't seen it, and even for those who have, I strongly encourage you to pick up a copy for your personal film library. And while you're at it, maybe grab an extra for a friend who needs hope.

Fireproof conveys the strong testimony of God's saving power in marriage. It vividly (and sometimes painfully) portrays a marriage seemingly broken beyond repair, but God's redeeming grace and mercy prevail.

I've been in one of those marriages, and I'm sure someday I'll share our story, but for now, I can only encourage you that this is a movie worth watching and worth sharing.

A few fun Fireproof facts:

Kirk Cameron, of 80's Growing Pains fame, plays the lead role. As a Christian actor, he committed to never taking a role that would require him to kiss a woman other than his real-life wife. It was a covenant he made to honor his marriage above his career. ***Spoiler Warning*** In Fireproof, during a romantic scene near the end of the movie, his real-life wife actually stands in for the actress who plays his wife in the film. How cool is that?

Fireproof was the top grossing Indie movie of 2008, beating out Hollywood garbage like Woody Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona (starring Scarlett Johansson and Penelope Cruz), and Milk (starring Sean Penn).

Fireproof was made on a budget of $500,000, including a cast and crew of mostly volunteers (Kirk Cameron didn't get paid either).

When the producers approached the Albany (Georgia) Fire Department about borrowing an old firetruck for the movie, the Department gave them access to the best fleet because of the film's positive message.

Last weekend at the San Antonio Independent Christian Film Festival, Fireproof took home the Jubilee Award for "Best Feature" and was runner-up in the "Best of Festival" category.

So buy it, rent it, whatever, just make sure you see Fireproof. You never know, it might do wonders for your marriage revolution!

A Few Helps

I don't know about you, but I hate reading self-help books that take ten chapters to outline the problem and two chapters to offer vague helps that don't come close to actually helping me solve the problem. This frustrates me because my whole purpose in picking up the book was that I already had a pretty good idea of what the problem was -- what I needed was the help!

Yesterday, I took up my friend Lois's challenge to be more honoring of my husband and invited my readers (all five of you, smile!) to do the same. Then I started thinking about the books I've read and the encouragements I've received along the way to change my old feministic (yes, you read that right, I said feministic!) way of thinking.

A month or so ago, I mentioned a Titus 2 women's group that I attend. Last fall when she was exhorting us to be obedient to our husbands (Titus 2:5), our beloved teacher Pamela gave us this checklist to help us measure how "honoring" we really are. I thought I'd pass it along as a possible help:

Obedience Checklist
Do I remember his requests?
Do I make excuses?
Am I seeking to be reverent?
Am I seeking to be helpful?
Do I forget him?
Do I seek to do him good and not evil all of his days?
Do I seek to love him?
Do I seek to bear all things with him?
Do I seek to be hopeful toward him?
Do I treat him as the lord of my home and life?
Am I trustworthy?
Do I withhold myself from him?
Do I roll my eyes at him?
Do I seek to affirm him?
Do I badmouth him anywhere?
Do I murmur in my heart against him?
Do I complain about him to others?
Do I mock him?
Do I listen to him or do I tune him out?
Do I prefer him? Does he know it?
Do I pray for him?
Am I helping him or hindering him?

Yes, a few of these hit me pretty hard, but that's a good thing. Knowing where I am falling short helps me see where I need to grow, what I need to change, and who I need to become. I keep this list in my Bible. At first I was reviewing it every morning and it was a good reminder of where my priorities need to be at the beginning (and end!) of each day. I have to start doing that again.

I also highly recommend three books: The Excellent Wife by Martha Peace, Created to be His Helpmeet by Debi Pearl, and The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands by Dr. Laura Schlessinger (you can read more on this one here).

And of course, the Bible. The more I'm in God's Word, the more I'm challenged to be the person He wants me to be and strive for the character He wants me to have (amazing how that works, isn't it?).

As wives, we have the awesome privilege of creating the atmosphere in our homes. And I don't mean decorating. One of my favorite pastors used to say, "You can be the thermostat or the thermometer. Do you want to set the tone or do you want to reflect it? The choice is yours."

My New Book

I'm reading The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands by Dr. Laura. I'm almost embarrassed to admit it, but it is a good book. We live in a culture that so undermines men and marriage and the recognition of proper roles. Dare I say that even the church at large does not encourage the Biblical standard?

So on the advice of a trusted sister and friend, I headed to the library and picked up this book.

Chapter One starts with a bang. In short, Dr. Laura encourages wives to be grateful for their husbands: faults, shortcomings, idiosyncrasies and all. She quotes a letter from a listener who challenges wives to make a conscious effort do do the following things:

• Thank God daily for such a terrific guy, mentioning specific qualities for which I'm grateful.


• Look for daily ways to be a blessing to my husband (trying to understand what pleases him, anticipating his needs, etc.).


• Chart my cycle and remind myself on the PMS days that what I'm feeling isn't true and to keep my mouth shut and let it pass.


• Avoid books, magazines, and TV shows that describe what marriage, family and husbands ought to be like, and make a conscious effort to be grateful for things as they are instead of trying to change the people around me.


• Take responsibility for my own emotional well being: Stay rested, don't overcommit and then complain, stay in touch with friends with a positive influence.


• Stay focused on making a home for my family and remember that this is my highest calling and responsibility, and that it has eternal value. The more I do this, the happier and more content I am.

I'm already convicted and I've hardly started chapter two! I think it's a "must read" for 2009. I'll let you know how it goes!