Eat, Pray, Love

Last night I watched the movie Eat, Pray, Love, staring Julia Roberts.  I had a pastor friend of mine tell me I should read this book and watch the movie, because this is what our society will be thinking of when they talk about religion and spirituality for the next little while.  I found the movie to be enjoyable but I did notice that it had at the centre of its premise, the problem that is so steeped in our society.  The problem in the movie is selfishness.  The main character pulls the plug on a marriage, not because of abuse or neglect, but because  she was not happy.  This had nothing to do with the person who loved her, but with her own compromises over the years.  She then takes off on a journey of discovery that culminates with the idea that "God is inside of me, as me."  This is at the core of selfishness, the idea that we can take the place of God, that it is all about me, even God.  As pastors we have a huge job ahead of us if this is the idea that society believes and wants to hear.