Run, Lieutenant Dan, Run
“Put your heart right, reach out to God and face the
world again, firm and courageous. Then
all your troubles will fade from your memory like floods that are past and
remembered no more.” Job 11:13-14
One of the biggest problems with therapy today is
that they deal a lot with the healing of memories and regress into the past. If that
counselor isn’t a Christian. If they
aren’t basing their counseling on God’s Word…run as fast as you can. Get involved with that, and you’ll be worse
off than now. Countless examples of
people following Freud’s way rather than God’s way. It gets you focused on the past and not on
the present and future. All they know about is the past. They don’t know about the present. They don’t know about the future. God does know about your future and is more
interested in it than your past because He is a forward thinking God. Jeremiah 29:11 says, “I know the plans I have for you…” while Philippians 3:12 states, “Forgetting the things of the past and
pressing ahead…” We
need to get our attention on the past
and put it on the future.
In the movie Forrest Gump, Forrest is a likeable man
of borderline intelligence who grew up struggling with leg braces due to polio
and all of the cruel tauntings that those who are different often suffer. He is thrown into seemingly random scenes in American
History, much like the white feather that drifts with the wind throughout the
movie. Successful everywhere he
goes. He finds himself in Vietnam under the leadership of Lieutenant Dan, a rough but
capable man whose family had produced a long line of military heroes killed in
combat. Lt. Dan is confident that dying with honor on the field of battle is
his redemption. When he is rescued by Forrest from a
firefight, his wounds require both legs to be amputated above the knee. He and Forrest, also wounded, are consigned
to the same hospital ward where one night the rageful Lt. Dan drags Forrest
from his bed. He proceeds to choke and curse him for destroying his life by
saving it. Forrest responds poignantly,
“You still Lt. Dan.”
As you follow the story of Lt. Dan, you find an angry
man who goes home in utter shame. He
lives off his veterans benefits while drinking, taking drugs, and having sex
with prostitutes. When Forrest comes to
see him, Lt. Dan relates to him that some of the other veterans in the hospital
have been telling him he should trust in Jesus.
He says, “Can you believe that Gump?” “They tell me that Jesus will walk
with me on the streets of heaven.” He continues to destroy himself.
Forrest travels to the Gulf of Mexico to try his hand at captaining a
shrimp boat which is a plan he inherited from his army buddy, Benjamin Blue who
was killed in the same firefight that took Lt. Dan’s legs. Lt. Dan becomes his first mate. They fail miserably in shrimp fishing because
their time is filled catching tires, license plates, leather shoes, and a clam
or two. By this time Lt. Dan is sure God
is against him. Soon Lt. Dan rages at Forrest, “Where…is this God of yours,
Gump? I wish your Jesus were here right
now!” And Forrest comments to the listeners, “It’s funny Lt. Dan said that
‘cause right then, God showed up.”
God sends a storm that put the boat in danger of
being destroyed. But instead of it being destroyed, their’s
was the only survivor in the entire shrimping fleet. Now, without competition, they become
rich. As Forrest recounted the story of their becoming millionaires to a
credulous, but kind lady at a bus stop, he asks if she would like to know what happened to Lt. Dan.
As he described the scene, we see Lt. Dan sitting on the rail of
their shrimping boat. He says,
“Forrest, I never thanked you for saving my life.” And with that he hoists his
legless body over the side. With some concern, Forrest runs over wondering what
he is going to do. We see Lt. Dan
backstroking peacefully through the water with a gentle smile on his face. We
can hear Forrest comment, “I think Lt. Dan finally made his peace with God.”
Job was a pro at
pain. He knew what it felt like, perhaps
like few people that have populated the planet.
There are three steps from Job 11 that help us focus.
It says, “Put your heart
right, reach out to God and face the world again, firm and courageous. Then all your troubles will fade from your
memory like floods that are past and remembered no more.”
1)
First, put your heart right
2)
Second, reach out to God
3)
Third, Face the world again
When we do these things,
we begin to understand what Proverbs says.
Proverbs 4:25 says, “Look straight ahead with confidence. Don’t hang your head in shame.” You will never get well by yourself. If you were able to, you’d be well by
now. When people hurt, they will do
almost anything to get better. God declares at
your most difficult hour, “I am the Lord who heals thee.” That’s good news. The more we run to it, the better off we will
be.
Terry Risser
Reflections:
1) Why do trials cause us to run from God?
2) Can you recall a time where you made a change
from being angry at God to running to Him for healing?
Consider reading the Word today:
Copyright
2014- Terry Risser
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