Courage

I was doing some channel surfing and got hooked re-watching The Help. It’s impossible to turn away from such a compelling story of love, inner strength and courage. The turning point of the movie is the moment in church when Aibileen Clark realizes that she must agree to share her story- the life of being a maid to a white family in Jackson, Mississippi. She’d later succinctly explain that the reason why she chose to come forward was “God.”

In the movie, the preacher reads from Exodus Chapter 4, verse 1, saying, “God having asked Moses to free the Israelites, Moses answered, ‘Oh my Lord, I am not eloquent, I am slow of speech and slow of tongue.’” Then the preacher explains:

“See, courage isn’t just about being brave.

Courage is daring to do what is right in spite of the weakness of our flesh.

And God tells us, commands us, compels us, to love, Amen?”

“To love, as exemplified by our Lord Jesus Christ…

To be prepared to put yourself in harms way for your fellow man.

And by your fellow man, I mean your brother, your sister, your neighbors, your friends, AND the enemy.

Because, if you can love your enemy, you already have the victory.”

So, thank you, author Kathryn Stockett, for growing and showing love with your book, The Help. Thank you to the actresses- Emma Stone, Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Bryce Dallas Howard, Sissy Spacek, Jessica Chastain, Allison Janney, and others, for making this story, and its message of having the courage to love, come to life on the big screen in a timeless manner. We’ll keep a Grow Love t-shirt ready for each of you!