Julie & Julia & Matt

Have you ever watched a movie simply because someone you love wants to watch it? Such was the case with the movie Julie & Julia. Now, I'm not too macho to totally shun "chick flicks", but a movie about Julia Child, the well known TV cook from past decades, and a Julia Child wannabe named Julie did not interest me at all. (Despite the fact that Amy Adams, the cute redhead from the movie Enchanted, played the latter part.) But, my wife wanted to watch it, so......

Funny how things turn out. The movie ended up focusing on two writers who had deep desires to get their books published. Now, that's a topic that interests me. You see, about 5 years ago I finished writing the first rough draft of a book titled "Don't Honk If You Love Jesus", with a subtitle...How to be a Christian, even in rush-hour traffic. I have been blessed with positive feedback from experts about the book, and have even given copies to very influential people within Evangelical Christian circles. Yet, I've had no one go to bat for me regarding getting the book published.

So, I've set it aside, wondering what to do in the meantime. In the movie, Julie Powell had written a book, but had no success getting it published. She was a huge Julia Child fan and decided to cook every recipe (over 500) from one of Julia's books within one year. She chronicled her efforts by writing a blog. Long story short, her blog eventually provided her with the attention she needed to get her book published (and eventually made into a movie starring the lovely Amy Adams).

Last year at SCCC's Men's Retreat, I made a promise to God never to try and promote myself in any effort. My reasoning was that if God wanted to promote me in any way, He could get it done without my efforts. Many people are promoted to platforms they are not mature enough to handle. I figure God knows when I can handle any type of platform, and the surest way for me to know if I can handle one or not is to wait until He promotes me. That's better than me breaking down a door leading to a platform on my own.

My takeaway from the movie is to just write, chiefly in this blog. I should write because I love to write, not because I want to have a product with my name on it. So, I will write knowing there's the possibility that only two people will read this. (Remember, I will not promote myself so I can't tell anyone I've written a blog.) Well, God, I hope you and I enjoy this cause we may be the only ones reading it. If it pleases You, brings a smile to Your face, then it's worth it. (Lord, please pardon the poor grammar. But, hey, that's the way You made me.)

Peace out!!!

Matt

PS. Did I mention the cute redhead, Amy Adams played the part of Julie in the movie?