thank God!

Finally! There's a great song from the movie "The Animatrix" called "Who Am I" by the Peace Orchestra which I couldn't find for a long time. Just found it on iTunes (where else?). I'm, like, thanks God for showing me it.

Other than that, had a pretty good weekend in terms of filming, I probably don't have to go to another city for an audition today but can just film it here and e-mail the result to my agent, and I have a couple of days off and a couple of bucks in my pocket. And my digital camera is PAID-FOR now!

forgot something

I forgot to mention something about the trip to Iowa City: I've been saying for years now that I don't get sick. This is based on the Bible, that we don't have to get sick (Psalm 91:6-8). We can cast that sort of thing out of us. Now, the person in whose home I was staying either had or was getting over an illness that I think was contagious. I just did as prompted and confessed in my prayer time and in private against that and started drinking more orange juice. I believe in these situations that God tells us what we need to do to remain healthy. Bottom line, I didn't get whatever the person had, glory and thanks to God.

I think so many of us just give in to the idea that if one person is ill and we get close to them or share space with them that it's inevitable that we'll get sick, too. It's not.

Now, God will meet us where our faith is, but never forget that the best medication is believing prayer.

salvation

I don't know how many of the people who read blog this would apply to, but if there is anybody who's been searching and would like to become a Christian, I'd invite you to just say the following, out loud, from your heart:

"Lord Jesus, I receive you as my Savior and Lord. Please forgive all my sins and come into my life. In Jesus' Name, amen."

-Sean

more complete post

Okay, so here's the more complete version of the gratitude blog:

I went up to Iowa City mostly just to get my amplifier and connect with some old friends. I got to do all of that, and I met with almost everybody I wanted to; I stayed with one mentor and got to go visit another at that other's house, which was an honor along with meeting his wife. There was one person I didn't get to see, but that was because they were ill, but we did talk, and everything's cool.

I got one thing from Iowa City that I didn't expect: closure. Iowa City as a city is now a treasured part of my past, not an idealized dreamland from times gone by. When I left before, it wasn't really on my own terms. This time it was, and I feel good about saying goodbye to it (excepting those times I'll visit or be in town for an interview or reading). It's a great town; gorgeous in landscape, great arts community, great people, but it's my friends from there who really make the difference. I remember I wanted to stay there, at some level, for the foreseeable future, but going back, I'm amazed at how small it is--having a car will do that. So whilst I'm over the city, but I'll never be over the friends.

I also got to go see some of the old places I used to hang out, like The Java House and Daydreams Comics, which is in a new location, and a better one.

Before I was to go home, though, I started feeling a bunch of anxiety (maybe stemming from the not-fun trip from Des Moines to Iowa City when I went up there), but I talked to my sister and got agreement in prayer for a safe, speedy, good trip back down with no inclement weather, all of which I got. As soon as that (the prayer) happened, I was much more at peace. Especially when, not long into the trip, I called Kenneth Copeland Ministries and got a bit more prayer to that effect.

One thing that happened, though, was my car tire: turns out the thing had a screw in it, which was discovered when I brought it in to investigate some tire hiss and deflation. Well, a hundred-thirteen bucks later (on the credit card), I have a new tire and a lot more peace of mind. Now for the other three.

Perhaps the greatest stuff that happened was connecting with friends again, though. Everybody was so welcoming and generous; it was very heartwarming.

Now, on the trip itself, I had the wind at my back most of the way down, saving oodles of gas, I was listening to worship CDs and singing along, listening to messages from Kenneth Copeland and Creflo Dollar and getting blessed by that...this all contributed to turning a trip that could have been filled with anxiety to one filled with rejoicing, thank God and glory to God. It's hard for the devil to get in when you're constantly shouting him down. :)

And when I got back, or the day after, I got a package from a friend: a mini-DV camera! I am feeling so blessed by this gift. We thought the LCD didn't work, then I thought the sound didn't, but with some tinkering with the menu, everything works just fine. He also sent about five batteries, a couple packages of mini-DV tapes and some books and magazines on filmmaking and lighting.

So, thanks to God for His gifts this last few days--thank You, God, and for getting me home safely, thank You, and for the closure: thank You. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

guess what? More gratitude

I'll post a more complete post later on (I wrote a complete one and then accidentally deleted it and now I don't feel like rewriting it), but suffice it to say this: some great stuff happened on my trip: I got to reconnect with friends, say goodbye to a beloved old city, have a great trip back down here just when some anxiety had been creeping in and got a new tire in the process. And the day after, I received from a friend a mini-DV camera. Glory to God and thanks for His wonderful gifts! He kept me safe, he helped me get closure about Iowa City, he just gave me so much more than I had asked for (I just wanted my amplifier and to reconnect with some friends, maybe see the old hangouts). Thank you, God!

-Sean

my trip so far

Well, I'm on the last day of my trip to Iowa City. This is the one I've been planning on taking, to get my amplifier, for years...and years...and years. I've had a generally pretty good time. I've gotten to see some old friends and hang out in one of my favorite places, a coffee shop called "The Java House". I'm there right now waiting for a couple of old friends to show up, though it occurs to me that they may not realize I'm in the back of the shop, which is divided into two rooms.

Anyway, I hope they show up; I'm not on a time crunch too much, but I don't want to hang out here forever.

I'm kind of looking forward to getting home tomorrow. I'll start out about seven-thirty in the morning and be home about four or so.

epiphany again

I just got it, thank God; an epiphany--why I'm here (I'm here as an encourager), why movies, why I spent all these years writing--to tell stories that touch in the greatest number of people for the greatest length of time. Movies are the most powerful storytelling medium today.

I write movies. I write books. I act. I love movies.

I'm a storyteller.

I now see all these years writing as my training ground--if I wasn't going to conquer the fear of others' opinion of me, I was going to learn something in the interim.

I am a good storyteller. Time is short. The best way to tell a story in a way it'll endure is to make a movie. I use movies to tell stories to entertain and to encourage and to touch hearts. and that's what it's all about.

Thank you, God, for letting me do this and for my love of it.

support

Even as primarily an actor, I feel like I need to support the WGA writers. There's some useful information here.