Lessons From Finding Dory – Come Home.

 

Finding Nemo was one of my favorite movies to watch with my kids when they were young.  And though my kids are older now they agreed to go see the much-awaited sequel Finding Dory.  I’m so glad they did because I left with a beautiful picture of just how much our Heavenly Father loves us and desperately wants us to find our way to him.

Dory suffered from short-term memory loss, and in the film we get a glimpse into her past through a series of flashbacks.  Because of her short-term memory loss her parents would spend their days teaching Dory how to cope with her deficit and trying to help her remember things. They worried about Dory getting lost and because Dory loved seashells they created a path of sea shells that Dory could follow to find her way home should she ever get lost.

We see Dory’s parents constantly reminding her to stay away from the current for fear she will be swept away.  Dory is intrigued by what the ocean has to offer beyond her home and she ventures right to the edge to get a better view.  One day she ventures just a little too far, is swept up in the current, and taken far from the only home she knows. 

Just like Dory, we can lose our way from time to time.  The current of the world we live in tries to draw us in and entice us.  It threatens to sweep us away and take us far from what we know and where we belong if we aren’t careful. We can easily become enamored with worldly things and the ways of the world rather than the things of God. Maybe like Dory, we take a few steps our of outside the will of God.  And the next time we go a little further from what God desires from us.  Just like Dory, before we know it we can be caught up, swept away, and lost.

Several years go by with Dory on her own, but then she begins to remember bits and pieces of her former life and she wants to go home.  With the help of Marlin and Nemo, Dory manages to find her way back to where she grew up.  When she first arrives she doesn’t see her parents, but what she does see left me near tears. Dory sees a seashell and remembers that was how she used to find her way home.  But there isn’t just one path of seashells.  There, layed out like a sunburst, are paths and paths of seashells fanning out from the door to her home so that no matter which direction Dory had come from she would have seen a shell path that would lead her home.  Dory turns to see her parents swimming toward her carrying more shells to create another path.  They had never given up hope of her returning home and were continuing to add to the path that would one day lead her there. 

What a beautiful picture of our Heavenly Father’s unfailing love for us.  He desperately wants us to find our way home no matter which direction we’ve gone or how far we’ve wandered.  Dory had Marlin and Nemo to help her find her way and I believe God orchestrates people, places, and circumstances to help us find our way too.  He longs for us to take a step on the path that will lead us to Him.  And just like Dory’s parents never gave up their hope of her finding her way home, God never gives up on us.  He is always there waiting with open arms saying,  “Come home, my love.  Come home.”

Can Trafficking Happen Here?

A few weekends ago, I had the opportunity to go on a weekend trip with some girlfriends.  We stayed in a popular little touristy town with quaint little shops and restaurants.  While strolling down one of the main streets enjoying the sights we walked past an alley where 3 ladies were lingering in their short dresses and very high heels.  I slowly did a double take. Were these women prostitutes? Certainly I was mistaken.  Perhaps I was jumping to conclusions given my exposure to women in this type of lifestyle. Could prostitution really happen here in this little town? I tried to rationalize it. Perhaps these 3 beautiful ladies were just out for a night like I was.  Perhaps they had stepped into the alley to avoid the crowds that were window-shopping and sight seeing.  Perhaps they had simply stopped to decide where they would like to go next.  I asked the other ladies I was with what they thought and they agreed it probably was what it looked like.

 

I realized I was falling prey to the same mindset that many of us in the US fall into by thinking that prostitution and trafficking doesn’t happen MY town.  But, the truth is, that it can and does happen everywhere.  According to Polaris Project, human trafficking has been reported in all 50 US states.  It occurs in the big cities and in the small towns and it happens in both poor and affluent neighborhoods.  The fact is that no one or no town is immune to human trafficking.

 

My heart broke for these ladies.  Statistics show that nearly 90% of all prostitutes are under the control of a pimp.  So chances are pretty high that these ladies had someone nearby watching their every move or someone that they would have to report back to at the end of the night.

 

 

I wondered what had happened to them in their life that would bring them to this point.  I wondered if their “work day” was just beginning and how long they would be out there.  I thought about what their day must be like not knowing who or now many men they would be with for the rest of the night.  Where would they rest their head when they were finally able to stop working?   Would these 3 ladies go their separate ways on separate “dates” and return home to a pimp who would demand they turn over all of their money or pay the consequence of physical violence? Would that same pimp move them to the another town the next night in his quest for more money? Did they ever get to see their families? How long had they been living this type of life? I imagined that this quaint little town that I was enjoying so much must look very different from their point of view.  I wondered if they had ever experienced true, authentic love.

 

I wished I could wraps arms of love around them and if just for one brief moment let them know they don’t have to accept this fake version of love that’s been presented to them.  I longed for them to know their true worth and value. I longed for them to see themselves as the treasure they are.  To see themselves as our Heavenly Father sees them and to know that He loves them beyond anything they could ever imagine.  I longed for them to know that there are people who care about them and that God has a plan and a purpose for their life that is good.  A plan that would fulfill them rather than leaving them feeling like an empty shell of a person.  I wanted them to know that they are the precious daughters of the Most High King and that hope, peace and redemption can be found in Him.  

 

And though I did not get to speak any of these truths into their lives, my prayer for them and for all women is that God will place someone in their life that will speak these truths into their hearts. If you long to get involved in the fight against trafficking praying is a great place to start.  Will you join me in praying that God will place people in their life that can come along side them to encourage and uplift them?  People who want what’s best for them and will point them towards His plan for their life. Pray for their freedom from bondage to this lifestyle, but ultimately that they would find true freedom in Him.