Jane Fonda has to be one of the most polarizing people of her generation. Those who are old enough can recall her movie career and can remember her in some roles that were pretty good, and some that were not so good.<\/p>\n
But others will remember her more serious, real-life role as so-called \u201cHanoi Jane,\u201d when she supported the North Vietnamese Communist regime during the Vietnam War. Many, in fact, have never forgiven her for sitting atop that North Vietnamese anti-aircraft gun, nor will they forget. She herself now calls this an \u201cunforgivable mistake.\u201d And she has apologized profusely for it many, many times.<\/p>\n
Well, her story gets even more complicated. Several years ago, Jane felt an emptiness in her life and began to be drawn to the Christian faith, even though her husband, CNN mogul \u2014 and atheist \u2014 Ted Turner, had said, \u201creligion is for losers.\u201d She began reading the Gospel of John and was experiencing what she called reverence and grace. Sadly, it seems, Jane drifted away from what I would humbly call \u201cmere Christianity,\u201d partly, she said, because she thought what she was learning in a Bible study was too \u201cpatriarchal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Well, fast forward to 2014. Jane, who is now 76, is no longer the Hollywood vamp, and her radicalism has certainly been tempered by time. Only Jane and the Lord know where she is on matters of faith, but it seems clear that she is at least still searching.<\/p>\n
In a recent blog post she simply calls \u201cCrying,\u201d Jane confesses that she\u2019s been brought to tears repeatedly in recent months.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow come,\u201d she asks, \u201cpretty things, kind deeds, sad stories, acts of courage, good news, someone\u2019s [flash] of insight, all get me crying or, at least, tearing up?\u201d Her answer may surprise you. \u201cI find my emotions are way more accessible than they were when I was younger and I\u2019ve come to feel it has to do with age,\u201d Jane says. \u201cI have become so wonderfully, terribly aware of time, of how little of it I have left; how much of it is behind me, and everything becomes so precious.\u201d<\/p>\n
Whatever you think of Jane Fonda, these moving words are a powerful reminder of our shared humanity, our longing, and our mortality. I can\u2019t help but think of the words from Moses in Psalm 90<\/p>\n
The years of our life are seventy,
\n or even by reason of strength eighty;
\n yet their span is but toil and trouble;
\n they are soon gone, and we fly away…
\n So teach us to number our days
\n that we may get a heart of wisdom.<\/p>\n
By God\u2019s grace, Jane Fonda\u2019s words help remind us to number our days. As she numbers hers, she has become increasingly grateful for God\u2019s gifts in her life, whether she fully recognizes their Source or not. \u201cWith age,\u201d she says, \u201cI am able to appreciate the beauty in small things more than when I was younger perhaps because I pay attention more. I feel myself becoming part of everything, as if I bleed into other people\u2019s joy and pain…. there\u2019s the reality that in a few decades (if I\u2019m lucky) I will be in the earth, fertilizing some of the very things I look at now and tear up over.\u201d<\/p>\n
I pray that this woman of such talent and insight would reach out to the One who Himself wept over and voluntarily drank the bitter cup of death … for her, for you, and for me!<\/p>\n
The beauty Jane Fonda is now seeing \u2014 beauty we see in creation, in the womb of an expectant mother, in the kindnesses we receive and give \u2014 should bring us all to tears, especially if we see them in light of God\u2019s love for us and for His creation, if we see that every good and perfect gift is from above, from the Father of heavenly lights (James 1:17).<\/p>\n
May we be His lights in this dark world, gently wiping tears from the eyes of hurting and searching people everywhere \u2014 in Hollywood, or right next door.<\/p>\n
________<\/p>\n
Copyright (c) 2014 Prison Fellowship Ministries. Reprinted with permission. “BreakPoint” is a radio ministry of Prison Fellowship Ministries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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