Running With Perseverance

What does As Good As It Gets have to do with being a Christian? A few weeks ago, my priest was able to draw an unlikely but fitting connection, based on this scene.

If you haven’t seen the movie (or haven’t seen it in a while), you need to know (or remember) that Jack Nicholson’s character (Melvin) is a miserable person–“a cranky, bigoted, obsessive-compulsive writer” according to the summary on IMDB. In this scene, you also get a glimpse of his obnoxious self-importance and overall  rudeness!

You also need to know that Helen Hunt’s character (Carol) is a waitress who works where Melvin has breakfast every day. When she doesn’t show up for work, he tracks her down and helps her for largely selfish reasons (no one else puts up with him they way she does!), but her kindness and gratitude seep into a crack in his crusty outer shell.

In this scene, Carol insists that Melvin pay her one compliment–just one–or she will walk out of his life forever. After struggling to come up with something, he finally says:

You make me want to be a better person.

Do you see where this is going? 😉 

Being a Christian–striving to follow Jesus’ teachings and live the life He calls us to live–can make us want to be better people. We may fall miserably short like Melvin, but hopefully we are at least a bit kinder for trying.

[Tweet “Who inspires you to be a better person?”]

After church, I found myself thinking of the people in my life who make me want to be a better person. Some people came to mind immediately, but I wondered about the influence of others.

Take my BFF at work, for instance. I had almost decided that she does not make me a better person since she is the person I turn to when I need to bitch vent, but then I realized that she is really good at taking the time to get to know people … and listen when they need to unload. 😉 I could be a better person if I followed her example and made more of an effort to get to know my colleagues at a more personal level.

Are there people in your life who make you want to be a better person?