2 Corinthians 5:17-19 (GW)Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence. God has done all this. He has restored our relationship with him through Christ, and has given us this ministry of restoring relationships. In other words, God was using Christ to restore his relationship with humanity. He didn’t hold people’s faults against them, and he has given us this message of restored relationships to tell others.
In the Harold Ramis film “Groundhog Day”, TV weatherman Phil Connors (Bill Murray) is forced to cover the “Groundhog Day” ceremonies in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, for the fifth year in a row. It is an assignment he truly despises, but this year something truly bizarre happens: When he awakens the next morning, eager to leave, he discovers it’s “Groundhog Day” all over again.
When the same thing happens the next morning, he thinks he’s going insane and wreaks havoc throughout the town. More mornings pass, all of them “Groundhog Day”, and with each, Phil grows angrier. Desperate to escape, Phil attempts suicide, but yet another “Groundhog Day” dawns.
As Phil starts realizing that his exploits are not making time march on any quicker, he begins to change his behavior. By observing life around him, Phil becomes aware of the needs of others and along the way learns more about himself than he ever thought possible.
Although a lighthearted film, “Groundhog Day” offers the viewer opportunities to look deeper into the meaning of life. Punxsutawney Phil, not the groundhog, has become trapped in a prison of his own making. After four trips to this tiny, western Pennsylvania town, Phil has had enough. He feels that his talents could be better utilized in a larger more prestigious station or network. Instead he is stuck in a tiny station, in a tiny market, covering a tiny animal, coming out of a tiny hole in the ground. By diminishing himself through the belittlement of others and his surroundings, Phil gets to relive his worst nightmare-“Groundhog Day”. Phil Connor’s life became what he disliked the most.
Imagine having to live the worst day of your life over and over and over again. What if no matter what you did you could not change the outcome of that day. How would you handle it?
Romans 7:24 (BBE)
How unhappy am I! who will make me free from the body of this death?
