Source of True Strength

"But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life."
Titus 3: 4-7 (emphasis mine)

     Angelina Jolie recently directed a movie "Unbroken" about Louis Zamperini's experiences in World War Two. Following his plane crash into the Pacific, 47 days adrift on salt water and two years of torture and debasement in a Japanese POW camp, Louis was consumed with hatred for one captor in particular: The Bird. Nightmares and alcoholism nearly snuffed out his marriage, his American dreams and his life after the war. I'd say Mr. Zamperini was anything but unbroken at that point.

     It was at a Billy Graham crusade that Louis heard and accepted the gospel of Jesus Christ. As he was forgiven of his sins, he was freed from all that truly kept him captive and he forgave his captors, even traveling to Japan to do so. He never had another nightmare.

     After that, Louis was described as a happy-go-lucky man. He sought ways to share his story with others and he reached out to people whose lives were in captivity, as his was. He established the Victory Boys' Camp to help troubled inner-city youths. He rebuilt his family and marriage with love, devotion and plenty of laughter.

     As a Christian, I know the reason behind the rebirth and renewal of Mr. Zamperini: the Holy Spirit was generously poured upon him by his faith in Jesus Christ, who justified him and saved him by his grace and mercy. It was not because of anything righteous inside of Louis.

     An article I read quoted Angelina Jolie as saying this: "I believe people are drawn to Louis' story because it is inspirational. Louis always reminded me that the purpose of the film is not to show how extraordinary he was but to help those watching it discover that they have the same strength inside them."

     I long for her last sentence to say: "they can have this same strength inside them if they confess their sin and invite Jesus to be their savior."

     That is why Louis Zamperini was an unbroken man.