Do You Ever Have Deja Vu?

Have you ever just felt stuck? Has you ever felt like Phil Connors in Groundhog’s Day? If you haven’t seen the movie, it was one of those brilliant and original films that blends comedy, hopelessness, love and finding yourself. Bill Murray portrays the titular character in a way that only he can. You kind of don’t like him at the beginning of the movie because he’s just kind of a schmuck, but throughout the story you begin to see him in a different light. Eventually, you can empathize with him and you start rooting for him. It’s been out for a couple of decades, but I’ll try to not spoil it too much.

Phil is a local weatherman and is sent to Punxsutawney, PA to cover the emerging of the beloved Punxsutawney Phil, the weather predicting groundhog. Naturally, he thinks it’s beneath him to be stuck in a small town doing a news story on a rodent. But when he and his producer and cameraman are getting ready to head back home, there’s a blizzard that keeps them from being able to leave. They are stuck. While his crew is making the most of it, Phil is miserable, absolutely hating the experience. When he wakes up the next morning, the radio is playing the same Sonny and Cher song and the DJ’s are saying exactly what they said the previous morning.

Phil gets himself dressed and ready and has the same run ins with the same people, having the same conversations as he did the day before. He steps out of the bed and breakfast that he’s staying at and everyone is going downtown. He asks a random woman where everyone is going and they’re all going to Gobbler’s Knob to see the groundhog. He makes it out to Gobbler’s Knob and it’s Groundhog’s Day all over. He’s confused and thinks it’s some kind of hoax.

This keeps happening day after day. Each time he wakes up, he’s stuck in the same day. He starts making some changes to see what would happen, eventually leading to heavy drinking, dangerous driving, kidnapping Punxsutawney Phil and more craziness, but each morning, everything is reset and he’s right back in the same day.

After a while, he begins to help a homeless man, save a kid falling from a tree, help old ladies change a tire and all kinds of acts of kindness that shows his heart is beginning to change. He begins to fall in love with his producer and tries to learn everything about her so he can woo her.

The story continues and then one day, it’s no longer February 2nd, it’s actually February 3rd. He takes into this new day everything that he has learned through his countless repeats of Groundhog Day, presumably with a changed heart and outlook.

What does a 1993 film about a man stuck in the same day have to do with faith?

Well, many times life feels like that movie. You’re stuck in the same day, the same routine. You’re stuck with the same fears and anxieties, the same stress and struggles. It feels like nothing will ever change and you’re just going to have to be ok with continuing to live a life that doesn’t bring any excitement or happiness. A life that doesn’t feel like it was made for you to enjoy but rather to be a prison. You wake up each day and realize just how far you are from where you thought that you would be.

Perhaps you had envisioned a more successful or meaningful career. Perhaps you had thought that your family life would be like what you saw on Leave It To Beaver, everyone getting along and each time there was an issue, it came with a satisfying resolution. Maybe you didn’t think that you would have to struggle with finances, health issues, depression, etc.

But here you are, day after day, each day seemingly the same. You wake up hoping that today is a new day, that today is February 3rd and you quickly realize it’s still just February 2nd. You instantly feel that pang of despair as you kick your feet out of bed and start the same routine you do each and every day, preparing yourself for the same exact day as yesterday and the day before and the day before that.

Each night, you lay in bed preparing to drift off to sleep. Somewhere, your mind is longing for a change, maybe kind of secretly. Your thoughts come slower and slower and soon, you’re in dreamland, hopefully living out a fantasy because your mind knows you need it.

There has to be a new day sometime, right?

Looking through scripture, we can see something similar. We can see God’s people stuck, waiting for a new day. We can see trials go on for what must have felt like an eternity, but each time, God brought that new day.

The number 40 is significant in scripture. All throughout, we can see the number 40, be it days or years, and then the new day.

It rained for 40 days and 40 nights. The whole earth was flooded and every living creature on earth died, except for those on the Ark with Noah and his family. Day 41, the rain stopped and the waters began to recede on a new world, a new beginning. A world with hope for a brighter future than the past that had just been erased.

Moses was 40 when he killed an Egyptian. Day 41, he feared for his life and fled. For 40 years, he lived in Midian. Year 41, God called to him through the burning bush. He led the Hebrew slaves to freedom and they wandered the wilderness for 40 years. Year 41, they were in the Promised Land.

Goliath taunted the Israelites for 40 days and on day 41, David stepped up and defeated Him. Saul, David and Solomon each ruled for 40 years, the 41st year being the start of a new King.

Moses, Elijah and Jesus each fasted in the wilderness for 40 days and each of them brought something new on day 41. Moses brought the 10 commandments to the people. Elijah learned from God how to lead the Israelites. Jesus defied the enemy’s temptations and defeated Him to begin His ministry that would lead to salvation for all.

The number 40 is used over 150 times throughout scripture and each time, 41 brought about a significant change. 40 is often used as a time of preparation. It’s the time that God uses to soften hearts, to grow faith, to show devotion. It’s generally a time of trial and struggle and frustration.

The Israelites were led through the desert for 40 years, to complete a trip that would be about 12 days at a leisurely pace. Their hearts were not ready for God. They weren’t truly devoted to Him and fell back to doubts and worshipping idols repeatedly. For 40 years, God taught them to rely on Him for food (mana), safety and everything else they needed. It took 40 long, hard years of struggle for them to finally be ready to enter the land that He had promised them. It took 40 years for them to be ready to lead the world to Him. And when they were ready, all other nations feared them. Israel became a great nation and people knew the power of their God.

Well, I just turned 41 a few weeks ago. It’s been a bit of a struggle up to now. I know that I have been changing. I’ve been toughened up a bit, I’m more resilient than I had been. I’ve been softening up too, able to feel more emotions, to relate to others more, to empathize. I’ve learned to seek God and to trust Him more. I have hope and faith that my 41 is just around the corner, my February 3rd is just a night’s rest away.

I pray that your 41 comes. I pray that February 3rd starts a new era in your life and your faith.