To Write Love on Her Arms

To Write Love On Her Arms. The name of an incredible organization. The words for a hurting generation. The name of a based-on-true-events movie. A movement of redemption, recovery, and celebration.

Tonight I had the awesome opportunity to invite friends into my soon-to-be apartment and watch the new movie To Write Love on Her Arms which tells the true story of Renee Yohe and the 5 days before entering into Rehab that she spent with Jamie Tworkowski who would then publish her story and start this non-profit. To Write Love on her arms has become a nonprofit which aims to present hope for people struggling with addiction, depression, self-injury and thoughts of suicide while also investing directly into treatment and recovery (twloha.com). This movie tells that tale and for a Hollywood film I felt it was really well done.

I felt it helped to raise awareness of the hidden struggles that are not typically "socially acceptable" to discuss. It showed that recovery is possible, but that rehab does not completely fix everything. This film also captured the beautiful fact that recovery for any problem is not possible alone. This is just another affirmation that we are not meant to be alone in life. The movie showed that it was through mentoring and being surrounded by people that cared about her which brought Renee to recovery.

This movie is an excellent example of our dire need for discipleship. That word is often thrown around in church settings and there are countless books on how to disciple and 5 step formulas on discipling others. It is thrown around, but the sad truth is it does not always happen. Often times many places assume that if we get someone to enter into recovery, if we get someone to say a simple prayer, to follow a simple set of rules, or if we get someone to admit they have a problem that Jesus will fix everything from there and that is where we stop. The thing is that is where we should be beginning. The Great Commission calls Christians to go and make disciples. It does not say to go and fix people, but it says to go and disciple people. The problem with discipleship is, like Dietrich Bonhoeffer tells us, it costs us. It's messy. It's not easy.

Discipleship is what is shown in this beautiful true story of recovery. Discipleship is when Renee's friends let her live with them during the 5 days she has to get clean because the rehab center denied her entrance until then. Discipleship is the one on one time that she had with Tworkowski and Mckenna where they taught her ways to kick her addictions. When they shared with her practices on what to do when it gets hard. Discipleship was then returned at the conclusion of the film when SPOILER ALERT Mckenna relapses and Renee finds him and reminds him of how he helped her.

In an interview with Jamie Tworkowski he says that he wants people to watch the movie and see that it is, "a story about broken people loving broken people. It's about friends trying to be friends in the midst of their pain." He then goes on to explain that in his opinion, "a good story is not one that impresses you. It's one that brings you back to the story that you are living and the stories that you're connected to--and to think differently about those things." This is discipleship. We do not have to be perfect to disciple others. We do have to be present with them in the midst of their troubles. To celebrate their victories and mourn with them in their relapses.

The movie is pretty dark and realistic, but only touches the surface of what many people deal with and struggle with everyday. It shows the hardships of addiction and self-hate as well as showing that rehab does not completely fix everything. It's all about discipleship. It's all about community. It's all about living life with people not just in the happy-go-lucky parts, but in the messy, crazy, unplanned and unscheduled parts.

So let us take time to really get to know people. To disciple people. To give hope to people. To write love on her arms.