Doing not Wishing: In the film Evan Almighty, God (played by Morgan Freeman) decides to give Congressman Evan Baxter a real chance to live up to his campaign slogan, ‘Change the World’, by telling Evan that he has to build an ark, just like the one Noah built, as there is going to be a huge flood coming. Evan builds the ark, but the pressures of the task take their toll on his family life. In one scene from the film, Evan’s wife is sitting in a restaurant and calls over the waiter – who just happens to be ‘God’, though of course she isn’t aware of this. She and God get into a conversation about the ‘ridiculous’ boat-building scheme that Evan is convinced God has asked him to do. His wife doesn’t get it but ‘God’ has a different take on the situation:

“If someone prays for patience, do you think God gives them patience? Or does he give them the opportunity to be patient? If they pray for courage, does God give them courage or does he give them the opportunity to be courageous? If someone prayed for their family to be closer, do you think God zaps them with warm fuzzy feelings? Or does he give them the opportunities to love each other?”

Source: Different Eyes: The Art Of Living Beautifully by S. Chalke and A. Mann, p.65-66