The Encounter (2010) - full transcript
Five strangers with nothing in common are forced to come together at a remote roadside eatery because of a road closure. They place their orders with the diner's omniscient owner, who seems to know everything about them... and claims he is Jesus.
- Hey!
- C'mon, c'mon!
Hey!
Hey!
Idiot!
Jerk!
Don't.
Maybe we can go to a counselor
or something.
You just don't get it, do you?
I don't to be your wife anymore.
I want to be me for a while.
I'm not stopping you from being you.
Yeah.
As long as being me
means being Mrs. Hank Miller.
Not anymore.
It'll be a fresh start
for the both of us.
I don't want a fresh start.
Pick her up.
Hey!
What are you doing?
You are not picking her up!
Hey!
What's wrong with you people?
We should have picked her up.
Pick her up.
Hey! Get in!
Where are you going?
It doesn't matter.
Just get in!
We are lucky I came along when I did.
The storms are getting crazy.
So, how long have you
been out there?
All day.
That's terrible, I'm sorry.
- My name's Melissa.
- I'm Kayla.
You're not from around here,
are you?
Not really.
Running away?
So that either means yes or mind
your business, Melissa. Which is it?
I'm just passing through.
Well, there's a lot
to pass through here.
I noticed.
Where are you headed?
Winnemucca.
- Where's that?
- Up north.
My boyfriend's a mining engineer,
I'm paying him a surprise.
Cool.
Where are you headed?
Winnemucca?
Good one, Kayla.
Now, there's a guy
with a sense of humor.
.
What do you say we stop
and get you a bite to eat?
Let's just keep going
if you don't mind.
Oh, no!
No, you've got to be kidding me!
This is just great.
I'm afraid you'll have
to turn back, sir.
This road is out
until further notice.
The detour told me
to go this way.
It's not like we plan
these things.
Any idea how long it will be
before they open the road?
Until some bureaucrat from the State Highway
Administration gives it the all clear.
Okay.
What's the problem, officer?
Road's out, sir.
It's out?
We've got a flash flood warning.
It's dangerous at the moment.
Okay.
Thanks for bringing me out here.
It's not my fault.
What's going on?
That's the guy who
almost ran me down!
You know what this means?
I've got go all the way back
to the interstate
all way up to Silverton
and then back down again.
140 extra miles to get some place
that's only twenty miles from here.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
Hey, aren't you Crusher Crocetti?
If I say yes,
will you let me through?
Does anyone have a working cell?
No! Mine broke when you almost
ran me over!
That was an accident.
Sorry about not picking you up,
but my wife is kind of nervous
about picking hitchhikers.
No problem. I had hours before
I would have died of exposure.
I think they might have a phone
back at that diner.
- What diner?
- That diner a couple miles back.
There hasn't been a building in this road
for the last fifty miles.
It was called Last Chance Diner.
Last Chance Diner?
Now that's rich.
Do you remember
seeing the diner?
Sorry to contradict,
but I do believe that diner is closed.
It looked open to me.
So there is a diner?
There was a diner.
You guys can do whatever you want, but I'm going
to go back and check it out, okay? Let's go.
Tell guy at the diner
officer DeVille sent you.
Hello? Anybody home?
Hello?
Hello!
Please, have a seat anywhere.
The State Trooper down the road
said you guys were closed.
He's been trying to keep people
away from me for years.
It's a personal thing.
Would you like some water?
Yeah.
You got a phone?
Do you have any coffee?
I'm sorry,
all we serve here is water.
You have got to be kidding me.
This tastes great.
It's my own recipe.
Two molecules of hydrogen
and one of oxygen.
This phone's dead.
Yes, the storm probably knocked down
the phonelines.
It's a miracle
we have electricity working.
Isn't it, Crusher?
Crusher Crocetti!
I thought I recognized you.
I can't say I ever rooted for you,
though. I'm a Rams fan.
But I can't lie,
I do love your burgers.
Here.
Good for two Crusher Burger meals.
Thanks, Mr. Crocetti.
Can we get some menus?
Sure, but I'll tell you what, since you'll
probably be my only customers tonight,
I'll just make
whatever you want.
I'd prefer a menu.
Yes, ma'am.
Jesus.
Most people pronounce it Jesus.
Nice name.
Religious.
It doesn't really have
anything to do with religion.
It was my father's idea.
I don't know, that I'd have the name Jesus
I'd be expected to know everything.
Try me.
Here we go.
Ma'am.
Would you like a menu?
Hank?
Sure, thanks.
How'd he know my name?
- What?
- He called me Hank.
- That's your name, isn't it?
- Yeah, but how did he know?
Just stop.
Ladies, what would you like?
What would you recommend?
Excellent question.
You know, I have a special knack
for knowing exactly what people want.
Of course, what they need
is an entirely different matter.
Don't people want what they need?
Not necessarily, in fact,
most of the time people don't.
Your recommendation then, sir.
Okay.
I think you would like...
sirloin tips smothered in gravy,
on a bed of mashed potatoes
with a garden salad on the side,
and thousand island dressing.
That's what my mother always made
for my birthday.
Your mother loves you very much.
She did.
She died last year.
It doesn't mean
she stopped loving you.
What about me?
What do I want?
You want many things, young lady,
all of which you don't necessarily need.
But as far as dinner is concerned, I think
you would like a gigantic beef burrito
with black beans and rice and sour cream
and pico de gallo on the side.
I thought so.
Let me get you some bread.
Hey!
How much is it gonna cost?
Don't worry, I'll take care of it.
No, I don't to be dependent
on anyone anymore.
- I pay my own way.
- Okay, okay.
But how's this?
All special orders are free!
My personal gift to you.
If it's free, it must not
be worth having.
I guarantee you, Nick,
this an offer you don't want
to pass up.
I'd like to ask,
are you able to do it?
One business man to another,
but I see that what you lose in food
you save elsewhere like this newspaper.
It's fifty years old!
Yeah, it belonged
to the previous owner.
And you just left it
sitting here?
It reminds me of the original owner.
Stan Kostek was his name.
A very sweet guy.
He was sitting in this very seat reading
the newspaper after the morning rush.
Tell me, what's the most popular section
of the newspaper? Hank?
Sports?
The obituaries.
Right, the obituaries.
He was sitting here
reading the obituaries,
not knowing that
the very next day
he would be in the obituaries
himself.
If only he had known.
I don't get it.
Maybe he's telling us that we're
going to be in the newspaper tomorrow.
Perhaps.
You're the one with
the decision to make.
What will be?
Menu or a special order?
Well,
I think I'll take the special order,
if only to hear what you think I want.
Well, I think you've had enough burgers
to last your lifetime,
so what you think about a thick porterhouse steak
and a baked potato and some summer squash?
And don't forget a nice slice of
cherry pie fresh from the windowsill.
It's a good choice, Jesus.
Only make the steak
a little rare.
I am here to serve.
What would you like?
I'll take the chicken Caesar salad
and a diet coke.
I'm sorry, all we serve here
is water.
You don't have a diet coke?
Fine, I'll have water.
And I'll have a bacon cheeseburger
and a diet coke.
All I serve here is water.
Okay, I'll have water.
Would you like fries
with your cheeseburger?
You know, there's something a little disconcerting
about a man named Jesus asking me if I want fries.
That's a simple question, sir.
- No, thanks.
- Go ahead.
I don't care what you do anymore.
- Yeah, I'll have French fries.
- Excellent choice, Hank.
How'd you know my name?
Well, it's Hank!
Isn't it, Catherine?
Hey, how did you know our names?
I'm Jesus.
I know everything.
I know all of you.
I've known you since before
you were born.
And I've got a plan for each
of you. A perfect plan.
All you have to do
is believe in me.
Well, folks,
I don't know about the rest of you,
but I'm due back
on the planet earth now.
So, if you don't mind,
we will be leaving.
Hank?
Fine.
Catherine, wait. Where're you going?
I got the keys to the car.
Catherine, wait.
You can go with me.
I've had enough of this freak show myself.
That's awfully good of you.
You can't leave with my wife.
It's obvious she doesn't want
to stay with you. Sorry, pal.
Enjoy the food.
Thanks a lot, Jesus.
My wife just left me.
She was going to
leave you anyway, Hank.
- Yes, but...
- Don't worry. She'll be back.
What a bunch of craziness.
You get that right.
Where am I taking you,
by the way?
Away from here.
Seriously, the roads are closed,
I've got to go to Silverton.
Silverton is fine.
I can take a bus from there.
No.
I cannot believe this.
We have just entered
in the Twilight Zone.
Who are you really?
Who do you say I am, Kayla?
Well, you could be Jesus,
and I could be Britney Spears.
Yeah, aren't supposed to be
in heaven or something?
What is going to take
to convince you?
How's this?
Funny.
You know, anyone can get
a fake ID these days.
That's right, Kayla.
Even you.
- How did you know that?
- I'm Jesus, I know everything.
Melissa, for example, is heading up to Winnemucca
for the weekend to visit her boyfriend, Paul.
She thinks he's going
to propose to her.
Is he?
Yes!
I wouldn't be so excited
if I were you.
Melissa, do you really want to marry a man that makes
you drive four 100 miles just to propose to you?
You're a woman, you're precious.
I've got better for you
than that.
What about me, Jesus?
What do you know about me
besides my name?
I know your wife no longer
wants to be Mrs. Hank Miller.
Is that true?
It is true.
Look, I don't know who you are, but you
have no right to interfere in my marriage.
I'm not interfering
in your marriage, Hank.
I can save your marriage.
How could you save my marriage?
All you have to do is ask me.
Jesus...
save my marriage.
Save my marriage, please,
Lord Jesus.
Save my marriage.
I can't believe, it!
We've got go back in there.
I will walk to Silverton
before I go back in there.
He may be crazy,
but he's probably harmless.
Probably?
- Back so soon?
- Car didn't start.
Aren't you worried
about your meeting?
Your franchisees meeting.
You've got what, 1,100 restaurants now?
We'll be more like 3,000
by the end of next year.
It's impressive.
Nick,
I can offer you greater riches.
Riches that can never be lost
or stolen or sunk by the stock market.
That's real good, Jesus.
- Catherine...
- Hank, please.
I meant what I said.
Is there somebody else?
- Don't be ridiculous.
- We can save our marriage.
It's too late.
Jesus can save our marriage.
- You mean your friend over there?
- Yes.
He knows we're headed
for a divorce.
Does he?
Well, that puts him one up on you.
Hey, did you eat all the bread?
Sorry. I was hungry.
Hey, can we get
more bread over here?
There is plenty of bread there.
No, there isn't. It's...
empty.
How did you do that?
I'm Jesus.
Will you come with me, please?
Sure.
Well, as long as you are performing miracles,
why don't you turn my water into wine?
Am I losing my mind?
That breadbasket was empty.
- Wasn't it?
- I thought it was.
And then suddenly
it wasn't empty.
Doesn't that freak you out?
You haven't been
some of the places I've been.
Plus, it was your idea
to come here.
Suppose.
Suppose it really is...
him?
- Jesus?
- Yeah.
Please!
How did he know that stuff
about my boyfriend?
He probably just
overheard us talking.
No.
We didn't talk about that in there.
Look, I don't know
what the explanation is,
but I'm sure there is one.
It's not so bad here,
there's free food and it's a warm place.
So, you can leave, but...
I'm staying.
You shall see the Son of Man
sitting at the right hand of Power
and coming on the clouds of heaven.
Your good book forgot to mention that
there'd be a chance of scattered showers.
I'm glad to see that you remember some
of what you read in the Bible, Nick.
Specially that part, that's like
one of my favorite parts.
You can thank Gideons for that.
There's no telling what a man will do
at 3 AM in a Day's Inn outside Fargo.
You were searching, Nick.
I was bored.
Bored people turn on the TV.
You opened the Bible.
What were you looking for?
You tell me!
You know everything.
It was after the death
of your father.
You were wondering how your parents
could be so content with so little.
How your father could be as proud
of his fruit stand
as you are of your fame
and your millions.
I loved your parents.
Real, authentic,
hardworking people.
More people went to your father's
fruit stand for a smile than for his fruit.
And do you know who was great?
Your grandmother, Sadie.
I never knew her,
she died when I was little.
Of course you remember her.
In fact, you could say that she is
the reason we're here like this tonight.
What do you mean?
Your grandmother
was a delight to my heart.
A humble woman filled with love
and zeal, a real prayer warrior.
In her last years, her most passionate
prayers, Nick, were for you.
She was praying that you'd come to me
as your Lord and your Savior.
That you'd come to eternal life.
I am honoring her faithfulness by
coming to you to make this personal appeal.
Well, but there was no need
to go through all the trouble, Jesus.
Because I'm doing
just fine on my own.
If I hadn't intervened tonight,
you'd be dead.
- You'd all be dead.
- What?
The flooding left the road unstable.
Nick would have hit the curve too hard
and each of you
would have followed him.
No, no, wait a minute.
Let me get this straight.
You're trying to take credit for saving
our lives by keeping us off the road,
but if you are indeed God,
then you created the storm
to cause the damage on the road,
so if we kept driving, you would
be responsible for our deaths.
You live in a
fractured creation.
That's what's responsible
for the storm.
I stepped in and took advantage
of the storm
to bring you all here tonight
so I could make this personal appeal.
Okay, Jesus.
If you really are the Christ,
why don't you tell me something
amazing about myself?
Something only I know.
You don't really want to leave
your husband.
Wrong.
Our marriage is over.
No, you're only looking
for something he can't provide,
and you're not going to find it
on your own either.
I'll take that chance.
Catherine, don't be so hard on your husband,
you've got to expect him to believe in me.
He's been listening to my voice
since he was fifteen.
In fact, he heard me
earlier today.
- I did?
- Yes.
I was that still small voice in your head
that told you to pick up Kayla,
but you didn't, did you?
I wanted to,
but...
But Catherine wouldn't let you.
Am I right?
I'm not ashamed to admit it.
For all I knew,
she was going to kill us.
Well, it that's the way you feel,
I probably should have.
You see what I mean?
I can't fault you, Catherine.
- But I can fault you, Hank.
- Why?
- She's here, isn't she?
- Of course.
I knew you wouldn't pick her up, so I asked
another one of my servants to do it.
Didn't I?
Pick her up.
That was you?
That was not the first time you
heard my voice, nor it would be the last.
You just keep listening.
And I guarantee you will find
what you seek.
Hank,
do you really think you're going to save,
let alone restore your marriage
by putting your wife's wishes
above mine?
She wants to break up
your marriage, Hank.
I want to save it.
You've got to be
listening to me.
You know, maybe the two of you should
get married and just leave me out of it.
Catherine, you've been out of it
for way too long.
It's time that you and I met.
Are you saying
I am not a Christian?
I'm sorry, you're not.
How dare you?
I go to church every Sunday!
- I even teach Sunday School!
- I know.
The sad part is that you would
have peace in your heart today
if you had half the faith of some
of those kids in your class.
Catherine!
She's only going
to the ladies room, Hank.
So, Jesus, if you're everywhere,
aren't you in the ladies room as well?
Nick, you've got
quite a sense of humor,
but eventually you will going to find out
that you can't make a joke about everything.
Come on.
Come on!
Come on!
Great.
Go away, Hank!
It's not Hank.
It's Melissa.
You are awfully quiet down here.
I haven't that much to say.
I've given a lot to think about,
haven't I?
Yeah.
I'll be right back.
I'm sorry for being rude earlier.
Everything is such a mess.
Hank and I...
we're drifting apart
for months now.
I don't even know
who I am anymore.
And why am I telling you this?
Sometimes it's just...
easier to talk to a stranger
about these things, you know.
And that...
that man out there!
That man who thinks he's Jesus.
He thinks he knows me.
- Do you think he's Jesus?
- Do you?
Was it true? I mean,
that you don't want
to leave your husband?
I don't know what I want.
I just...
I want things to be different.
Well, then does it matter
if he really is Jesus?
I mean, he obviously knows
a lot about you.
Why don't you just...
listen to what he has to say?
Like he can fix what's wrong
with my marriage.
Like you can?
Thank you for picking up Kayla.
- There's no problem.
- I feel terrible about that.
Hank, you seem to be really
buying this whole Jesus thing.
I am a believer, yes.
But do you believe in that guy?
Either he is who he says he is or...
Or what?
Or he's a lunatic.
And I've seen no evidence
that he being crazy.
Hank, you don't get out
to the big city too much, do you pal?
So tell me, Hank,
what do you do for a living?
I'm head of accounts receivable
for a home improvement company.
And what do you pull down there?
Ninety?
Come on, you're among friends,
besides, he already knows.
Less than that.
Doesn't seem look like God's
been particularly generous to you.
No, there's more to life than money.
There's family too, and he hasn't done
any favors in that department neither!
You know, that's not nice.
Am I lying?
Am I?
I mean, if that's your way
of rewarding the faithful,
I'm glad I went out and got
what I got on my own.
You wouldn't have anything if I
hadn't put a stone in your path.
July 4th, 1974, Elderkin quarry.
You and your buddies were racing up the hill to
dive in, and you took a shortcut to the bushes.
And you hit your foot on the stone
right before you dove.
Yeah, yeah.
It threw my footing off.
It ruined my dive.
Caused me to hit an underwater rock
and broke my hand in two places.
I could have been a receiver.
If haven't tripped over that stone, Nick,
you would have hit your head on that rock.
You would have died
at fourteen years old.
But your grandmother prayers
were ringing in my ears.
I put that stone in your path.
But, if you really are God, you've
could figured out a way to save him
without breaking his hand.
True, but Kayla,
if nothing had happened,
he wouldn't have remembered it,
and he clearly does.
And if he would believe in me he would
see it for what it truly is...
my grace.
So you hurt him
so he'd thank you later?
In a way.
Kayla, you've got to remember,
I'm not the one to put him
on that path.
I'm not the one who made him dive.
I'm the one who saved him.
Just like I saved you two days ago
in LA before you left.
Do you remember, Kayla?
What?
What happened?
Nothing!
I don't know what you did
to that poor girl, but...
if you really are God,
the least you could do
is take care of
my friend Hank here.
At least he believes in you.
Hank is going through
a rough spot right now, Nick.
But the difference between you and him
is that he knows, in the deep of his heart,
that all things work together for the good of those
who love God, and are called to His purpose.
So I guess when that drunk driver killed my father,
that was your way of patting him on the back?
Nick, your father enjoyed his life,
but he's enjoying his eternal life
a whole lot more right now.
And I want you to see him.
Well, excuse me if I don't take upon
that offer. But many do, don't they?
How many people are going to blow themselves
up in your name in the Middle East?
In my name, none.
What about the people who
blow up abortion clinics?
I've never wanted to ask anyone
to blow up an abortion clinic.
But you do remember telling the Israelites to kill the
Canaanites before they entered the Promised Land.
Men, women and children.
Even the livestock.
Today we have a word for that.
Genocide.
For an unbeliever,
you know your Bible very well, Nick.
Answer the question.
- Perfect timing.
- No, no, no, no.
I'm not gonna let him off
that easy. I want an answer.
Yes, I asked the Israelites
to kill the Canaanites.
- Women and children included?
- Yes.
Is that anyway
for a God of Love to behave?
I am love, but I am also holy,
and I cannot allow sin to go unpunished.
That's not just for my sake, it's for yours.
I don't want you to wallow in sin
and rebellion and guilt.
I want you to thrive
an unending peace and joy.
There's no human being in this planet
that's an accident.
I hand formed you
in your mother's womb.
And I formed you for a purpose.
I put before you a path
of love and worship.
And the degree that you experience
the love and joy
and the good things of life
is the degree to which
you bent to my will.
And if we don't seek your will, you
kill us like you did to the Canaanites.
Everyone dies, Nick.
But not everyone
needs to fear death.
If you abide in me, you will be stepping
free from this fallen world
and into glory.
Is that what heaven's like?
Glory?
It's more than glory, Melissa.
It's peace, and love, and joy.
Can you imagine living in the fullness
of the warmth of God's light?
There are no words in the human
vocabulary that can describe it.
It's a place where
there's no suffering.
It's a place where every tear
is wiped form your eyes.
There's no sadness,
there's no pain.
And you know, Melissa?
One day you and I
will walk on the streets of gold and
we'll talk about this night together.
What about me, Jesus?
Will I walk the streets of gold?
Nick,
that's completely up to you.
Melissa made her decision
on the 232nd day of her 17th year.
That was her birthday
into my kingdom.
Why don't you tell Nick
all about it?
Tell him why you sought me.
I'd like to hear it.
So would I.
Well, I was depressed.
The guy that I had been dating
broke up with me, so...
it was all I could do,
so I would...
come home and just...
sleep and cry,
sleep and cry and...
eat.
It got to so bad that I was...
thinking about taking my own life.
I stole a bottle of painkillers
from my mother's house.
I was planning on taking all them
and going to bed
and never waking up.
And the phone rang,
for whatever reason
I picked it up.
And it was a friend from work.
And she was a Christian,
and she always talked about
God and Bible.
And she said she was coming
to pick me up and take me to a movie,
and I... I thought why not?
So, half an hour later,
I was seating in the movie theater
and it was packed.
It turned out it was
like a Christian Film Festival.
And this movie was...
unlike anything
I'd ever seen before.
It was as if the message was
directed at me.
I remember tearing up.
Yeah, I can't help myself.
At the end of the movie a man went
to the front and began to speak.
It felt like he was talking to me,
you know, personally.
He talked about
God's forgiveness,
eternal life and how this place
we call Planet Earth was only temporary.
And how our real home
was in the kingdom of heaven
and that I would live there eternally
if I would surrender my life to him.
You know,
I can't quite explain it,
but something was happening to me
right then,
right there in the theater.
He then said whoever would like
to commit their lives to Christ
to get up out of our seats
and go to front.
And the most important decision you ever make
in your whole life stands before you right now.
So I did.
I felt like a whole new person
that very second.
Come unto to me all you
who are weary and burdened
and I will give you rest.
Did you find that rest?
Yes.
Looking back I can't believe
that I was, you know,
gonna take my life over some guy
that broke up with me.
Melissa, I have so much more in store
for you too
if you trust me.
There could be time when I ask you
to do things you may not wanna do.
I don't understand.
You can't marry Paul.
But I love him.
Well,
I shouldn't say you can't,
because you can.
But you shouldn't.
It's just not my desire for you,
Melissa.
But I love him.
Melissa, you have
a very tender heart.
How many guys have you fallen
in love with since you were 16?
But he loves me too.
Melissa, it's just not my will
for a couple to be...
unequally matched.
Paul doesn't believe in me.
What if we got married and made it
my mission to save him?
- I can do that.
- Melissa, do you love him?
- Do you really love him?
- Yes, I do.
Who do you think loves him more,
you or me?
You do, obviously, but...
Melissa,
Paul doesn't feel about you
the same way you feel about him.
He hates his assignment up
in Winnemucca,
he's lonely.
Right now, he thinks that...
you are exactly what he needs,
but two years from now,
when you're back in LA,
he's going to want
something more.
Something you can't give him.
He's gonna grow to resent you.
Do you know what he is gonna
resent most about you?
Your faith in me.
That still will be the biggest
difference between the two of you.
So, instead of being the instrument
that draws him to me,
you'll actually cause him
to turn me the other way.
Now, Melissa,
isn't more important that he loves me
than he loves you?
Will he come to know you?
In time, yes, he will.
Well, then maybe then we could...
Melissa,
I promise you.
By then you won't even want
to entertain the possibility.
Remember, I have many
wonderful things in store for you.
This is beginning to sound like
"deal or no deal".
If I were you, I would say
"no deal".
You know, Nick,
your cynicism is beginning
to wear on all of us.
That's awfully presumptuous of you
to speak for everyone.
You're starting to get
on my nerves as well.
I was against you the minute
you tried to run me over.
Wow! I tried to leave, remember?
It's not my fault
the car wouldn't start.
Nick, you are here
for one reason.
Because is not my will
that anyone should perish,
but that everyone would turn around
and come to me.
The word you remember
from your Bible is repent.
I don't have anything
to repent of!
As I said, Nick, I'm here honoring
the prayers of your grandmother.
I wish I had known her.
You still have that chance.
But only on your terms.
It sounds like blackmail to me.
It's not blackmail, Nick. I want you
to be where your grandmother is.
The place of everlasting love.
And suppose I don't want that.
I'm a gentleman, Nick.
I'll never force myself on you
or anyone.
That's the worst kind
of blackmail!
Do things my way or face fire
and brimstone forever.
Nick, you don't want to follow me,
do you?
Not particularly.
- You certainly don't want to obey me.
- Correct again.
Nick, what would be more
unjust and unfair?
For me to steal you
at the moment of your death
and force you to live in my presence
and in my will for all eternity?
Hell, on the other hand,
is a place, Nick, where...
you will be completely free from
all of my "thou shall not's"
forever.
Hell never sounded
so appealing to me.
You know, every day, I get millions
of complaints about this world
all the greed and selfishness,
poverty and starvation
the wars, the murders,
the abuse of children.
I hardly recognize
this place anymore.
It bears so little resemblance to
the garden that I created for you.
But it's not hell, Nick.
Even now, there's...
sunshine on a spring day, there's...
starry night in the desert sky.
There's a gentle breeze
on a summer afternoon.
The smell of flowers,
the song of birds.
Not to mention the horrible
storms and floods!
There's even people who are willing
to land a helping hand
to the helpless,
and there's love.
Nick, there's still love.
How could we forget love?
Nick, there's one thing for sure.
There's no love in hell.
There's no beauty.
No hope.
There's just...
torment.
Kind of torment that...
comes from within.
But surely no one would choose that
if they really believed you existed.
Not so. Nobody goes in the hell
blindfolded.
In one way or another,
I've revealed myself to everyone.
But if they could just see you.
Not even that would be enough.
Look at Satan, he stood before me
in the very throne room of God.
He thought that the beauty
and power bestowed was...
somehow earned and gave himself
over to pride.
Scratch any sin and just below
the surface and you'll find pride.
People steal because they think they deserve
what other people had worked hard for.
They hop from bed to bed
because they feel entitled
to just satisfy themselves,
no matter who it hurts,
no matter what pain that it costs.
Here you go.
Can I get you anything else?
No, I'm great, thanks.
Enjoy your meals.
This is the best burger
I have ever tasted!
I guess I should take
my coupons back.
I have to give you credit, this is
the best salad I've ever tasted.
I'll give a bite of my salad if you
let me have a bite of your burger.
This is the first salad
I've ever wanted to taste.
Here we go. Sirloin tips smothered
in gravy, on a bed of mashed potatoes
with a green salad on the side
and thousand island dressing.
Thank you!
- Aren't you going to eat?
- No.
My food is to serve my Father.
It tastes just like my mom's.
Kayla.
Would you like to join us or
do want me to serve you over there?
I promise not to mention
that LA thing again,
unless you want
to talk about it.
Okay.
- Oh, this is great!
- Is it?
It's not too hot
or mild. It's...
Perfect?
Yeah.
Thanks.
I get that a lot.
On second thought,
I'm not hungry.
Nick, I guarantee this is
the best deal you will ever get.
And it's absolutely free.
You don't have to do anything
but accept it.
Thanks, but no thanks.
I'm liable to end up brainwashed
like the rest of these people.
- You wasted your time.
- No, it was...
not wasted.
The meal he rejected
will become food or others.
Well, if he doesn't want it,
can I have it?
Absolutely.
Kayla, I'm willing to give you
many good things.
All you have to do is ask me.
I have asked!
Havel answered?
Do you have any idea
how we lived?
One week we'd be
at my grandmother's,
and then in the next,
we'd be in a shelter,
and in the week after,
we we'd be in child services
or a foster home.
But then my mom would
get us back, promising us
that it'd be better this time.
But it never was!
She's a junkie.
Junkies never change.
Your mother loves you.
Yeah, when she was
drunk and crying
about how she could've been
this or that.
She could've been?
What about me?
What chance did I ever have
with a mother like her?
Do you think she care if I brushed
my teeth or if I combed my hair?
Or if I was hungry?
Or if I went to school?
She'd never let me leave her side
when I was little
and cute.
She could get
twice the handouts.
When I got just as dirty as her,
people looked away.
- The way you did.
- I never turned away.
So you were watching
when I had to fled out the police officer
after my mother OD'ed?
Or how about that time that guy
robbed us and he cut me instead?
I'm glad you were watching.
I hope we were putting
on a good show for you.
I used to pray
when I was little.
Pastor Jim, down at the mission,
taught me how.
He's a good man.
Yeah.
At least he cared.
What did you do for us?
I took all these
hard things, Kayla,
and I used them to turn you into
the wonderful young lady that you are.
So strong and enduring.
Such a wonderful role model
for your little sister.
But right now she's with him.
- Him?
- My stepfather, Jake.
The funny thing is...
at first I thought he was
an answer to prayer.
He had a house,
and a job.
We were finally looking like that we
were going to have a normal home life.
But when he'd got to drinking,
my mother and him
got to fighting.
It was worse than the streets.
And then she looked him
out of the bedroom
and he looked for
a new place to sleep.
And not just to sleep.
Where were you then?
I was shouting into his mind
and in his conscious to stop and stop.
I was there in the bathroom.
Oh God.
Please.
And I heard you.
Kayla, your prayer before
you pulled that trigger,
it wasn't for death.
It was to go to a better place.
Kayla, if you had
died that night
you wouldn't have gone
to a better place.
So the night before,
I caused your stepfather to stumble.
That made him reconsider the prospect
of keeping a loaded gun in his pocket.
So he removed the clip
and unknowingly saved your life.
That was not the first time
I saved your life.
Nor will it be the last either.
Kayla,
what do you want?
I just want to stop hurting.
I can't promise you that all your
problems will disappear overnight.
You have a hard road
ahead of you,
but I can tell you that you have
a peace and a purpose,
that you'll not only survive,
but you'll thrive and grow,
if you trust me.
Will you follow me?
Yes.
Will you forgive
all those people who hurt you?
Even as I forgive you?
Yes.
Even Jake?
How can you ask me to do that?
You saw what he did to me.
Yeah.
But Kayla,
look what he has done to me.
I paid a heavy price
for your stepfather's sins.
It's the same price
I paid for your sins.
Now, Kayla, I want you
to go back to Los Angeles
and I want you tell the police
what your stepfather did.
I want him to go to jail.
He needs to understand
that there is a...
price that has to be paid for sin,
even in this fallen world.
But, Kayla, I don't want him
to go to hell.
I want him to come to me,
so that I can forgive him,
so and give him new life.
And you know there's another reason
that I want you to forgive him.
If you don't,
all the anger and resentment
will just...
poison every relationship
you have,
even ours.
If you want to love,
you have to abandon hate.
Don't let anger steal your joy.
- I forgive him.
- And I forgive you.
You ought to be
ashamed of yourself,
taking advantage of an emotionally
distraught little girl.
Nick, why are you fighting me?
What have I done to make you hate me?
Hate you?
You think I've given you
enough thought to hate you?
I hate Federal regulators.
I hate taxes.
I hate sitting in coach.
You don't warrant hate.
You warrant exactly what
I've been giving you all this time.
Indifference.
I don't want you.
I don't need you.
I'm not like these losers.
You don't need
anything else in your life, Nick?
I'm living the American dream.
Eleven years in the NFL.
Nine Pro Bowls.
Two Super bowl rings.
A sack record that no one
has come close to touching yet.
A restaurant chain that I'll take public in a
couple years for hundreds of millions of dollars.
I've got everything I want.
What does it profit a man to gain
the whole world and lose his soul?
It isn't a love of money that
keeps him away from me, Melissa.
- Thank you.
- It's pride.
Here we go with pride again.
Give pride a break.
You show me someone without pride
and I'll show you a bum.
Someone who is taking more
from society than what he's giving.
So that's what motivates you,
giving?
No, but when I succeed,
other people will do too.
When I sacked a quarterback,
it helped my whole team.
And look at my restaurants.
Each one of them employs
25 to 40 people.
That doesn't include my vendors,
doesn't include corporate,
doesn't include my suppliers.
Every one of those families is doing better
than mine did when I was growing up.
Funny how it all comes back
to your dad's fruit stand, Nick.
Did you not feel loved
as a child?
- Of course I felt loved.
- Did you feel secure?
I felt secure.
Then why do you so much disdain
for your youth, Nick?
Why were you so embarrassed?
I wasn't embarrassed.
Nick.
Nick, I'm going to have
to call you on that one.
As a child, you were happy.
Spend all your summers working
with your father in the fruit stand.
Listening to his stories,
marveling at...
the way people came
just to talk to him.
Everybody liked your father.
You have to admit you got
your work ethic from him, Nick.
I got a lot of things from him.
But not what he wanted you
to have the most.
When you were a child,
everybody was pretty much the same.
Working class,
lower-middle class.
Nobody was rich
or unduly privileged.
But when you got in high school,
suddenly were with the sons of...
doctors and lawyers
and businessmen,
people that the rest of the world
thought were very successful.
It all comes down to the summer
before your sophomore year.
You were working in the fruit stand,
like you always did,
when Cliff and Bobby came.
They saw you in your white apron and they
thought it was the funniest thing in the world.
And your dad's accent.
You used to have
an accent, Nick.
You got rid of it, didn't you?
- You think you're so smart.
- But you had football.
Coaches didn't care if you were rich or poor, all
they cared about was your performance on the field.
And you excelled.
Sport was your ticket.
And suddenly you were
no longer the little...
Nicky Crocetti in a white apron, the son of
a fruit vendor, you were Crusher Crocetti.
God help the man
who would laughed at you.
Do you want to mess with me?
Relax, Nick.
Have a piece of pie.
It's your grandmother's recipe.
I'll give her this,
she was a great cook.
That's because she sprinkled
a generous helping of love on...
everything.
Didn't she, Nick?
- I don't remember her.
- Memory is a funny thing, Nick.
It can remain perfectly hidden
for years, even decades,
and then come flooding back
because of a picture,
or hearing a song,
smelling a scent,
or even a taste.
Grandma, is my pie ready?
Now,
what do we say?
Thank you God?
- Would you like to pray?
- Okay, grandma.
Attaboy.
Dear Jesus,
thank you for this food.
Thank you, Lord, for my family
and thank you for my grandma.
In Jesus name, amen.
She never graduated from high school.
She was never rich.
She never even learned
to drive a car,
but your grandmother, Nick,
was a very special lady.
You remember her, don't you?
Your grandmother had true
faith in my ability to...
intervene and fulfill
my promises.
And I promised her that I would move
heaven and earth to reach you,
so here I am, Nick.
You put this ancient memory
in my head
and you expect me to throw away
the life I built for myself!
What kind of weak willed man
do you think I am?
The kind of man who hasn't opened
himself up to unconditional love
since he was a child.
You put up a wall.
Your turned your back on the
old-fashioned blue collar values
blasted off into your future.
But with Sadie...
there was never a wall
between you and Sadie.
She died before you could
shut down completely.
And so there's still
just a fragment, Nick,
of unconditional love
that remains in your heart.
Nick, when was the last time that you told
your parents that you loved them?
I took care of them.
I bought them a house.
I bought them cars.
This is ridiculous.
I'm not gonna sit here and let you make me
feel guilty for something I didn't do.
Nick, some people feel guilty
for things that they did,
and others feel guilty
for what they didn't do.
The question is, what are
you going to do about it?
I don't have to do
anything about it.
Yes, you do, Nick.
This is your time.
All the seemingly random moments
and incidents of your life,
they all come together to bring you
here and now to this point
of making a decision for your life,
for all eternity.
Kayla's stepped out of death
and into life.
I want you to join her,
I want you to join your mom and dad.
I want you to join Sadie.
Sadie awaits you in heaven.
Nick, what are you afraid of?
Do you think I'm going to ask you
to give all your money away to the poor
and become a missionary
in Africa?
Or are you more afraid
that I'm going to ask you
to proclaim my name
to your friends and colleagues?
Is that what it is, Nick?
You're afraid your business partners
and your former team mates
will laugh at you
because of this?
They'll say you're weak. They'll say
you lost your ethic and gone soft?
- Is that it?
- Do you think I care what they think?
You think I care
what anybody thinks?
I'm my own man!
You think you're a self-made man,
but you're not.
I made you, Nick.
You existed in my heart
before the creation of the world.
I have plans for your life.
Think of what you can accomplish
with me in you corner, Nick.
Please, open your heart.
I'm doing just fine on my own.
Well, well, well.
You are still in business.
And after all these years
you'd think nobody would be interested
in what you're selling.
I don't sell anything.
Oh, that's right.
You give it all away.
Any takers?
Not me.
He couldn't get me to bite.
That's a smart man.
I come bearing good news, the road is
finally clear and you're all free to leave.
Well, hallelujah! That is
the best news I've heard all day.
It isn't true.
The road isn't clear.
Like you would know?
This man has been out there.
He obviously knows.
Does he?
Apparently, I do.
You coming?
Don't, Nick.
Nick...
I don't think you should go.
- Can I get an escort?
- Absolutely.
Just follow me.
It's you and me, baby.
That's one for me.
Four set free.
Don't worry, Jesus.
We'll meet again.
That was his last chance.
If there's a downside
to being God,
it's knowing.
I have reached out to him
with everything I have,
but I know.
I just know.
I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd who lays down
his life for the sheep.
The thief comes only to steal,
and kill and destroy.
I am the good shepherd,
and I know my own,
and my own know me.
My sheep hear my voice
and I know them,
and they follow me,
and no one shall snatch them
from my hand.
- Melissa.
- Yes.
Will you do me a favor?
Drive Kayla back to Los Angeles
and bring her to the child
protective services for me?
Yes, of course.
Kayla, you're gonna have some
hard times ahead of you.
And you have some doubts,
but this will be ultimately
the first step to saving your family.
- Really?
- Yeah.
You have such a wonderful life
ahead of you.
- Will I ever see you again?
- Yeah, yeah, but not like this.
I mean, not for
along while, anyway.
- Can I talk to you?
- All the time.
I'll be listening.
- Will I hear you?
- Yeah,
in my word, mostly.
That's the Bible.
That book has all the wisdom
you need for your life.
And then sometimes,
just in a quiet of your spirit, you'll...
hear me saying, "This is the way you should
go, this is the way you shouldn't go."
Melissa,
Paul's going to be very upset.
You'll have to be
very strong, okay?
Okay.
What about us, Lord?
Hank, I want you
to love your wife.
I want you to pray for her,
and pray like
never stop praying.
Where you have followed
you will now lead.
Many will be blessed
because of your faith.
I think I understand.
Catherine,
won't you join us?
I don't mean just here and now,
I mean forever.
If you really were who you said you are,
you'd know I already answered the call.
Yeah, I remember when you
walked up the aisle.
Catherine, there's a lot more
to do than just walking up an aisle
or saying a few words.
You have to really truly repent,
a change of a heart.
If you don't believe me,
believe your handsome husband there.
He's a good man,
and he loves you very much.
Of course not as much as I do.
I love you.
And I love you.
I love you.
Hank...
Thank you.
Sorry for the inconvenience, folks.
- Is the road still closed?
- No, sir, the roads are open,
but there's been
a terrible accident.
- An accident?
- Yes, sir.
The driver was in a kind of fog and smashed
into the guard-rail around the curve.
What kind of car was it?
Was it a BMW?
Yes, sir, as a matter of fact,
it was.
And the driver, did he make it?
No, ma'am, I'm sorry.
He was killed instantly.
- Did you know him?
- No. Not really.
We were all having dinner
back together at the diner.
Which one, the one
in Thompsonville?
No, the one a couple miles back.
Sorry I contradict you, but there's
no diner a couple miles back.
No, there was.
We were just there.
I've been patrolling this county for
more than ten years and I can assure you
- there's no diner on this road.
- But what about Officer DeVille?
He walked in the diner himself.
- Office who?
- DeVille.
D-E-V-I-L...
L-E.
I haven't heard of anybody working
around here named DeVille.
If you folks will excuse me.
I'm not going crazy, right?
There was a diner.
This has been quite a day.
- Got that right.
- Yeah.
I guess would be
better get going.
- Be careful.
- We will be just fine.
We're in good hands.
Come on.
Please forgive me.
I'm not a bad person.
- I'm just confused.
- It's okay.
We all get like that sometimes.
So...
- shall we?
- Yeah. But...
first, let's go back.
Go back? Where?
- Are you sure this is it?
- This is it.
That's the cut
for the parking lot.
Over there was the foundation.
No.
No, this is the wrong place.
It must be further back.
No, this is right.
This is it.
You have to really truly repent,
a change of a heart.
Come unto me all you
who are weary and burdened
and I will give you rest.
This is it.
It was true.
It was all true.
And it really was him.
You knew it was him.
How did you know?
How could you save my marriage?
All you have to do is ask me.
Save my marriage.
Save my marriage, please,
Lord Jesus.
Save my marriage.
I didn't know at first.
But there was something in my heart
that told me who he was.
Nothing in my heart told me.
Not until he said he loved me.
I love you.
Then I felt something.
We've all sinned and fallen short
of his glory.
But you know it's
all about his grace...
and sacrifice on the cross.
I don't know what to say.
Just imagine he's right there,
because he is.
Talk to him.
Tell him what you're feeling,
tell him what's in your heart.
Catherine, won't you join us?
I don't mean just here and now,
I mean forever.
Good afternoon, sir.
What would be today?
Menu or special order?
- C'mon, c'mon!
Hey!
Hey!
Idiot!
Jerk!
Don't.
Maybe we can go to a counselor
or something.
You just don't get it, do you?
I don't to be your wife anymore.
I want to be me for a while.
I'm not stopping you from being you.
Yeah.
As long as being me
means being Mrs. Hank Miller.
Not anymore.
It'll be a fresh start
for the both of us.
I don't want a fresh start.
Pick her up.
Hey!
What are you doing?
You are not picking her up!
Hey!
What's wrong with you people?
We should have picked her up.
Pick her up.
Hey! Get in!
Where are you going?
It doesn't matter.
Just get in!
We are lucky I came along when I did.
The storms are getting crazy.
So, how long have you
been out there?
All day.
That's terrible, I'm sorry.
- My name's Melissa.
- I'm Kayla.
You're not from around here,
are you?
Not really.
Running away?
So that either means yes or mind
your business, Melissa. Which is it?
I'm just passing through.
Well, there's a lot
to pass through here.
I noticed.
Where are you headed?
Winnemucca.
- Where's that?
- Up north.
My boyfriend's a mining engineer,
I'm paying him a surprise.
Cool.
Where are you headed?
Winnemucca?
Good one, Kayla.
Now, there's a guy
with a sense of humor.
.
What do you say we stop
and get you a bite to eat?
Let's just keep going
if you don't mind.
Oh, no!
No, you've got to be kidding me!
This is just great.
I'm afraid you'll have
to turn back, sir.
This road is out
until further notice.
The detour told me
to go this way.
It's not like we plan
these things.
Any idea how long it will be
before they open the road?
Until some bureaucrat from the State Highway
Administration gives it the all clear.
Okay.
What's the problem, officer?
Road's out, sir.
It's out?
We've got a flash flood warning.
It's dangerous at the moment.
Okay.
Thanks for bringing me out here.
It's not my fault.
What's going on?
That's the guy who
almost ran me down!
You know what this means?
I've got go all the way back
to the interstate
all way up to Silverton
and then back down again.
140 extra miles to get some place
that's only twenty miles from here.
Sorry for the inconvenience.
Hey, aren't you Crusher Crocetti?
If I say yes,
will you let me through?
Does anyone have a working cell?
No! Mine broke when you almost
ran me over!
That was an accident.
Sorry about not picking you up,
but my wife is kind of nervous
about picking hitchhikers.
No problem. I had hours before
I would have died of exposure.
I think they might have a phone
back at that diner.
- What diner?
- That diner a couple miles back.
There hasn't been a building in this road
for the last fifty miles.
It was called Last Chance Diner.
Last Chance Diner?
Now that's rich.
Do you remember
seeing the diner?
Sorry to contradict,
but I do believe that diner is closed.
It looked open to me.
So there is a diner?
There was a diner.
You guys can do whatever you want, but I'm going
to go back and check it out, okay? Let's go.
Tell guy at the diner
officer DeVille sent you.
Hello? Anybody home?
Hello?
Hello!
Please, have a seat anywhere.
The State Trooper down the road
said you guys were closed.
He's been trying to keep people
away from me for years.
It's a personal thing.
Would you like some water?
Yeah.
You got a phone?
Do you have any coffee?
I'm sorry,
all we serve here is water.
You have got to be kidding me.
This tastes great.
It's my own recipe.
Two molecules of hydrogen
and one of oxygen.
This phone's dead.
Yes, the storm probably knocked down
the phonelines.
It's a miracle
we have electricity working.
Isn't it, Crusher?
Crusher Crocetti!
I thought I recognized you.
I can't say I ever rooted for you,
though. I'm a Rams fan.
But I can't lie,
I do love your burgers.
Here.
Good for two Crusher Burger meals.
Thanks, Mr. Crocetti.
Can we get some menus?
Sure, but I'll tell you what, since you'll
probably be my only customers tonight,
I'll just make
whatever you want.
I'd prefer a menu.
Yes, ma'am.
Jesus.
Most people pronounce it Jesus.
Nice name.
Religious.
It doesn't really have
anything to do with religion.
It was my father's idea.
I don't know, that I'd have the name Jesus
I'd be expected to know everything.
Try me.
Here we go.
Ma'am.
Would you like a menu?
Hank?
Sure, thanks.
How'd he know my name?
- What?
- He called me Hank.
- That's your name, isn't it?
- Yeah, but how did he know?
Just stop.
Ladies, what would you like?
What would you recommend?
Excellent question.
You know, I have a special knack
for knowing exactly what people want.
Of course, what they need
is an entirely different matter.
Don't people want what they need?
Not necessarily, in fact,
most of the time people don't.
Your recommendation then, sir.
Okay.
I think you would like...
sirloin tips smothered in gravy,
on a bed of mashed potatoes
with a garden salad on the side,
and thousand island dressing.
That's what my mother always made
for my birthday.
Your mother loves you very much.
She did.
She died last year.
It doesn't mean
she stopped loving you.
What about me?
What do I want?
You want many things, young lady,
all of which you don't necessarily need.
But as far as dinner is concerned, I think
you would like a gigantic beef burrito
with black beans and rice and sour cream
and pico de gallo on the side.
I thought so.
Let me get you some bread.
Hey!
How much is it gonna cost?
Don't worry, I'll take care of it.
No, I don't to be dependent
on anyone anymore.
- I pay my own way.
- Okay, okay.
But how's this?
All special orders are free!
My personal gift to you.
If it's free, it must not
be worth having.
I guarantee you, Nick,
this an offer you don't want
to pass up.
I'd like to ask,
are you able to do it?
One business man to another,
but I see that what you lose in food
you save elsewhere like this newspaper.
It's fifty years old!
Yeah, it belonged
to the previous owner.
And you just left it
sitting here?
It reminds me of the original owner.
Stan Kostek was his name.
A very sweet guy.
He was sitting in this very seat reading
the newspaper after the morning rush.
Tell me, what's the most popular section
of the newspaper? Hank?
Sports?
The obituaries.
Right, the obituaries.
He was sitting here
reading the obituaries,
not knowing that
the very next day
he would be in the obituaries
himself.
If only he had known.
I don't get it.
Maybe he's telling us that we're
going to be in the newspaper tomorrow.
Perhaps.
You're the one with
the decision to make.
What will be?
Menu or a special order?
Well,
I think I'll take the special order,
if only to hear what you think I want.
Well, I think you've had enough burgers
to last your lifetime,
so what you think about a thick porterhouse steak
and a baked potato and some summer squash?
And don't forget a nice slice of
cherry pie fresh from the windowsill.
It's a good choice, Jesus.
Only make the steak
a little rare.
I am here to serve.
What would you like?
I'll take the chicken Caesar salad
and a diet coke.
I'm sorry, all we serve here
is water.
You don't have a diet coke?
Fine, I'll have water.
And I'll have a bacon cheeseburger
and a diet coke.
All I serve here is water.
Okay, I'll have water.
Would you like fries
with your cheeseburger?
You know, there's something a little disconcerting
about a man named Jesus asking me if I want fries.
That's a simple question, sir.
- No, thanks.
- Go ahead.
I don't care what you do anymore.
- Yeah, I'll have French fries.
- Excellent choice, Hank.
How'd you know my name?
Well, it's Hank!
Isn't it, Catherine?
Hey, how did you know our names?
I'm Jesus.
I know everything.
I know all of you.
I've known you since before
you were born.
And I've got a plan for each
of you. A perfect plan.
All you have to do
is believe in me.
Well, folks,
I don't know about the rest of you,
but I'm due back
on the planet earth now.
So, if you don't mind,
we will be leaving.
Hank?
Fine.
Catherine, wait. Where're you going?
I got the keys to the car.
Catherine, wait.
You can go with me.
I've had enough of this freak show myself.
That's awfully good of you.
You can't leave with my wife.
It's obvious she doesn't want
to stay with you. Sorry, pal.
Enjoy the food.
Thanks a lot, Jesus.
My wife just left me.
She was going to
leave you anyway, Hank.
- Yes, but...
- Don't worry. She'll be back.
What a bunch of craziness.
You get that right.
Where am I taking you,
by the way?
Away from here.
Seriously, the roads are closed,
I've got to go to Silverton.
Silverton is fine.
I can take a bus from there.
No.
I cannot believe this.
We have just entered
in the Twilight Zone.
Who are you really?
Who do you say I am, Kayla?
Well, you could be Jesus,
and I could be Britney Spears.
Yeah, aren't supposed to be
in heaven or something?
What is going to take
to convince you?
How's this?
Funny.
You know, anyone can get
a fake ID these days.
That's right, Kayla.
Even you.
- How did you know that?
- I'm Jesus, I know everything.
Melissa, for example, is heading up to Winnemucca
for the weekend to visit her boyfriend, Paul.
She thinks he's going
to propose to her.
Is he?
Yes!
I wouldn't be so excited
if I were you.
Melissa, do you really want to marry a man that makes
you drive four 100 miles just to propose to you?
You're a woman, you're precious.
I've got better for you
than that.
What about me, Jesus?
What do you know about me
besides my name?
I know your wife no longer
wants to be Mrs. Hank Miller.
Is that true?
It is true.
Look, I don't know who you are, but you
have no right to interfere in my marriage.
I'm not interfering
in your marriage, Hank.
I can save your marriage.
How could you save my marriage?
All you have to do is ask me.
Jesus...
save my marriage.
Save my marriage, please,
Lord Jesus.
Save my marriage.
I can't believe, it!
We've got go back in there.
I will walk to Silverton
before I go back in there.
He may be crazy,
but he's probably harmless.
Probably?
- Back so soon?
- Car didn't start.
Aren't you worried
about your meeting?
Your franchisees meeting.
You've got what, 1,100 restaurants now?
We'll be more like 3,000
by the end of next year.
It's impressive.
Nick,
I can offer you greater riches.
Riches that can never be lost
or stolen or sunk by the stock market.
That's real good, Jesus.
- Catherine...
- Hank, please.
I meant what I said.
Is there somebody else?
- Don't be ridiculous.
- We can save our marriage.
It's too late.
Jesus can save our marriage.
- You mean your friend over there?
- Yes.
He knows we're headed
for a divorce.
Does he?
Well, that puts him one up on you.
Hey, did you eat all the bread?
Sorry. I was hungry.
Hey, can we get
more bread over here?
There is plenty of bread there.
No, there isn't. It's...
empty.
How did you do that?
I'm Jesus.
Will you come with me, please?
Sure.
Well, as long as you are performing miracles,
why don't you turn my water into wine?
Am I losing my mind?
That breadbasket was empty.
- Wasn't it?
- I thought it was.
And then suddenly
it wasn't empty.
Doesn't that freak you out?
You haven't been
some of the places I've been.
Plus, it was your idea
to come here.
Suppose.
Suppose it really is...
him?
- Jesus?
- Yeah.
Please!
How did he know that stuff
about my boyfriend?
He probably just
overheard us talking.
No.
We didn't talk about that in there.
Look, I don't know
what the explanation is,
but I'm sure there is one.
It's not so bad here,
there's free food and it's a warm place.
So, you can leave, but...
I'm staying.
You shall see the Son of Man
sitting at the right hand of Power
and coming on the clouds of heaven.
Your good book forgot to mention that
there'd be a chance of scattered showers.
I'm glad to see that you remember some
of what you read in the Bible, Nick.
Specially that part, that's like
one of my favorite parts.
You can thank Gideons for that.
There's no telling what a man will do
at 3 AM in a Day's Inn outside Fargo.
You were searching, Nick.
I was bored.
Bored people turn on the TV.
You opened the Bible.
What were you looking for?
You tell me!
You know everything.
It was after the death
of your father.
You were wondering how your parents
could be so content with so little.
How your father could be as proud
of his fruit stand
as you are of your fame
and your millions.
I loved your parents.
Real, authentic,
hardworking people.
More people went to your father's
fruit stand for a smile than for his fruit.
And do you know who was great?
Your grandmother, Sadie.
I never knew her,
she died when I was little.
Of course you remember her.
In fact, you could say that she is
the reason we're here like this tonight.
What do you mean?
Your grandmother
was a delight to my heart.
A humble woman filled with love
and zeal, a real prayer warrior.
In her last years, her most passionate
prayers, Nick, were for you.
She was praying that you'd come to me
as your Lord and your Savior.
That you'd come to eternal life.
I am honoring her faithfulness by
coming to you to make this personal appeal.
Well, but there was no need
to go through all the trouble, Jesus.
Because I'm doing
just fine on my own.
If I hadn't intervened tonight,
you'd be dead.
- You'd all be dead.
- What?
The flooding left the road unstable.
Nick would have hit the curve too hard
and each of you
would have followed him.
No, no, wait a minute.
Let me get this straight.
You're trying to take credit for saving
our lives by keeping us off the road,
but if you are indeed God,
then you created the storm
to cause the damage on the road,
so if we kept driving, you would
be responsible for our deaths.
You live in a
fractured creation.
That's what's responsible
for the storm.
I stepped in and took advantage
of the storm
to bring you all here tonight
so I could make this personal appeal.
Okay, Jesus.
If you really are the Christ,
why don't you tell me something
amazing about myself?
Something only I know.
You don't really want to leave
your husband.
Wrong.
Our marriage is over.
No, you're only looking
for something he can't provide,
and you're not going to find it
on your own either.
I'll take that chance.
Catherine, don't be so hard on your husband,
you've got to expect him to believe in me.
He's been listening to my voice
since he was fifteen.
In fact, he heard me
earlier today.
- I did?
- Yes.
I was that still small voice in your head
that told you to pick up Kayla,
but you didn't, did you?
I wanted to,
but...
But Catherine wouldn't let you.
Am I right?
I'm not ashamed to admit it.
For all I knew,
she was going to kill us.
Well, it that's the way you feel,
I probably should have.
You see what I mean?
I can't fault you, Catherine.
- But I can fault you, Hank.
- Why?
- She's here, isn't she?
- Of course.
I knew you wouldn't pick her up, so I asked
another one of my servants to do it.
Didn't I?
Pick her up.
That was you?
That was not the first time you
heard my voice, nor it would be the last.
You just keep listening.
And I guarantee you will find
what you seek.
Hank,
do you really think you're going to save,
let alone restore your marriage
by putting your wife's wishes
above mine?
She wants to break up
your marriage, Hank.
I want to save it.
You've got to be
listening to me.
You know, maybe the two of you should
get married and just leave me out of it.
Catherine, you've been out of it
for way too long.
It's time that you and I met.
Are you saying
I am not a Christian?
I'm sorry, you're not.
How dare you?
I go to church every Sunday!
- I even teach Sunday School!
- I know.
The sad part is that you would
have peace in your heart today
if you had half the faith of some
of those kids in your class.
Catherine!
She's only going
to the ladies room, Hank.
So, Jesus, if you're everywhere,
aren't you in the ladies room as well?
Nick, you've got
quite a sense of humor,
but eventually you will going to find out
that you can't make a joke about everything.
Come on.
Come on!
Come on!
Great.
Go away, Hank!
It's not Hank.
It's Melissa.
You are awfully quiet down here.
I haven't that much to say.
I've given a lot to think about,
haven't I?
Yeah.
I'll be right back.
I'm sorry for being rude earlier.
Everything is such a mess.
Hank and I...
we're drifting apart
for months now.
I don't even know
who I am anymore.
And why am I telling you this?
Sometimes it's just...
easier to talk to a stranger
about these things, you know.
And that...
that man out there!
That man who thinks he's Jesus.
He thinks he knows me.
- Do you think he's Jesus?
- Do you?
Was it true? I mean,
that you don't want
to leave your husband?
I don't know what I want.
I just...
I want things to be different.
Well, then does it matter
if he really is Jesus?
I mean, he obviously knows
a lot about you.
Why don't you just...
listen to what he has to say?
Like he can fix what's wrong
with my marriage.
Like you can?
Thank you for picking up Kayla.
- There's no problem.
- I feel terrible about that.
Hank, you seem to be really
buying this whole Jesus thing.
I am a believer, yes.
But do you believe in that guy?
Either he is who he says he is or...
Or what?
Or he's a lunatic.
And I've seen no evidence
that he being crazy.
Hank, you don't get out
to the big city too much, do you pal?
So tell me, Hank,
what do you do for a living?
I'm head of accounts receivable
for a home improvement company.
And what do you pull down there?
Ninety?
Come on, you're among friends,
besides, he already knows.
Less than that.
Doesn't seem look like God's
been particularly generous to you.
No, there's more to life than money.
There's family too, and he hasn't done
any favors in that department neither!
You know, that's not nice.
Am I lying?
Am I?
I mean, if that's your way
of rewarding the faithful,
I'm glad I went out and got
what I got on my own.
You wouldn't have anything if I
hadn't put a stone in your path.
July 4th, 1974, Elderkin quarry.
You and your buddies were racing up the hill to
dive in, and you took a shortcut to the bushes.
And you hit your foot on the stone
right before you dove.
Yeah, yeah.
It threw my footing off.
It ruined my dive.
Caused me to hit an underwater rock
and broke my hand in two places.
I could have been a receiver.
If haven't tripped over that stone, Nick,
you would have hit your head on that rock.
You would have died
at fourteen years old.
But your grandmother prayers
were ringing in my ears.
I put that stone in your path.
But, if you really are God, you've
could figured out a way to save him
without breaking his hand.
True, but Kayla,
if nothing had happened,
he wouldn't have remembered it,
and he clearly does.
And if he would believe in me he would
see it for what it truly is...
my grace.
So you hurt him
so he'd thank you later?
In a way.
Kayla, you've got to remember,
I'm not the one to put him
on that path.
I'm not the one who made him dive.
I'm the one who saved him.
Just like I saved you two days ago
in LA before you left.
Do you remember, Kayla?
What?
What happened?
Nothing!
I don't know what you did
to that poor girl, but...
if you really are God,
the least you could do
is take care of
my friend Hank here.
At least he believes in you.
Hank is going through
a rough spot right now, Nick.
But the difference between you and him
is that he knows, in the deep of his heart,
that all things work together for the good of those
who love God, and are called to His purpose.
So I guess when that drunk driver killed my father,
that was your way of patting him on the back?
Nick, your father enjoyed his life,
but he's enjoying his eternal life
a whole lot more right now.
And I want you to see him.
Well, excuse me if I don't take upon
that offer. But many do, don't they?
How many people are going to blow themselves
up in your name in the Middle East?
In my name, none.
What about the people who
blow up abortion clinics?
I've never wanted to ask anyone
to blow up an abortion clinic.
But you do remember telling the Israelites to kill the
Canaanites before they entered the Promised Land.
Men, women and children.
Even the livestock.
Today we have a word for that.
Genocide.
For an unbeliever,
you know your Bible very well, Nick.
Answer the question.
- Perfect timing.
- No, no, no, no.
I'm not gonna let him off
that easy. I want an answer.
Yes, I asked the Israelites
to kill the Canaanites.
- Women and children included?
- Yes.
Is that anyway
for a God of Love to behave?
I am love, but I am also holy,
and I cannot allow sin to go unpunished.
That's not just for my sake, it's for yours.
I don't want you to wallow in sin
and rebellion and guilt.
I want you to thrive
an unending peace and joy.
There's no human being in this planet
that's an accident.
I hand formed you
in your mother's womb.
And I formed you for a purpose.
I put before you a path
of love and worship.
And the degree that you experience
the love and joy
and the good things of life
is the degree to which
you bent to my will.
And if we don't seek your will, you
kill us like you did to the Canaanites.
Everyone dies, Nick.
But not everyone
needs to fear death.
If you abide in me, you will be stepping
free from this fallen world
and into glory.
Is that what heaven's like?
Glory?
It's more than glory, Melissa.
It's peace, and love, and joy.
Can you imagine living in the fullness
of the warmth of God's light?
There are no words in the human
vocabulary that can describe it.
It's a place where
there's no suffering.
It's a place where every tear
is wiped form your eyes.
There's no sadness,
there's no pain.
And you know, Melissa?
One day you and I
will walk on the streets of gold and
we'll talk about this night together.
What about me, Jesus?
Will I walk the streets of gold?
Nick,
that's completely up to you.
Melissa made her decision
on the 232nd day of her 17th year.
That was her birthday
into my kingdom.
Why don't you tell Nick
all about it?
Tell him why you sought me.
I'd like to hear it.
So would I.
Well, I was depressed.
The guy that I had been dating
broke up with me, so...
it was all I could do,
so I would...
come home and just...
sleep and cry,
sleep and cry and...
eat.
It got to so bad that I was...
thinking about taking my own life.
I stole a bottle of painkillers
from my mother's house.
I was planning on taking all them
and going to bed
and never waking up.
And the phone rang,
for whatever reason
I picked it up.
And it was a friend from work.
And she was a Christian,
and she always talked about
God and Bible.
And she said she was coming
to pick me up and take me to a movie,
and I... I thought why not?
So, half an hour later,
I was seating in the movie theater
and it was packed.
It turned out it was
like a Christian Film Festival.
And this movie was...
unlike anything
I'd ever seen before.
It was as if the message was
directed at me.
I remember tearing up.
Yeah, I can't help myself.
At the end of the movie a man went
to the front and began to speak.
It felt like he was talking to me,
you know, personally.
He talked about
God's forgiveness,
eternal life and how this place
we call Planet Earth was only temporary.
And how our real home
was in the kingdom of heaven
and that I would live there eternally
if I would surrender my life to him.
You know,
I can't quite explain it,
but something was happening to me
right then,
right there in the theater.
He then said whoever would like
to commit their lives to Christ
to get up out of our seats
and go to front.
And the most important decision you ever make
in your whole life stands before you right now.
So I did.
I felt like a whole new person
that very second.
Come unto to me all you
who are weary and burdened
and I will give you rest.
Did you find that rest?
Yes.
Looking back I can't believe
that I was, you know,
gonna take my life over some guy
that broke up with me.
Melissa, I have so much more in store
for you too
if you trust me.
There could be time when I ask you
to do things you may not wanna do.
I don't understand.
You can't marry Paul.
But I love him.
Well,
I shouldn't say you can't,
because you can.
But you shouldn't.
It's just not my desire for you,
Melissa.
But I love him.
Melissa, you have
a very tender heart.
How many guys have you fallen
in love with since you were 16?
But he loves me too.
Melissa, it's just not my will
for a couple to be...
unequally matched.
Paul doesn't believe in me.
What if we got married and made it
my mission to save him?
- I can do that.
- Melissa, do you love him?
- Do you really love him?
- Yes, I do.
Who do you think loves him more,
you or me?
You do, obviously, but...
Melissa,
Paul doesn't feel about you
the same way you feel about him.
He hates his assignment up
in Winnemucca,
he's lonely.
Right now, he thinks that...
you are exactly what he needs,
but two years from now,
when you're back in LA,
he's going to want
something more.
Something you can't give him.
He's gonna grow to resent you.
Do you know what he is gonna
resent most about you?
Your faith in me.
That still will be the biggest
difference between the two of you.
So, instead of being the instrument
that draws him to me,
you'll actually cause him
to turn me the other way.
Now, Melissa,
isn't more important that he loves me
than he loves you?
Will he come to know you?
In time, yes, he will.
Well, then maybe then we could...
Melissa,
I promise you.
By then you won't even want
to entertain the possibility.
Remember, I have many
wonderful things in store for you.
This is beginning to sound like
"deal or no deal".
If I were you, I would say
"no deal".
You know, Nick,
your cynicism is beginning
to wear on all of us.
That's awfully presumptuous of you
to speak for everyone.
You're starting to get
on my nerves as well.
I was against you the minute
you tried to run me over.
Wow! I tried to leave, remember?
It's not my fault
the car wouldn't start.
Nick, you are here
for one reason.
Because is not my will
that anyone should perish,
but that everyone would turn around
and come to me.
The word you remember
from your Bible is repent.
I don't have anything
to repent of!
As I said, Nick, I'm here honoring
the prayers of your grandmother.
I wish I had known her.
You still have that chance.
But only on your terms.
It sounds like blackmail to me.
It's not blackmail, Nick. I want you
to be where your grandmother is.
The place of everlasting love.
And suppose I don't want that.
I'm a gentleman, Nick.
I'll never force myself on you
or anyone.
That's the worst kind
of blackmail!
Do things my way or face fire
and brimstone forever.
Nick, you don't want to follow me,
do you?
Not particularly.
- You certainly don't want to obey me.
- Correct again.
Nick, what would be more
unjust and unfair?
For me to steal you
at the moment of your death
and force you to live in my presence
and in my will for all eternity?
Hell, on the other hand,
is a place, Nick, where...
you will be completely free from
all of my "thou shall not's"
forever.
Hell never sounded
so appealing to me.
You know, every day, I get millions
of complaints about this world
all the greed and selfishness,
poverty and starvation
the wars, the murders,
the abuse of children.
I hardly recognize
this place anymore.
It bears so little resemblance to
the garden that I created for you.
But it's not hell, Nick.
Even now, there's...
sunshine on a spring day, there's...
starry night in the desert sky.
There's a gentle breeze
on a summer afternoon.
The smell of flowers,
the song of birds.
Not to mention the horrible
storms and floods!
There's even people who are willing
to land a helping hand
to the helpless,
and there's love.
Nick, there's still love.
How could we forget love?
Nick, there's one thing for sure.
There's no love in hell.
There's no beauty.
No hope.
There's just...
torment.
Kind of torment that...
comes from within.
But surely no one would choose that
if they really believed you existed.
Not so. Nobody goes in the hell
blindfolded.
In one way or another,
I've revealed myself to everyone.
But if they could just see you.
Not even that would be enough.
Look at Satan, he stood before me
in the very throne room of God.
He thought that the beauty
and power bestowed was...
somehow earned and gave himself
over to pride.
Scratch any sin and just below
the surface and you'll find pride.
People steal because they think they deserve
what other people had worked hard for.
They hop from bed to bed
because they feel entitled
to just satisfy themselves,
no matter who it hurts,
no matter what pain that it costs.
Here you go.
Can I get you anything else?
No, I'm great, thanks.
Enjoy your meals.
This is the best burger
I have ever tasted!
I guess I should take
my coupons back.
I have to give you credit, this is
the best salad I've ever tasted.
I'll give a bite of my salad if you
let me have a bite of your burger.
This is the first salad
I've ever wanted to taste.
Here we go. Sirloin tips smothered
in gravy, on a bed of mashed potatoes
with a green salad on the side
and thousand island dressing.
Thank you!
- Aren't you going to eat?
- No.
My food is to serve my Father.
It tastes just like my mom's.
Kayla.
Would you like to join us or
do want me to serve you over there?
I promise not to mention
that LA thing again,
unless you want
to talk about it.
Okay.
- Oh, this is great!
- Is it?
It's not too hot
or mild. It's...
Perfect?
Yeah.
Thanks.
I get that a lot.
On second thought,
I'm not hungry.
Nick, I guarantee this is
the best deal you will ever get.
And it's absolutely free.
You don't have to do anything
but accept it.
Thanks, but no thanks.
I'm liable to end up brainwashed
like the rest of these people.
- You wasted your time.
- No, it was...
not wasted.
The meal he rejected
will become food or others.
Well, if he doesn't want it,
can I have it?
Absolutely.
Kayla, I'm willing to give you
many good things.
All you have to do is ask me.
I have asked!
Havel answered?
Do you have any idea
how we lived?
One week we'd be
at my grandmother's,
and then in the next,
we'd be in a shelter,
and in the week after,
we we'd be in child services
or a foster home.
But then my mom would
get us back, promising us
that it'd be better this time.
But it never was!
She's a junkie.
Junkies never change.
Your mother loves you.
Yeah, when she was
drunk and crying
about how she could've been
this or that.
She could've been?
What about me?
What chance did I ever have
with a mother like her?
Do you think she care if I brushed
my teeth or if I combed my hair?
Or if I was hungry?
Or if I went to school?
She'd never let me leave her side
when I was little
and cute.
She could get
twice the handouts.
When I got just as dirty as her,
people looked away.
- The way you did.
- I never turned away.
So you were watching
when I had to fled out the police officer
after my mother OD'ed?
Or how about that time that guy
robbed us and he cut me instead?
I'm glad you were watching.
I hope we were putting
on a good show for you.
I used to pray
when I was little.
Pastor Jim, down at the mission,
taught me how.
He's a good man.
Yeah.
At least he cared.
What did you do for us?
I took all these
hard things, Kayla,
and I used them to turn you into
the wonderful young lady that you are.
So strong and enduring.
Such a wonderful role model
for your little sister.
But right now she's with him.
- Him?
- My stepfather, Jake.
The funny thing is...
at first I thought he was
an answer to prayer.
He had a house,
and a job.
We were finally looking like that we
were going to have a normal home life.
But when he'd got to drinking,
my mother and him
got to fighting.
It was worse than the streets.
And then she looked him
out of the bedroom
and he looked for
a new place to sleep.
And not just to sleep.
Where were you then?
I was shouting into his mind
and in his conscious to stop and stop.
I was there in the bathroom.
Oh God.
Please.
And I heard you.
Kayla, your prayer before
you pulled that trigger,
it wasn't for death.
It was to go to a better place.
Kayla, if you had
died that night
you wouldn't have gone
to a better place.
So the night before,
I caused your stepfather to stumble.
That made him reconsider the prospect
of keeping a loaded gun in his pocket.
So he removed the clip
and unknowingly saved your life.
That was not the first time
I saved your life.
Nor will it be the last either.
Kayla,
what do you want?
I just want to stop hurting.
I can't promise you that all your
problems will disappear overnight.
You have a hard road
ahead of you,
but I can tell you that you have
a peace and a purpose,
that you'll not only survive,
but you'll thrive and grow,
if you trust me.
Will you follow me?
Yes.
Will you forgive
all those people who hurt you?
Even as I forgive you?
Yes.
Even Jake?
How can you ask me to do that?
You saw what he did to me.
Yeah.
But Kayla,
look what he has done to me.
I paid a heavy price
for your stepfather's sins.
It's the same price
I paid for your sins.
Now, Kayla, I want you
to go back to Los Angeles
and I want you tell the police
what your stepfather did.
I want him to go to jail.
He needs to understand
that there is a...
price that has to be paid for sin,
even in this fallen world.
But, Kayla, I don't want him
to go to hell.
I want him to come to me,
so that I can forgive him,
so and give him new life.
And you know there's another reason
that I want you to forgive him.
If you don't,
all the anger and resentment
will just...
poison every relationship
you have,
even ours.
If you want to love,
you have to abandon hate.
Don't let anger steal your joy.
- I forgive him.
- And I forgive you.
You ought to be
ashamed of yourself,
taking advantage of an emotionally
distraught little girl.
Nick, why are you fighting me?
What have I done to make you hate me?
Hate you?
You think I've given you
enough thought to hate you?
I hate Federal regulators.
I hate taxes.
I hate sitting in coach.
You don't warrant hate.
You warrant exactly what
I've been giving you all this time.
Indifference.
I don't want you.
I don't need you.
I'm not like these losers.
You don't need
anything else in your life, Nick?
I'm living the American dream.
Eleven years in the NFL.
Nine Pro Bowls.
Two Super bowl rings.
A sack record that no one
has come close to touching yet.
A restaurant chain that I'll take public in a
couple years for hundreds of millions of dollars.
I've got everything I want.
What does it profit a man to gain
the whole world and lose his soul?
It isn't a love of money that
keeps him away from me, Melissa.
- Thank you.
- It's pride.
Here we go with pride again.
Give pride a break.
You show me someone without pride
and I'll show you a bum.
Someone who is taking more
from society than what he's giving.
So that's what motivates you,
giving?
No, but when I succeed,
other people will do too.
When I sacked a quarterback,
it helped my whole team.
And look at my restaurants.
Each one of them employs
25 to 40 people.
That doesn't include my vendors,
doesn't include corporate,
doesn't include my suppliers.
Every one of those families is doing better
than mine did when I was growing up.
Funny how it all comes back
to your dad's fruit stand, Nick.
Did you not feel loved
as a child?
- Of course I felt loved.
- Did you feel secure?
I felt secure.
Then why do you so much disdain
for your youth, Nick?
Why were you so embarrassed?
I wasn't embarrassed.
Nick.
Nick, I'm going to have
to call you on that one.
As a child, you were happy.
Spend all your summers working
with your father in the fruit stand.
Listening to his stories,
marveling at...
the way people came
just to talk to him.
Everybody liked your father.
You have to admit you got
your work ethic from him, Nick.
I got a lot of things from him.
But not what he wanted you
to have the most.
When you were a child,
everybody was pretty much the same.
Working class,
lower-middle class.
Nobody was rich
or unduly privileged.
But when you got in high school,
suddenly were with the sons of...
doctors and lawyers
and businessmen,
people that the rest of the world
thought were very successful.
It all comes down to the summer
before your sophomore year.
You were working in the fruit stand,
like you always did,
when Cliff and Bobby came.
They saw you in your white apron and they
thought it was the funniest thing in the world.
And your dad's accent.
You used to have
an accent, Nick.
You got rid of it, didn't you?
- You think you're so smart.
- But you had football.
Coaches didn't care if you were rich or poor, all
they cared about was your performance on the field.
And you excelled.
Sport was your ticket.
And suddenly you were
no longer the little...
Nicky Crocetti in a white apron, the son of
a fruit vendor, you were Crusher Crocetti.
God help the man
who would laughed at you.
Do you want to mess with me?
Relax, Nick.
Have a piece of pie.
It's your grandmother's recipe.
I'll give her this,
she was a great cook.
That's because she sprinkled
a generous helping of love on...
everything.
Didn't she, Nick?
- I don't remember her.
- Memory is a funny thing, Nick.
It can remain perfectly hidden
for years, even decades,
and then come flooding back
because of a picture,
or hearing a song,
smelling a scent,
or even a taste.
Grandma, is my pie ready?
Now,
what do we say?
Thank you God?
- Would you like to pray?
- Okay, grandma.
Attaboy.
Dear Jesus,
thank you for this food.
Thank you, Lord, for my family
and thank you for my grandma.
In Jesus name, amen.
She never graduated from high school.
She was never rich.
She never even learned
to drive a car,
but your grandmother, Nick,
was a very special lady.
You remember her, don't you?
Your grandmother had true
faith in my ability to...
intervene and fulfill
my promises.
And I promised her that I would move
heaven and earth to reach you,
so here I am, Nick.
You put this ancient memory
in my head
and you expect me to throw away
the life I built for myself!
What kind of weak willed man
do you think I am?
The kind of man who hasn't opened
himself up to unconditional love
since he was a child.
You put up a wall.
Your turned your back on the
old-fashioned blue collar values
blasted off into your future.
But with Sadie...
there was never a wall
between you and Sadie.
She died before you could
shut down completely.
And so there's still
just a fragment, Nick,
of unconditional love
that remains in your heart.
Nick, when was the last time that you told
your parents that you loved them?
I took care of them.
I bought them a house.
I bought them cars.
This is ridiculous.
I'm not gonna sit here and let you make me
feel guilty for something I didn't do.
Nick, some people feel guilty
for things that they did,
and others feel guilty
for what they didn't do.
The question is, what are
you going to do about it?
I don't have to do
anything about it.
Yes, you do, Nick.
This is your time.
All the seemingly random moments
and incidents of your life,
they all come together to bring you
here and now to this point
of making a decision for your life,
for all eternity.
Kayla's stepped out of death
and into life.
I want you to join her,
I want you to join your mom and dad.
I want you to join Sadie.
Sadie awaits you in heaven.
Nick, what are you afraid of?
Do you think I'm going to ask you
to give all your money away to the poor
and become a missionary
in Africa?
Or are you more afraid
that I'm going to ask you
to proclaim my name
to your friends and colleagues?
Is that what it is, Nick?
You're afraid your business partners
and your former team mates
will laugh at you
because of this?
They'll say you're weak. They'll say
you lost your ethic and gone soft?
- Is that it?
- Do you think I care what they think?
You think I care
what anybody thinks?
I'm my own man!
You think you're a self-made man,
but you're not.
I made you, Nick.
You existed in my heart
before the creation of the world.
I have plans for your life.
Think of what you can accomplish
with me in you corner, Nick.
Please, open your heart.
I'm doing just fine on my own.
Well, well, well.
You are still in business.
And after all these years
you'd think nobody would be interested
in what you're selling.
I don't sell anything.
Oh, that's right.
You give it all away.
Any takers?
Not me.
He couldn't get me to bite.
That's a smart man.
I come bearing good news, the road is
finally clear and you're all free to leave.
Well, hallelujah! That is
the best news I've heard all day.
It isn't true.
The road isn't clear.
Like you would know?
This man has been out there.
He obviously knows.
Does he?
Apparently, I do.
You coming?
Don't, Nick.
Nick...
I don't think you should go.
- Can I get an escort?
- Absolutely.
Just follow me.
It's you and me, baby.
That's one for me.
Four set free.
Don't worry, Jesus.
We'll meet again.
That was his last chance.
If there's a downside
to being God,
it's knowing.
I have reached out to him
with everything I have,
but I know.
I just know.
I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd who lays down
his life for the sheep.
The thief comes only to steal,
and kill and destroy.
I am the good shepherd,
and I know my own,
and my own know me.
My sheep hear my voice
and I know them,
and they follow me,
and no one shall snatch them
from my hand.
- Melissa.
- Yes.
Will you do me a favor?
Drive Kayla back to Los Angeles
and bring her to the child
protective services for me?
Yes, of course.
Kayla, you're gonna have some
hard times ahead of you.
And you have some doubts,
but this will be ultimately
the first step to saving your family.
- Really?
- Yeah.
You have such a wonderful life
ahead of you.
- Will I ever see you again?
- Yeah, yeah, but not like this.
I mean, not for
along while, anyway.
- Can I talk to you?
- All the time.
I'll be listening.
- Will I hear you?
- Yeah,
in my word, mostly.
That's the Bible.
That book has all the wisdom
you need for your life.
And then sometimes,
just in a quiet of your spirit, you'll...
hear me saying, "This is the way you should
go, this is the way you shouldn't go."
Melissa,
Paul's going to be very upset.
You'll have to be
very strong, okay?
Okay.
What about us, Lord?
Hank, I want you
to love your wife.
I want you to pray for her,
and pray like
never stop praying.
Where you have followed
you will now lead.
Many will be blessed
because of your faith.
I think I understand.
Catherine,
won't you join us?
I don't mean just here and now,
I mean forever.
If you really were who you said you are,
you'd know I already answered the call.
Yeah, I remember when you
walked up the aisle.
Catherine, there's a lot more
to do than just walking up an aisle
or saying a few words.
You have to really truly repent,
a change of a heart.
If you don't believe me,
believe your handsome husband there.
He's a good man,
and he loves you very much.
Of course not as much as I do.
I love you.
And I love you.
I love you.
Hank...
Thank you.
Sorry for the inconvenience, folks.
- Is the road still closed?
- No, sir, the roads are open,
but there's been
a terrible accident.
- An accident?
- Yes, sir.
The driver was in a kind of fog and smashed
into the guard-rail around the curve.
What kind of car was it?
Was it a BMW?
Yes, sir, as a matter of fact,
it was.
And the driver, did he make it?
No, ma'am, I'm sorry.
He was killed instantly.
- Did you know him?
- No. Not really.
We were all having dinner
back together at the diner.
Which one, the one
in Thompsonville?
No, the one a couple miles back.
Sorry I contradict you, but there's
no diner a couple miles back.
No, there was.
We were just there.
I've been patrolling this county for
more than ten years and I can assure you
- there's no diner on this road.
- But what about Officer DeVille?
He walked in the diner himself.
- Office who?
- DeVille.
D-E-V-I-L...
L-E.
I haven't heard of anybody working
around here named DeVille.
If you folks will excuse me.
I'm not going crazy, right?
There was a diner.
This has been quite a day.
- Got that right.
- Yeah.
I guess would be
better get going.
- Be careful.
- We will be just fine.
We're in good hands.
Come on.
Please forgive me.
I'm not a bad person.
- I'm just confused.
- It's okay.
We all get like that sometimes.
So...
- shall we?
- Yeah. But...
first, let's go back.
Go back? Where?
- Are you sure this is it?
- This is it.
That's the cut
for the parking lot.
Over there was the foundation.
No.
No, this is the wrong place.
It must be further back.
No, this is right.
This is it.
You have to really truly repent,
a change of a heart.
Come unto me all you
who are weary and burdened
and I will give you rest.
This is it.
It was true.
It was all true.
And it really was him.
You knew it was him.
How did you know?
How could you save my marriage?
All you have to do is ask me.
Save my marriage.
Save my marriage, please,
Lord Jesus.
Save my marriage.
I didn't know at first.
But there was something in my heart
that told me who he was.
Nothing in my heart told me.
Not until he said he loved me.
I love you.
Then I felt something.
We've all sinned and fallen short
of his glory.
But you know it's
all about his grace...
and sacrifice on the cross.
I don't know what to say.
Just imagine he's right there,
because he is.
Talk to him.
Tell him what you're feeling,
tell him what's in your heart.
Catherine, won't you join us?
I don't mean just here and now,
I mean forever.
Good afternoon, sir.
What would be today?
Menu or special order?