Film Quote of the Day: The 2003 Morgan Freeman Line That Gives a Different Meaning to Faith in Action

I spent 12 years in Catholic School, so I know a thing or two about miracles. They usually come from saints whose lives seem horrible and hard, or from the guy they nailed to the cross.

But one funny Jim Carrey movie put the fun back in faith: Tom Shadyac’s Bruce Almighty (2003). You get Jim Carrey at the peak of his physical-comedy powers, channeling God's strength for laughs.

Oh, and God? Morgan Freeman plays him, which makes sense.

Aside from the perfect voice, Freeman’s portrayal of God is warm, patient, and grounded. He gives good advice, and he seems benevolent.

But one line in the movie sums up the lessons you're supposed to walk away with, alongside the joy of laughter.

Let's dive in.

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The Scene in Question

If you haven't seen the movie, here's a quick summary: Bruce Nolan is a frustrated TV news reporter who complains so loudly about God’s handling of the universe that God decides to hand him the keys to the kingdom and let him try being almighty for a while.

Bruce loves this at first, but then sees all the world's problems and gets weighed down by what he used to gain selfishly.

Toward the end of the movie, Bruce realizes that omnipotence hasn't solved any of his actual problems; it just distracted him.

And those distractions have made the world worse.

Bruce meets God one last time in the pristine, white industrial room where their journey began.

He watches God mop, confused by why the Almighty would choose manual labor over a miracle. When Bruce asks why God doesn't just use His powers to fix people's lives and show them a miracle, God pauses, looks at Bruce, and gives us the answer.

"Parting your soup is not a miracle, Bruce, it's a magic trick. A single mom who's working two jobs and still finds time to take her kid to soccer practice, that's a miracle. A teenager who says no to drugs and yes to an education, that's a miracle. People want me to do everything for them, but what they don't realize is they have the power. You want to see a miracle, son? Be the miracle."

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What The Quote Means

It means you should get off your ass and make the world a better place. Stop complaining about your lot in life and start trying to live it in a way that satisfies your needs.

You can be the change you want to see, if you take the time to do it.

People think miracles are external events, but they are usually internal changes.

We're often passive and just hope things change. But we need to be active characters in our own lives and take control. Transform your human character.

For my fellow screenwriters and storytellers, this scene is a textbook example of thematic resolution. We get the theme summed up in a speech by God!

Other Bruce Almighty Quotes

There are many great quotes from this movie, so I wanted to highlight a bunch here in addition to the one we just dissected. So, here is a roundup of the best line from the movie!

Iconic Wisdom & Life Lessons

"Triumph is born out of struggle, faith is the alchemist. If you want pictures like these, you'll need to use some dark colors."
— God

Bruce: "There were so many. I just gave them all what they want."
God: "Yeah. But since when does anyone have a clue about what they want?"

"No matter how filthy something gets, you can always clean it right up."
— God

Unforgettable One-Liners

• "B-E-A-utiful!" — Bruce Nolan
• "And that's the way the cookie crumbles." — Bruce Nolan
• "Bruce giveth and Bruce taketh away. Don't like it? Megabyte me." — Bruce Nolan
• Grace: "I've got a very rare blood type. I'm AB positive." Bruce: "Well I'm IB positive. I be positive they ain't touching me with no needle."

Best Scenes & Dialogues

1. Bruce's Live On-Air Meltdown

Bruce: "Bruce Nolan here, aboard the Maid of the Mist in fabulous Niagara Falls, New York. First off, let me just add another congratulations to Evan Backstabber—pardon me, Bastard. Baxter, rather. It is good to see what someone with real talent can do when great opportunities are given to them instead of me. Anyway, I'm here with Katherine Hepburn's mom. Tell me, why did you toss the blue heart of the ocean jewel over the railing of the Titanic? Did you feel bad at all letting Leo DiCaprio drown, while you were safe floating on the big door? Could you have taken turns, or were you just too afraid to freeze your big fat ass off?"
(Grace gasps in disbelief)
Bruce: "Hmm. I guess that's how life is, isn't it? Some people are drenched, freezing to death, on a stupid boat, with a stupid hat, while others are in a comfy news studio, sucking up all the glory."
(mashes umbrella hat)
Bruce: "Is it my hair, Bill? Are my teeth not white enough? Or, like the great falls, is the bedrock of my life eroding beneath me? Eroding, eeeeroding, eeeeerodding..."
Bruce: "I'm Bruce Nolan for Eyewitness News. Back to you... fuckers."

2. The Rules of Being God

God: (walking across the lake) "There are only 2 rules. You can't tell anybody you're God, believe me you don't want that kind of attention, and you can't mess with free will."
Bruce: "Can I ask why?"
God: "Yes, you can! That's the beauty of it!"

3. Free Will & Love

Bruce: "How do you make someone love you without affecting Free Will?"
God: (snorts) "Heh, welcome to my world, son. If you come up with an answer to that one, let me know."

4. The True Meaning of Prayer

God: "Grace. You want her back?"
Bruce: "No. I want her to be happy, no matter what that means. I want her to find someone who will treat her with all the love she deserved from me. I want her to meet someone who will see her always as I do now, through Your eyes."
God: "Now THAT'S a prayer."

Hilarious Quick Hits

• Traffic Hack:(Bruce sitting in traffic in his Saleen S7) Bruce: "Oh darn, all this horsepower and no room to gallop!"(Parting the traffic with his fingers) Bruce: "High ho silver, away!"
• The Dark Ages: Bruce: "Where are you going?"God: "I'm taking a vacation."Bruce: "God doesn't take vacations. Does he? Do... ye?"God: "Did you ever hear of the Dark Ages?"
• The Lottery Winners: Grace: "Debbie won the lottery."Bruce: "Oh, yeah? You're kidding."Grace: "But I guess so did 400,000 other people, so she only won, like, $17."
• Trying to be an Asshole: Bruce: "Maybe I should be more like Evan."Jack: "You don't want to be like Evan, Evan's an asshole." Bruce: "Well, I can be an asshole." Jack: "No, Bruce. You can't." (Bruce whacks Jack's sandwich out of his hands) Jack: "You going to pick that up?" Bruce: "Yeah, I'm sorry."

Summing It All Up

This is one of those movies that you can revisit at any time, and it means something different. It's kind of saccharine, but it showcases a lesson that I think would make the world a better place if everyone followed it.

So go out there and be the miracle.