Celebrity, in My Opinion

Many people have had much to say regarding the passing of Michael Jackson. Whatever your thoughts about him, it must be acknowledged that he made a huge impact on the entertainment industry, as well as our culture...that is an undisputed fact. I am not here to sing his praises, nor am I here to judge him. Plenty of people are doing that already, we do not need my voice added to the mix. I do not know all the facts of his life, none of us do. We may think we know who he was or was not and what he did or did not do, but in reality, we only know in part. Unless we took part in some action or event, or were a direct witness to it, or a beneficiary or victim of it, can we ever really know the whole truth of it? Unless we know all the facts pertaining to any given subject, whatever we might say about it is only conjecture and opinion. We certainly may choose to air our opinions, but that is all they are...opinions. We may hold them dearly and believe them deeply, but that does not change what they are.

Something else that does not change is the way we make celebrities of people. We honor people for any number of things: their gifts and talents, their looks, their money, their fashion, their influence, their intelligence, the list goes on. Of course, honor should be given, where it is due, but I am not talking about that. I am talking about the way we admire, even idolize people. We put these people on pedestals and they become the recipients of our adulation.

When they and their pedestals crack, as they invariably do, we are only too happy to turn on them. We turn on them because we can now see their frailty, their imperfection, their corruption, their humanity. They are flawed, after all. Their flaws are more visible to the general populace because of the celebrity we gave them. When that happens, their celebrity becomes tarnished and they shine less brightly in our eyes. What must be remembered is that we are all imperfect because we are all human. Maybe we have different flaws or imperfections, but we still have them. When we put a flawed human being on a pedestal as an object of our adulation or worship, we will eventually experience disappointment because that person was never meant to be the recipient of our worship. That position may only be rightfully filled by the One who is without imperfection. He alone is worthy to receive our worship.

Free

With what words can I

express my gratitude

for the freedom

I have found in You?

What words I could say

would not be enough to

convey the debt

of love I owe You.

I was imprisoned...

held fast by strong chains of

my own making,

forged in fear and sin.

Miraculously,

Your love came rushing in,

striking those chains

and setting me free.

Redeemed and released...

how can it be that I

could ever know 

such joy, such freedom?

My joy is in You,

as is the hope that I

will no longer

imprison myself.

Captivated by

You alone, no longer

bound to this world,

nor constrained by sin...

free to soar above

confusion, shame, and fear...

I fly to You.

Your love gives me wings.

Three Steps Forward...Four Steps Back?

In my last post (oh so long ago) I wrote about what seemed like a positive step my son was taking.  The saying "three steps forward, two steps back", however, just does not begin to cover his present circumstances.  That would imply some progress was being made, no matter how slowly.  At present, it seems as if my son was moving backward...three steps forward, four steps back.  If any progress is being made it is not visible to the naked eye.  I am trusting that God's vision is far better than my own, though I must admit this walking by faith, not by sight gig is not an easy one at times.  Still, I don't know a better way than that to keep hopelessness at bay.