grace in the tabloids

2 posts in one day. i am obviously done with class for the semester.

some events have occurred recently that spent my mind spinning in regards to who teenage (and younger) as well as adult women are exposed to as "successful".

obviously, the ones i am about to mention are not at all representative of the whole, but rather women who are frequently in the news, and from my experience, frequently the topic of conversation where i am.

britney spears , recently divorced has been having a good ol time lately, apparently so much that she is getting forgetful.
this one time spokesperson for abstinence and former self proclaimed southern baptist seems to be spinning out of control.

speaking of one time "good girls", jessica simpson has gone from "i am saving myself for marriage" to commercials, videos and movies where she wears next to nothing, and flaunts her sexuality. on a recent appearance on a late night talk show, my wife and i were appalled at her behavior and the possibility that her dress might soon suffer a 'wardrobe malfunction" any second.

from songbirds to talk shows, oprah winfrey and rosie odonnell are often topics of conversation in the media and in the breakroom.

with anything oprah endorses quickly becoming the next big thing, and anyone she blacklists being fodder for public scrutiny, oprah's one woman empire obviously wields a lot of power.

oprah is often touted for being so giving and trying so hard to empower people to change their lives. on the surface, this seems great. but what about when generosity produces the inability to believe in absolutes. watch this brief video, that if you havent seen, is very eye opening. "how can there possibly be only one way??"

rosie o'donnell, who was formerly " america's friendliest talk show host" recently caused an uproar with her remarks that "radical christianity is just as dangerous as radical islam". the most shocking point was the roar of applause after she said this. are we turning into a culture who applauds anything our celebrities say, because they are celebrities? read the story, view clip here.

now, some of you may be saying, "whoa, wait a minute. you *just * wrote a post earlier today about not speaking against non christian things because they are non christian!"

well, that is not my point here. my point here is that women like these are greatly influencing our culture. i have seen women try very hard to justify the actions or statements of some of these women and others because they enjoy what they do, and do not want to have to admit that they might be wrong.
am i saying that no one should listen to their music or watch their shows? no, not at all. i cannot make that judgement for anyone not in my family.
what i am suggesting is that we be people who defend the gospel of christ more than we defend our favorite celebrity.
rather than defending oprah, maybe we should say " while i enjoy her show, she has got it completely wrong in this area..." rather than buying every magazine with a picture of britney or jessica, maybe we could save our money and spend the time we would have read the news/gossip about them praying for them.
these celebrities are people too. they get tired. they get frustrated. they make mistakes - just like we do. but instead of ignoring those mistakes, or downplaying them so we can use their lives to entertain ours, why dont we pray for them?
how amazing would it be if when one of these or other celebrities are brought up, that instead of trying to figure out whether or not they are pregnant, dating some one, or getting a divorce, we change the conversation to..

" you know, its actually none of my buisness, but i do pray for her because i know no matter how much money or fame she gets, no matter how many magazines she is on the cover of, she needs the gospel,just like i do. so i pray for her."

this is not meant to be a rebuke, but rather an encouragement. do not be molded by the culture that dictates that the lives of other people should be our gossip. but rather pray that the grace of christ would change their lives, just as ours need changing.