This is sure to get hate mail…but here goes…
Do you pray for celebrities?
It’s no secret that I am a fan of P!nk (the singer not the color). Before you think it’s some weird obsession thing, I’m not that kind of fan of hers. As an artist, as a lyricist, I appreciate her. She is raw, obscene, dark and often off-color. One thing is for sure…she’s honest. In a time and an age when we all talk about being afraid to be “who we are”, we often criticize those that are. To quote P!nk herself:
Done looking for the critics, cuz they’re everywhere
They don’t like my jeans, they don’t get my hair
Stringe ourselves and we do it all the time
Why do we do that?
Why do I do that?
Why do I do that?
Which leads me to the very song with which those lyrics come. The title, like the song, includes an obscene word (repeated in every chorus). The video isn’t exactly rated G either. However she has released a clean version of the song in which she replaces the obscene word with the words “Less Than”. I was glad to hear that because if we like it or not, P!nk has something which is very important….influence.
Think she doesn’t? Check iTunes and you’ll find that song sitting at number one.
Is it sad that she used profanity in the song, yes, very. Have some people downloaded it just because that very profanity, yes, probably. But here is why I bet a vast majority have clicked to download it…
Several years ago I saw a behind the music about P!nk on TV. It was after that show that I began to follow her career. The show explained why she is who she is, does what she does and says what she says. P!nk is less than perfect. Her childhood was less than perfect. Her family was less than perfect. Her marriage has been less than perfect. Her lyrics speak to the teens that follow her because they feel less than perfect too.
Can’t the same be said of each one of us?
I once heard Dr. Bill Brown, President of Cedarville University, talk about praying for celebrities. His list included the likes of Eminem and Marilyn Manson. Just recently I heard him speak again and he referenced his prayer list (which now includes Brad Pitt). It struck a chord in me. If we aren’t praying for them, who is?
That is why I pray for P!nk. Those prayers have grown more now that she is expecting a child. Becoming a parent has a way of changing us in ways we never anticipate. I’m one guy that can preach an entire sermon series on that with plenty of analogies from my own life. It is my prayer that P!nk finally faces the things that have shaped her and give them to Jesus. I pray that her child, like my 3 kids, teaches her the unconditional love of a Heavenly Father. Lastly I pray that God can take her “Less than perfect” and make it beautiful. He’s done it in my life time and time again.
What Celebrity Can You Pray For?
Last night at dinner, my wife asked a GREAT question. Before I get to her question, let me give you some background information. My wife listens to music “recreationally”. In other words, if it is on she will listen to it, but she doesn’t need music to be on to complete whatever task she is working on (driving, running, working around the house). I on the other hand need music to be on at all times. Music is like a soundtrack for my life. I can give you specific things I was doing when I hear a song, or tell you what song was on during specific moments in my life (it’s a sickness really). Now her question:
