Wednesday, September 16, 2009

Whitney Houston - A Humble Heart

“For when I am weak, then I am strong.” 2 Co. 12:10b

Last night I caught the Winfrey interview with one of my favorite artists from many years ago, Whitney Houston. She stormed the scene many years ago with such innocence, amazing talent and a desire to give everything she had to both her fans and her music. She was raised in a Christian home and experienced a close relationship with a large family and a large God. As temptation, drugs and abuse took over her life I thought we had lost her forever. The woman who emerged from the fire is refined, mature and a humble servant of God. She finally returned to what she knew was the only “saving grace”. I relate on such a personal level with her as I watched a similar life lived with my own daughter regarding choices, lifestyles and her depletion of soul and spirit. But, things change….

I know the joy Whitney’s mother feels watching her daughter emerge with beauty, grace and humility. I know the feeling of waking up and knowing the words, “Thank you, God” seem so inadequate. I know the feeling of the “old order of things has passed away” (Rev 21:4) and a new life is being renewed and rebuilt.

You can tell when God has intervened and lifted His child out of the fire because of the humility that accompanies the person’s heart. Whitney displayed an incredible sense of recommitment to God, personal cleansing and a servant’s heart of humility. When asked if she considers this her big comeback she stated with sincerity, “I don’t consider this a comeback but a come through.” She acknowledged that her “come through” was by returning to God, trusting Him and laying it down. She stated that her prayer every night for so long was for Him to send the strength just for one day to leave and she promised she would go. She said one morning she woke up with that amazing strength at her weakest point and she fulfilled the second half of the equation and left. God sent the strength but we have to believe we can trust that strength to be enough. I love the verse in one of her new songs as she belted the words repeatedly, “I was not born to break”.

No matter what circumstances we face we all were created to thrive, to grow and to soar. No one person has a more limited future than the other as God intends and promises the same life of abundance for all of His children. Life’s circumstances may cause us to bend, twist, reshape and even temporary fold, but WE WERE NOT BORN TO BREAK!

Praise God that each of us has the same Father who will provide a “come through” no matter what circumstances life presents.

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