Philippian 1:19-21
“For I know that through your prayers and the help given by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, what has happened to me will turn out for my deliverance. I eagerly expect and hope that I will in no way be ashamed, but will have sufficient courage so that now as always Christ will be exalted in my body, weather by life or by death. For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
2013 is turning out to be one of the worst flu seasons of the year! It seems like everyone I interact with at the office, church, or the store is sick or has been. I have even been thinking about taking the Michael Jackson approach and wearing a mask everywhere I go now but I haven’t had time to “bejewel” one yet!
Living and working in Hollywood can become a kind of “sickness” too. Our passion for what we want to become – that leading actor, or blockbuster producer, director or writer- can consume and overpower us. We can loose touch with what is most important in life. Our husband or wife, kids and faith can suffer from our selfish passionate focus on our media or entertainment career. They say in Hollywood it takes at least 10 years to be “discovered!” And sadly… sometimes it never happens. How do you handle those long devastating setbacks? How do you keep going through those times when you lost that role again to the blonde, or to the other guy’s script that they bought instead? How do you work through the devastation and not let the “sickness” of wanting Hollywood success rob you of what really matters?
Paul wants us to remember to take courage and thank God everyday for his Spirit that lives within us and sustains us as we journey through the common flu, or constant rejection that occurs daily in the media and entertainment industry. God wants us to have courage as we face overwhelming debt, the constant struggle of a life working in Hollywood, or even sometimes the success of a Hollywood career and the challenges and struggles it too brings on. Keeping a focus on Him and where He is taking us on this “career journey” is what matters. If He called us to work in media and entertainment than in life or death Christ will be exalted.
Just as I know I can’t control ever getting physically sick, or the “other guy” booking the role, or getting pass over yet again on my film or TV show, I know that I can control my attitude and what I do about it. With Christ in our hearts and as our primary focus we can be and are successful. It doesn’t matter what the world sees as successful God sees us differently when our eyes are fixed on Him.
As the song says…this world is not my home, I’m just a passing through. My treasures are laid up somewhere beyond the blue….
If you want to sing along … here’s an old country rendition. Be careful though, you might get stuck singing it the rest of the day… that’s the “Christ exalted” part that Paul talked about. youtube.com/watch?v=4ndMZqT6i4I
