The Greatest Love of All

Last weekend on the day before the 54th annual Grammy Awards, Whitney Houston died unexpectedly at the age of 48. Although I was never a fan of the singer, her death sort of hit home since she was only a few months older than me plus I had played Whitney’s records while working as a disc jockey in nightclubs and roller rinks.

One of Whitney’s biggest hits was “The Greatest Love of All”, which talks about self-love.  The second verse of that song goes like this…

Everybody's searching for a hero
People need someone to look up to
I never found anyone who fulfilled my needs
A lonely place to be
So I learned to depend on me 

A Christian could easily find fault with the lyrics above. 2 Timothy 3:1-4 warns us that in the last days, “men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money… lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”

On the other hand, Jesus commanded us in Mark 12:31, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” People cannot truly love others if they hate themselves. God wants us to recognize how much He values us. Psalm 139:14 says we are all “…fearfully and wonderfully made.”

Two days before her death, Whitney Houston gave her last public performance singing “Jesus Loves Me” during a pre-Grammy Awards party in Hollywood. Despite drug problems that likely contributed to her death, I believe Whitney’s in heaven since she often professed Jesus Christ as her Lord and Savior. If so, Whitney has truly experienced the greatest love of all.

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” - 1 John 4:10

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Toking the Ghost Revisited

Image
Back in February 2007, a fellow missionary I was traveling with started talking about “smoking the weed from heaven.”   He would pretend to have a joint of marijuana between his fingers and have “smoke breaks with Jesus.”   He also encouraged other believers to take “hits.”   I was a bit uncomfortable with this idea but didn't contest it. Then in October of that year, I heard John Crowder preach on “toking the Ghost” at a church in my hometown of Fargo, North Dakota.   I was inspired to make a video with John to share with my missionary friend.   During the filming, I experienced much laughter. I decided to make the video public figuring other people might enjoy it also. Two weeks later at a church in Minnesota, I heard Benjamin Dunn share testimonies of people getting healed from “toking the Ghost.”   This was just before he and John Crowder started ministering together.   I believed this was God confirming His word in the mouth of two or three witnesses.  
Read more

The Gospel Soul Winning Script

Image
During my early days with evangelism, I developed an approach called the Survey Technique . By asking short direct questions, you can maintain control of the conversation and find out quickly what a person’s spiritual beliefs are. Although the Survey Technique has helped me lead thousands to the Lord, I’m still open to utilizing new methods in reaching people with the gospel. Rodney Howard-Browne 's ministry uses a tool called the Gospel Soul-Winning Script , which originated during their Good News New York campaign in 1999. I became familiar with it a few years later during evangelism outreaches with Rodney’s church in Tampa, Florida. At first, I resisted using the script. I found it restrictive and thought sinners wouldn’t be receptive to me reading the whole thing to them. Then while taking part in a 2009 outreach with Rodney’s ministry in Washington, D.C., my team leader asked me to “stick with the script.” Wanting to maintain unity, I complied with his request. Initially it fe
Read more

A Tribute to Al Best

Image
October is Pastor Appreciation Month. This tribute is for one who went home to be with the Lord last Sunday. Al Best oversaw Light in Anoka Church in a northern suburb of Minneapolis. Originally from Florida, Al first gave his life to the Lord at 17 but then backslid. Meanwhile, he served 21 years in the Navy and worked various jobs. That included selling Rainbow vacuum cleaners. I would eventually get to know his sales manager. Eric Gonyon became an associate pastor at Rodney Howard-Browne ’s church (I usually attend services there when in Tampa).  A few years after recommitting his life to the Lord, Al became a pastor. In 2007, the Lord directed him to head north to Minnesota, where his wife Jean is from. First, they ministered in the small town of Dassel. What started as a youth mission transitioned into regular services for all ages. Then in 2016, Al and Jean moved to Anoka to take on a church originally called New Day Fellowship. To counter the city’s motto as the “Halloween Ca
Read more