Gabby Douglas and character

Glorifying God with your HAIR????

Sorry I've had few blog posts out this week.  Have had kind of a wild week, in lots of ways.  Part of it is kind of exciting, because it relates to working out with the publisher final details for the book’s release.  We are getting the cover design completed, and so it shouldn’t be too long before print copies are available.  You will be the first to know!

 However, today, I just HAVE to say something about something I saw the other day….wouldn’t surprise me if you have, too.  Remember the young Olympian I wrote about the other day….Gabby Douglas?  So have you also seen all the flap about the hair style she had during the competition?  I’m not going to link to it, you can do a search if you really want to, but be prepared, there are LOTS of comments out there!  (So I guess I’m adding mine!)

My main comment is this:  Really????  All the gymnastic ability this girl has, all the feats she performed, the gold medal around her neck, the hard work she did to get to the Olympics, and even managing to do that from a difficult home life of divorcing parents, and all they could see to write about it her hair style?  Really?  I hear it started with some London tabloids, but don’t know that for sure, and don’t even care…….her hair style?  Kind of reminds me of Hillary Clinton, who had a hair style she apparently liked….until she got to Washington and all the clucking hens gathered around to criticize until she finally conformed to the demands of the trendy.

Seems to me that GABBY likes the way she wears her hair.  And, based on the medal around her neck, it seems to work well in her routine.  After all, it IS HER hair!  And frankly, I’d be surprised if the folks causing the flap could even do a cartwheel, let alone win an Olympic gold medal!  Her hair?  Really?  Really????

Makes me think of the scripture in Peter that encourages women to be careful of spending too much time and effort on outward adornment, but to focus instead on the beauty that is within.   I don’t know the young woman, but it sure sounds to me like that is exactly what she has been doing.  Through all of this hubbub one can sure see that the way of the world really is to focus on those external, less important things in life.  Perhaps you also remember that, in 1 Samuel, scripture teaches that God looks on the heart, not the external appearance.  Somehow, this all smacks to me of people with inferiority complexes trying to make themselves feel bigger by seeking to diminish others who have accomplished more.  Pretty sad.  No, VERY sad.  And pathetic.

I think Gabby would be better served by paying attention to the character God wants to build within her, and following the dream God has planted in her heart.  I mean, have you ever seen any of the “Real Housewives” shows?  As near as I can tell…..and I have seen only a small portion….they always seem to find women who have the eternal appearance thing going pretty well, but watching those shows (at least the little I’ve seen) very clearly illustrates that there is a vast difference between a woman (or man) being physically attractive and a woman (or man) being desirable!  And the more of those shows I have seen, the bigger the difference!  Almost the Grand Canyon I’d say.  Guys, I’d go for desirable, if I were you…..and desirable isn’t going to be seen by observing the outside.  If you don’t believe me, spend five minutes watching one of those shows!  No wait, skip that….bad advice, not worth the time.  Just take my word for it.  (And the same applies to you ladies, as well…..don’t get caught in the outward appearance cesspool.)

Bottom line, I guess we all have to make the choice of whether we want to waste our lives with the shallow and superficial, or for our lives to be filled with meaning and purpose that will stand for eternity.  Not that there is anything wrong with making ourselves presentable.  It is the degree that can be deceiving.  Wow….really got on a soap box with this one, didn’t I?  Sorry. 

So to Gabby, who, again probably doesn’t read my blogs anyway, I’d say, “let the sad little people with too much time on their hands fret over their hair.  You shave your head if you want to……because you know that what is important can’t be seen on the outside, anyway!  And please, please, please, don’t let yourself get swept up in the madness.  Keep your eyes on the things of heaven, not the things of earth.”  Might be good advice for the rest of us, as well.

TL:dr  Gabby’s hair debate reminds us of what is important, the person within God is creating!

Talking about Gabby Douglas

Talk about ANYTHING…..well, not Jesus, though.

  So here’s the deal.  My wife loves the internet.  I use it here and there, but would call somebody on the phone long before I’d ever tap into skype……kind of a “crooksosaurus” I guess.  Anyway, the upside of it all is that the other day she told me to check out some articles she had found on the internet about a young girl in the Olympics.  So, I did, and it is a good illustration of an ongoing debate/ battle in our society.

  The articles were about a young gymnast named Gabby Douglas.  Lots to see in these things.  What is really bad, is that I LOVE the gymnastic events, and somehow missed them all……that is really disappointing.  Anyway, so if you missed it, too, then know that 16 year old Gabby won the gold medal in one of the women’s events spectacularly.  Before and after, she acknowledge Christ as her source.  In addition, her parents are in the process of going through a divorce, so that also makes her relevant for us.

  Posted some thoughts on the public witness of folks the other day, here is another example.  The articles she sent me to included three from various places (maybe I ought to post the links below….you can check).  One lady didn’t like the idea of Gabby speaking about God, because it doesn’t fit her image of what God should be like or how Christians should behave.  (So is it okay for some of us to not like how THAT LADY practices HER Christian faith, too, or is it only people like Gabby that are out of bounds?)

  Then there is another person who wrote about the issue of whether Gabby believed God helped her win the gold medal, believing that she does.  Well, of COURSE she does.  In fact, God helped every medalist there to win!  There is air to breathe, right?  They do have brains and muscles that work, right?  It’s just that Gabby is one of those who recognizes that God has done things like that for her, and some others are oblivious to it.

  What may be interesting, and what I suspect will be the case….certainly hope so, (but haven’t seen cause have been pretty tied up of late), is whether she understands that God is her source and help when she loses as well as when she wins.  I hear she didn’t win in another event and was disappointed.   Does that mean God didn’t back her anymore?  Ridiculous! 

  Athletes (and other professions as well who really understand the scriptures), understand that God’s help is for us to be able to be the best person in character that we can be….because the kind of person we are is what God really cares most about.  They also understand that we seek God’s help that we may do our best, and do so in a way that brings HIM glory rather than simply ourselves.  And that what God does through us might be something God can use to make a difference in the lives of others.  These things are true whether it is bouncing around on floor mats, or throwing footballs, or mounting brakes onto cars, or serving in Congress, or writing blogs!  It’s all one and the same, all we do is to be done for the glory of God, to the best of our ability, with the strength and gifts that God provides. 

  So Gabby, keep going.  God is using you, because I don’t even know you, didn’t even see your performance, and yet find that your stand for Christ is being bounced around the internet to somebody like me, thousands of miles away.  Gabby, have fun, enjoy the ride, life is too short to worry too much about all the garbage that comes our way.  And, Gabby, I am sorry you had to go through watching your folks marriage fall apart.  Maybe that will change one day.  But I am glad you have learned already that your life does not have to be limited because of that one event over which you had no control.  You are an example of the fact that God can still do great things through people committed to him, even out of circumstances that don’t seem so good at the time.  (Gee, I wonder if she even reads my blog?  Maybe I should invite her to subscribe!)

TL:dr  Can’t do one sentence, but Gabby Douglas is creating a buzz, and it even landed on MY blog!