the man in the mirror

Many of you may have received an email that goes something like this:

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At the Emmy awards, Kathy Griffin's acceptance speech said, "A lot of people come up here and thank Jesus for this award. I want you to know that no one had less to do with this award than Jesus." She went on to say, “Suck it, Jesus. This is my God now!” referring to the Emmy.

As a Christian, I am offended by her hate speech. What do you think might have happened if she had made the hate speech against Muhammad???? Kathy Griffin has the right as an American to say what she thinks. As a Christian-American, so do I.

Today I will refuse to watch any show that she may be on or purchase tickets to any event at which she would perform. What will you do? If you delete this, nothing bad will happen to you, but if you pass this on, you will truly have stood up for Jesus Christ. Let’s see what Christians can do.

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This really happened, but it was censored from the E! Network broadcast of the awards show. Have you ever heard Kathy Griffin? She’s pretty funny, pretty smart, and probably right; I seriously doubt Jesus had anything to do with her award or her life in general. Jesus is knocking, but Griffin must be in the shower or something (she says she’s an ex-Catholic atheist).

Rather than talk boycott (the Christian's first reaction to everything these days), I think this should be a wake-up call; we need to take a serious look at how people are looking at us.

Why did Griffin think this was a good idea? What cultural environment have we created that would find this funny? I don’t see hatred here, only ignorance and probably a gut reaction to what she sees as holier-than-thou “Christian” hypocrites putting on airs. What could be more hypocritical than an angry, foul-mouthed, sex-obsessed, rap singer giving “props” to Jesus? But should we expect anything else from the world? (“The things of God are foolishness to the unbeliever, for they are spiritually discerned” - Paul, paraphrased)

Perhaps Christians need to do something, but perhaps we should start by looking in the mirror. Individual Christians (especially Christian leaders) need to start asking themselves the hard questions: When was the last time I helped the poor? Who is the last widow or orphan I fed? How long has it been since I visited someone in prison? Am I following Christ or running from the world? What is my fruit? Is it just doctrine and dogma, or is it faith, hope, and love?

There's a reason Ms. Griffin sees us as another target, similar to Joan Rivers or Paris Hilton. We need to figure out what that reason is, or there will be no one to blame for the slander of our Savior but ourselves.

We cannot proclaim our Lord to the world if we cannot even relate to it. In order to reach this culture, we cannot rely on the reasoned arguments of the recent past, but instead, like the first-century Christians, we must be humble, transparent, and compassionate; anything less and today's youth will see right though it. Remember, Jesus was a friend of sinners and came to save the lost not embolden the saved. We must do likewise.

I say take a moment today to pray for Kathy Griffin and others who feel the same. Pray that God will open doors for you to show them God's grace and love. Pray that we never become so comfortable in our Christian fortress that we forget the hordes starving for hope outside our walls.