@Sarah_TN wrote:
Before I comment on this: Let me go ahead and state that I will be speaking a lot about my own beliefs. That means this will be a little God-heavy. If that is offensive to anyone, then here’s your opportunity to not read what follows:
Yes, it is a shame. Shame on the people who for whatever they did, traumatized her to the point that she would have to make a decision to seperate herself like that….
however….
Then there’s another aspect which is what is expected of me, as a person. Judgemental? No, not if looked at from a 360 degree angle. See, we are responsible for the decisions we make for ourselves. When the decisions we make for ourselves become hurtful or harmful toward others, that’s the point where the decisions we have made become wrong. It’s hurtful for others to believe that the admiration they have for someone is looked down upon by the person who they have such a high esteem for. The fact that she may never see the faces of some of these people is immaterial. Luke 12:48 says: “…From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked”. The position she is in, is one where she is in the public eye, and so has a burden of accountability God entrusts to those to whom He blesses with much.
Does that mean she can or should be responsible for showing appreciation to every fan? No, that would be impossible to do, However, examples can speak loud volumes.
I don’t know what happened, so it may be really bad, and the trauma may be terrible, but at some point she needs to take that step of faith to move beyond what happened to her.
We can say “But ___ happened” “But ____ made her feel _____”
If every standard we lived our lives by was directed by that word: “But”…..what standards would there be? What firm footing would we have to stand on to govern our judgement other than our feelings? Feelings can be deceiving, manipulative, and can easily blind us. That’s why as a Christian, the standards I live by have to be set by what I believe, not by how I feel. If I live by how I feel, I will be like a leaf blowing wherever the wind takes me. I’d have no anchor. I’d be standing on sinking sand. My eyes have to be focused on how the decisions I made will move outward from myself toward others, not from others inward to myself. I have to keep myself responsible for how what I do will impact others. Christ expects that of me, and so I expect that of myself.
That’s why I hope someday Jennifer is able to overcome this experience. Meeting the people who appreciate her so much can be an enjoyable experience for her. As for the others who choose to misbehave, or are just plain mean: They can’t be allowed to set a bar for the standard of the world outside. To see the world outside your door as containing a den or roaring lions sounds like very frightening, and very sad way to live. It doesn’t have to be that way! These people are just like us all. We are all flesh-and-blood imperfect human beings who can feel, can even be emotionally vulnerable, and can make mistakes. A lot of happiness can be found in giving the grace needed to accept that in other people.
1 Corinthians 13:1-2
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
The problem is that we don’t actually know how serious and traumatic the experience was (nor would I like to and the fact that it was to traumatize her means that she needs more positive thoughts etc). There’s been examples with other celebrities where one moment of kindness something as small as responding to a fan letter actually led to very scary threatening situations. So her wanting stricter boundaries, in certain situations, is her choice and not that she has not dealt with the experience nor that she looks down on fans.
She may have simply decided to admire fans in specific settings such as public places like the airport, meet and greets etc and wants to avoid situations where a similar traumatic experience can occur. (And it’s already been said that she is grateful for her fans and does take time out for them). If she has already been gracious enough with fans in various places then what more does she have to do to make it seem as if she is not looking down on her fans or seen negatively? It seems she is already doing enough… For instance if a fan showed up on her doorstep I would expect, urge and hope she calls the cops immediately.
What I never understood is that if celebrities are expected to have a certain level of decorum and behavior then why can’t we expect the same from fans? (I also know I can do what I can for myself and cannot force my opinions on others).
I guess for me as a Christian I apply my beliefs in wishing her the best, hoping that she finds the peace she needs after such an experience (and for me I believe that true peace is found through Christ), respecting her choices in how she interacts with fans, and still loving her as a fellow being the way Christ commands me and respecting, admiring her as a fan of her work. I guess for me I live more by the verses after 1 Corinthians 13: 1-2 with 1 Corinthians 13: 4-5 (KJV) “4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.”
I want to love as Christ commands me and not as a means of expecting something in return. Not saying you don’t but simply stating my beliefs.