I admit it…I’m an American Idol fan. I, along with millions of other Americans, watched the premier of this season’s contest. Now, over the past several years, I have become far less of a fan of the shows that showcase the preliminary rounds. The rudeness to contestants (some of which you can tell have mental illnesses and simply don’t deserve it) and the constant bleeping that takes place as this disgruntled contestant rails off on the judges in the post-audition interview have both contributed to me just longing for the actual contest to begin. However, after much anticipation of season 7 to arrive, I chose to go back and forth last night between Idol and watching the Wildcats blow another game on the Internet.
After one of the auditions, a girl who had simply blown the judges away could be heard celebrating her invitation to Hollywood outside the doors rather loudly. In fact, Ryan found himself at the bottom of the dog pile in which her family had resulted in the midst of the extreme celebration. It was during this celebration that Simon made an extremely shallow confession. This confession out of the mouth of just about anyone else would bring a sense of bewilderment; however, it came as no surprise to most when it came from the lips of Cowell.
Simon asked Paula and Randy what it is about Americans that we would celebrate the accomplishments or realized dreams of others. He went on to share that this was not the case in Britain. He could never fathom a time when he would be outwardly excited about the joy of another person…only when something amazing happened for himself. Randy and Paula didn’t seem to have an answer for that one, as they just kind of gave him a look of “huh?”
This got me to thinking about what God’s Word commands us to do in Scripture. “Rejoice with those who rejoice; Mourn with those who mourn” (Rom. 12:15). I suddenly realized that sometimes we can be just as cold as Simon Cowell in this regard. We can be just as selfish. We can be just as unwilling to participate in the last half of that command as Cowell seems to be, especially when someone is chosen before us or placed ahead of us in some regard.
How do we react when that person gets the promotion that we feel we deserved? For young people, what if that person is chosen for the ball team, or is given the solo, instead of us? Even when we are not in the running for the prize, we can begin to fall into the trap of “when is something like that going to happen to me?” when something great happens to a friend.
Make no mistake that this attitude is sin. It is sin that is rooted in selfishness. It is also sin that is rooted in distrust in God and His plan. Now, I tend to doubt that all people in England have that same attitude as Simon. I would hope that British citizens would label him as the last person on earth to speak on their behalf. But, what I do know, is that there is a world who is blinded to the Gospel, in part because of selfishness, and we can give them a picture of God’s grace when we do all that we can to live this command out in our own lives. Be happy for the good things that happen to others, even if you are prone to deem it unfair or to ask “why not me?” Trust in God’s plan for you and let’s show the world together that we have placed our trust in something far greater than some mystical fate or karma. We have a Father who holds our lives in His hands, and He indeed has a plan for us to bring us a future and a hope!
After one of the auditions, a girl who had simply blown the judges away could be heard celebrating her invitation to Hollywood outside the doors rather loudly. In fact, Ryan found himself at the bottom of the dog pile in which her family had resulted in the midst of the extreme celebration. It was during this celebration that Simon made an extremely shallow confession. This confession out of the mouth of just about anyone else would bring a sense of bewilderment; however, it came as no surprise to most when it came from the lips of Cowell.
Simon asked Paula and Randy what it is about Americans that we would celebrate the accomplishments or realized dreams of others. He went on to share that this was not the case in Britain. He could never fathom a time when he would be outwardly excited about the joy of another person…only when something amazing happened for himself. Randy and Paula didn’t seem to have an answer for that one, as they just kind of gave him a look of “huh?”
This got me to thinking about what God’s Word commands us to do in Scripture. “Rejoice with those who rejoice; Mourn with those who mourn” (Rom. 12:15). I suddenly realized that sometimes we can be just as cold as Simon Cowell in this regard. We can be just as selfish. We can be just as unwilling to participate in the last half of that command as Cowell seems to be, especially when someone is chosen before us or placed ahead of us in some regard.
How do we react when that person gets the promotion that we feel we deserved? For young people, what if that person is chosen for the ball team, or is given the solo, instead of us? Even when we are not in the running for the prize, we can begin to fall into the trap of “when is something like that going to happen to me?” when something great happens to a friend.
Make no mistake that this attitude is sin. It is sin that is rooted in selfishness. It is also sin that is rooted in distrust in God and His plan. Now, I tend to doubt that all people in England have that same attitude as Simon. I would hope that British citizens would label him as the last person on earth to speak on their behalf. But, what I do know, is that there is a world who is blinded to the Gospel, in part because of selfishness, and we can give them a picture of God’s grace when we do all that we can to live this command out in our own lives. Be happy for the good things that happen to others, even if you are prone to deem it unfair or to ask “why not me?” Trust in God’s plan for you and let’s show the world together that we have placed our trust in something far greater than some mystical fate or karma. We have a Father who holds our lives in His hands, and He indeed has a plan for us to bring us a future and a hope!
know. be. do. 
thanks for sharing š(i heard him say that! i almost didnt believe i heard what i thought i heard- but i guess i did hear it if you heard it too)..or something like thatanywaysit is always good to hear from another AI fan lol