High Cost for Hollywood Beauty

Brazilian's top model, Ana Carolina Reston died November 16 at age 21 from kidney failure caused by anorexia nervosa. Anorexia is an eating disorder caused by massive starvation of the body. Statisitcs reveal that 15% of girls who suffer from anorexia will die from it. That is 2 in 10 and up to 20% of anorexia cases die by the age of 20. This Brazilian model weighed 88 pounds and was 5 foot 8 inches tall. According to the World Health Organization, any individual with a Body Mass Index (BMI) below 18.5 is underweight; any individual with a BMI of 17.5 most likely has anorexia; any individual with a BMI of 15 has starved themselves. Ana Carolina Reston had a BMI of 13.5. Reston's mother conveyed to the media the many times she begged her daughter to eat and go to the doctor. She shared her hope that young models would portray something different to young women. No woman would deny the pressure to look a certain way portrayed by the media and magazines. However, every woman must make the decision whether or not to be defined by culture's ideology which continually changes or by an ideology that conveys the fact that we were each uniquely designed by a Creator who has a divine plan for our lives. The color of our eyes, our body shape, our personality...no mistake! May we define beauty based on the inside and take care of our bodies on the outside. Other Hollywood models are taking a stand against the way Hollywood defines beauty, however they are victims of an eating disorder called compulsive overeating. There must be a balance in finding who we are on the inside and taking care of our physical bodies.

Oprah's Leadership Academy for Girls

Oprah Winfrey plans on contributing 10 million dollars for a Leadership Training School to educate South African girls. The school is located on 22 acres of land in Guateng Province, South Africa. Oprah plans on teaching the female students by satelite. A 17 year old female student said, "Men have always ruled the world, but that's all over now, because we are coming and we are coming in a storm. I believe girls are going to take over the world. Men have been in control for long enough, but don't worry; we are prepared to share power." It seems this student has already become engulfed in feminist thought. The only question I have is, "Where is the church?"

"Let Me Know"

As I was sipping on my delicious, dark roast coffee, in hopes of waking up, a headline on this mornings Today Show came up. It said, "The Mystery of Faith: Celebrating Religious Tradition." I quickly turned up the television, as Matt began to share of the different faiths found in Jerusalem. He was there on assignment. They showed the very road that historical tradition believes Jesus walked on to the cross. I became so fascinated in the footage. Matt spoke to Meredith who was broadcasting at the network in New York. As they were beginning to take a commercial break, Matt said, "Is there a heaven? And if so how can we get there?" Meredith replied back, "Matt, I don't know, but if you know, let me know." I sat there and just began to ponder on Meredith's reply: "I don't know, but if you know, let me know." It's amazing how scared we get when we think about sharing truth with other people...but people just want to know...they may not know exactly what they are searching for, unless we share with them about the TRUTH! I don't know about you, but this really makes me desire to be more intentional in sharing verbally with other people about Jesus Christ and if they believe in Him with all their heart and ask Jesus to come into their life and change them, that they can know the True Living God and have an eternal home in heaven. Heaven does exist and Jesus came to die so we may have the opportunity to know Him on earth and in heaven.