When we all get together how strange we will be.

Tim McGraw looked sick.

He looked like he didn't want to be singing, like the lights were too bright, and like he needed more sleep in order to cope with whatever was ailing him.

But instead, there he was standing on the stage at the pre-game show entertainment for the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Tennessee Titans game. He sang, and I was almost relieved for him when he'd finished. It sounded really rough.

I generously, while holding my own Kleenex and coughing frequently suggested that maybe he was suffering from a cold.

I don't exactly know how to spell Harumph, but it sounds something like "yeah right" only without opening your mouth. Because of who he is, it's almost assumed Mr. Mcgraw was probably high on something or suffering from too much alcohol. The other two adults in the room did not seem to readily accept that perhaps poor Tim was suffering from swine flu, or perhaps some other popular malady. Though one person did attempt to suggest that perhaps allergies could account for why his eyes were so red.

Isn't it funny how it's not gossip if a person is famous?
Isn't it funny how it's not slander if a person is rich?
Isn't it funny how it's not malicious if a person is too seemingly important to know you or your opinion of them?

I don't think so.

A lot has been said lately, about Joe Wilson, Kanye West, Obama, Paris Hilton, Lindsay Lohan, and so many other famous names that we'll probably never meet.
And I wonder if Jesus isn't upset at how we've treated them?

We get so caught up in the idea of "who is my neighbor?" that we lose the reality of "who isn't my neighbor?" It hurts to know that these people, are real people, somewhere out there and hearing all these things said about them.
And it's frustrating to know that Christians don't seem to realize that we're doing it too. Worse, they don't seem to realize that we shouldn't be doing it too.

Being rich and famous doesn't exempt you from the love of God. Let's stop allowing it to exempt us from loving them as God would. We need a change.

And the thing is, changing how we talk about these people we don't even know won't effect those rich celebrities all that much. But do you know who it will effect? It'll affect your co-workers and friends who notice that you didn't laugh at the Kanye joke they just told. They'll notice that you tend to look sad when Paris Hilton or Brittney Spears becomes the butt of a joke. They'll notice you don't seem to think the same way they do.

By gum, they might even think you're strange.

And finally, and happily, they'll be right.