I wasn’t going to say anything about Whitney Houston’s death because there simply wasn’t much I could say that hadn’t already been said or posted as a video. And unfortunately death has become so familiar to me over the last few years that it really doesn’t faze me anymore. I didn’t really care to watch all of the reports about her death and suspected causes because many of them were outlandish and the media spins stories to show the worst in people. Granted no one is perfect but it seems that at least in death that they could respect the family of the deceased, but then again positive news rarely makes ratings. I finally watched the 20/20 special about Whitney Houston and as other media outlets had done they discussed more of the bad than the good of Whitney Houston’s life. They ended the show with BeBe Winans and Kelly Price discussing her faith and her love of the Lord. The special also had snippets of the infamous “crack is wack” interview with Diane Sawyer and at a later point in the interview Diane Sawyer asked Whitney what she wanted people to pray for and Whitney responds:
Houston: Don't pray about the drugs. Leave the drugs alone.
Sawyer: Why? Why?
Houston: Don't, don't, pray for me, as a person, for my soul, that I'm stronger. And man, I don't care what anybody else says or did or what they claimed I was, I know I'm a child of God, and I know He loves me. Jesus loves me, this I know. Yeah.
I immediately realized that the constant in Whitney Houston’s life was Jesus. Even in her seemingly disheveled state during that interview she acknowledged that Jesus loved her. Even when she had admitted that she had stumbled along the way, she knew that Jesus was still with her. I can hear in some of her songs, just behind her voice or a look in her eyes, that He was always with her and if she knew nothing else she knew for sure that Jesus loved her. When her fans may have turned their backs on her, she knew Jesus was still with her. I believe that is how she always bounced back, by acknowledging her source.
This interview with Kim Burrell also confirmed what I realized about Whitney Houston and it brought me comfort to know that she had other believers in her corner that were always praying and interceding for her, even when the world had turned their backs on her because of her indiscretions. I think Whitney Houston had what we all need and hope to have, a strong prayer force surrounding us even when we don’t realize we need we need it at the moment.
My favorite Whitney Houston song is “The Greatest Love of All” but I will always remember her for her unrelenting belief that Jesus loved her despite what she ever did or what other people thought of her at her worst moments. He was always her source. Although her final performance, unbeknownst to her, was probably not her best vocal performance but was appropriate to her beliefs and a reminder to me that despite anything else “Jesus Loves Me”.
