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Envy. It’s insidious. Pervasive. Corrosive. In the age of materialism and social media, it’s difficult not to feel the creep of this increasing and ever-present temptation. Our guest, a Pastor and teacher, diagnoses the problem of this pervasive sin. He uses biblical stories with often-overlooked ties to envy that expose and demonstrate the seriousness and harm caused by our unexamined motives. When envy is allowed to reside unchecked in our hearts, there are internal, relational, and societal costs. But we are not left to despair. Instead, we are invited to know a kind and gracious Father who calls us to identify and assault this enemy.
Today we learn how to pray for those whom God has called into the entertainment industry – the largest group of influencers in the world. Then, it should not surprise us when we see God use the common things of life--snow, streetlights, a rented suit, a mop--to accomplish the incredible. But it should inspire us. From the depths of near obscurity at the turn of the last century, a young African American man rose to fame through those ordinary things--listening intently out in the snow as a child to beautiful music in an elegant hall, listening to his grandfather sing the old slave songs as he lit the streetlamps, sweating through a rented suit during an audition for a musical scholarship, a chance meeting with a musical legend as he was mopping the halls of his school. Through the seemingly insignificant pieces of life, God led Harry T. Burleigh along the path to fame and through him preserved the songs that would form the basis of a uniquely American music.
As Founding Director of Hollywood Prayer Network, Karen speaks and teaches around the country on how people of faith can pray for the people in the entertainment industry. She is also a published co-author of two books: How to Talk About Jesus Without Freaking Out and The Day I Met God. Aside from her leadership at HPN, Karen is Co-Founder and Producer for JC Productions, an independent TV and music production company. She has had extensive experience producing TV specials, documentaries and children's programming. Karen is a member of the Producers Guild of America, a founding member of PREMISE, and a board member of the Biola University Entertainment Task Force. She is a graduate of USC with a BA in Producing.