I’ve dealt with two diseases for most of my life: multiple hereditary exostoses (MHE) and a porn addiction. To save you a Google search, here’s a quick explanation of MHE: I basically walk around with tumors all over my body, ready to throw at me the worst pain ever whenever they feel like they're having a bad day. And trust me, they have A LOT of bad days.
Read MoreAmerican Christian culture can tend to be just as guilty as the secular culture when it comes to viewing women as nothing more than sexual objects. When we use the Christianese term “modesty” incorrectly, we can make it a dangerous concept.
Read MoreI recently chatted with my friend Alyssa, who is a passionate storyteller. Seeing God move in a powerful way in the church is one of her greatest desires. Alyssa hopes to one day use her passion for screenwriting, producing and editing to help rejuvenate the Christian Film industry.
In this film analysis, Alyssa and I discuss doubt building faith in Risen, starring Joseph Fiennes and Tom Felton. This conversation has spoilers, but hopefully you've already seen the movie. If not, it comes out on DVD May 24th. Pre-order here.
Read MoreFor those of you who know me, you know I have an extremely low tolerance--allergy if you will—towards music and film stamped with the “Christian” title. Most Christian art is at best, bland, and at worst, insensitive in the way it glosses over the depth of human emotion.
With that said, I am about to unabashedly give due praise to the new film, Risen, starring Joseph Fiennes (Shakespeare in Love, Luther) and Tom Felton (Harry Potterfilms). Produced by Affirm Films, a division of Sony Pictures, it is a whodunit detective story in which a first-century Roman soldier Clavius (Fiennes) is assigned by Pontius Pilate (Peter Firth) to locate the missing body of the recently crucified Jesus Christ, or Yeshua, as he is referred to in the film (Cliff Curtis of AMC's Fear the Walking Dead). Sitting in the theater, I was waiting for the shoe to drop for a single cheesy / unrealistic moment. It never came.
Read MoreHow does Rapper Lecrae manage to make time for all these projects? This morning, Lecrae surprised his fans with a new mixtape, 'Church Clothes 3' produced by S1 who has worked with the likes of Kanye West & Jay-Z. The project also features an eclectic mix of both "secular" hip hop artist and Christian artist collaborations, including E-40, N'Dambi, Propaganda, John Givez, JGivens, Jackie Hill Perry and Lecrae's labelmate KB.
Read MoreThe Biebs made headlines again recently--thankfully with some positive news. He surprised fans and haters alike with a surprisingly emotional stripped-down piano rendition of his EDM-drenched single 'Sorry' off his latest album Purpose. (He later transitioned into a full-blown performance with the original track and tons of dancers, but the acoustic intro is what I may or may not have played on repeat 10x in a row.)
Read MoreNamed the 2015 NBA MVP, Steph Curry has unabashedly used his platform to share his Christian faith and draw others to God. This weekend, his wife, Ayesha Curry became a trending topic herself with what seemed like a harmless and common-sense tweet about modesty.
Read MoreI was honored to interview Mari Madrid (choreographer, dancer, creative and wife to Keone) who is a strong woman of God with a beautiful heart. She has a passionate desire to use her craft to create beauty and draw others to God.
Read MoreIn case you hadn't heard yet, it seems Justin Bieber has really turned over a new leaf. Don't believe me? Check out the 11 nuggets of wisdom about life, love and God that Justin dropped on us in the recent Complex Magazine interview.
Read MoreBy Moses Sanchez
We stood silently on our bed. The silence was a mere facade, concealing the war of emotions weighing on my spirit. I fumbled through my wording, trying my best to catch them before they left my lips, but it was too late. Only three weeks into my marriage, I had made my wife Marilette cry. With tears, she spoke, “So are you saying this is my fault?” I stood silent for a few seconds and then said, “Yes.”
Read MoreI recently had the honor of interviewing the beautiful and talented musician, Moriah Peters. We talked purity, modesty, marriage, and listening to God’s voice. I was so blessed to find a kindred spirit in her, since we share a deep passion to inspire young people to be deeply committed to Jesus Christ. She released her first music video TODAY for her single “Brave.” Be sure to check it out and share.
Read MoreIn a recent interview at The Rock church in San Diego, California, Wilson, NFL player for the Seattle Seahawks, opened up about his relationship with R&B singer Ciara.
“She was on tour; she was traveling, and I was looking at her in the mirror, I was sitting in the dressing room, she was getting ready to go…and she was sitting there, and God spoke to me and said, ‘I need you to lead her,’” Wilson recalled. “And I was like, ‘Really, right now?’…And he goes, ‘No, I want you and need you to lead her.’ So I told her right then and there, ‘What would you do if we took all of that extra stuff off the table and just did it Jesus’ way?’…And she was relieved.”
Read MoreClayton and Keeley are my good friends and a married couple whom I admire greatly. Both are working models and actors based in New York City, who also happen to be Christians. It is an incredible privilege to know such strong followers of Christ who take seriously their mission to be God’s salt and light in the entertainment industry. If you missed Part 1 and Part 2 of their interview, be sure to read that here and here. This is Part 3, where they share with me how being married has expanded their influence, why they thrive in New York City and how we can be praying for them and the entertainment industry.
Read MoreClayton and Keeley are my good friends and a married couple whom I admire greatly. Both are working models and actors based in New York City, who also happen to be Christians. It is an incredible privilege to know such strong followers of Christ who take seriously their mission to be God’s salt and light in the entertainment industry. If you missed Part 1 of their interview, be sure to read that here. This is Part 2, where they share with me how they practically minister to their cast and crew on set, how God is moving in Hollywood, and their advice to aspiring Christian actors.
Read MoreClayton and Keeley are my good friends and a married couple whom I admire greatly. Both are working models and actors based in New York City, who happen to be Christians. It is an incredible privilege to know such strong followers of Christ who take seriously their mission to be God’s salt and light in the entertainment industry. In Part 1 of their interview, they share with me how they met, how they choose roles, and how they deal with critics, especially in the Christian community.
Read More(WARNING: May contain plot spoilers from ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’)
Dear God,
I listened to Britt Nicole’s “Still That Girl” and I couldn’t help but break down. It’s like she wrote that song for me. I totally relate to how “dreams may change” and “plans may fail,” and how once upon a time, Britt believed she could be the girl “shining in the dark,“ the bright-eyed girl who truly believed she could change the world.
I’m thinking about ‘Avengers: Age of Ultron’ and its different portrayals of femininity.
Read MoreDear Friend,
I’m told you are a homosexual. Is it gay? Is it practicing homosexuality? Is it you’ve switched sides? I don’t even know how to say it.
First, I need to apologize. We, your brothers and sisters in Christ, have presented you with a religion with standards that we can’t possibly live up to. Instead of trying to fix you from the outside in, we should have been introducing you to a Person.
To quote one of my favorite theological books, The Jesus Storybook Bible, “Now, some people think the Bible is a book of rules, telling you what you should and shouldn’t do. The Bible certainly does have some rules in it. They show you how life works best. But the Bible isn’t mainly about you and what you should be doing. It’s about God and what he has done.”
Read MoreLiam Neeson is an interesting actor. For one, Schindler’s List was released back in 1993, and he honestly doesn’t look much older now than he did when he acted in that movie over 20 years ago. Second, other than Star Wars:The Phantom Menace and Batman Begins (which I wouldn’t really label as purely action films), Liam didn’t become an action movie star until the original Taken came out in 2008. That’s right—the man became an action film star at the age of 56! That’s incredible! I’m only 38 years old, and I’ve already got issues with sciatica.
But I mentioned Taken, and that movie really was the turning point for Liam Neeson. It propelled him into another category altogether in the eyes of the movie-goer, making him both kick-butt cool, and intensely trustworthy. Let me explain what I mean.
Read MoreI love maple seeds. When God designed them, I think He was just having fun. They come with their own little helicopter wing and when you scoop up a bunch and throw them up in the air, they spin and float all over the place with a big wink from God. But what do they have to do with the Word of God and Christmas?
Read More
Welcome! I’m Marilette, a New Yorker passionate about finding the connections between God, relationships, and pop culture. I’m wife to Moses, a homeschooling mom to five young children, and a full-time missionary with FamilyLife. Since I was diagnosed with Bipolar 1 in 2020, I have shared openly about my mental health journey.
I believe there is more to the Christian life than hypocrisy and more to pop culture than shallow art. I frequently contribute to ThinkChristian, an online magazine publishing pop culture commentary from a Christian worldview.
I co-founded an online apparel company to raise awareness for mental health issues in the church and communities of color.
Follow my parenting and homeschooling journey on Instagram at @bigcitybigfamily.
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