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The reason Jesus was ridiculed and crucified was because he loved the wrong people
Oh that we may follow the examples of those who do likewise
In Loving Memory
Tamara "Tammy" Faye LaValley Bakker Messner
Favorite Scripture: And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are the called according to [his] purpose. Romans 8:28
In the midst of loads of people I noticed Tammy talking to a few singers after the program at a point when she wasn't bombarded by visitors. She was surprisingly approachable; right there on the upper levels of the stage she autographed my PTL Open Bible along with a few of the singers and took a moment to put her arm around me. Sleightly hesitant, as sincere as possible in a moment, while pointing her finger she give me her full attention and said "God Loves You Honey" and "You Can Make It!" (their theme slogan). That Bible became thoroughly worn over the years and visited every church, crusade, and Christian festival with me; not because of where it came from but because it was the best study Bible I've ever had.
My family and I weren't anything special, we weren't big contributors, nor did we have anything to offer that would have helped increase their ministry or ego. They weren't like that then or any of the times I visited Heritage USA over the next several years. Thousands of people throughout the park would always smile, sometimes shake hands and even give a loving, faith-filled hug just walking around the roads and trails. When you entered the area you might have felt sort of out-of-place because of being so use to grim frowns and emotionless facial expressions in our every-day lives. But by the time you walked around a little, or entered the areas where people gathered, or just sat and watched other visitors for a while; you knew you belonged there and could've lived there just because everyone wanted to lift your spirits and no one was interested in judging or bringing you down. You knew that if it could be this good on earth then heaven's wonderland couldn't be comprehended, though it's fun to try.
Over the years Tammy showed love to the unlovable, encouragement to the discouraged, and stood up for the downtrodden in the most public ways available. She included the excluded, dined with the rejected, offered faith to those who seemed hopeless, and enjoyed the ranks of the rejected even though she didn't have to. In short: Tammy brought a little bit of heaven to the world, and now all of heaven has come to her. Praise God!
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I saw some of the so-called gold-plated fixtures and so-called lavish living and paid close, close, close attention to the news and reports of all the accusations over the years. I didn't know every detail of things going on behind the scenes as I saw up-close and personal in many other well-known and fairly unknown ministries. I didn't need to because I connected with their hearts. Not that I'm anything special, but a loving and faith-filled heart knows another loving and faith-filled heart and those who did their best to criticize and bring down this ministry, especially those involved with active emotional and physical demolition came up short. No one is perfect, and not unlike US dealings in the Mid-East, things aren't going to improve without patient, caring, and generous confidence in "Red-Letter" kind of faith. I wasn't a part of their lives, but here is a publication excerpt that I personally found to be true all along:
What they wanted to do was create a haven for the millions of average Christians like me and the thousands of ministers who weren't wealthy enough or didn't have such a place to go to be built up in the love of the Lord themselves. If they were tearing people down then there might be some rhyme or reason for a bit of the criticism endured; but they weren't , at all. Thank God that family still carries on the relatively new paradigm of Christian faith for ALL people. That's what Unidiversal Christian Faith is all about. Heritage USA, Tammy Faye, and the whole family had a part in inspiring this ministry.
Rev Robbie Ousley
UCF Founder, Pastor,
and Diversity Evangelist
www.unidiversal.com
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"Ask yourself: did I go far enough in expressing God’s grace."
From Audio: Tony Campolo speaks at the National Pastors Conference
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This page was last updated on: June 18, 2009
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March 7, 1942 - July 20, 2007
It was long before the "Big Barn", water park, and Grand Hotel. I was in my mid-teens and my family visited Heritage USA. There were log-cabins with a restaurant and visitors areas. The spirit of the place was obvious as strangers didn't seem like strangers at all. One restaurant cook offered and made a full breakfast for my family even though the restaurant wasn't even open yet. He didn't know us from Adam and wouldn't charge for the fantastic meal.
We got to watch a Passion Play that was like nothing we'd ever seen before. By the time Jesus disappeared into the starry sky over the outdoor amphitheater, I still don't know how they did that, we were in euphoria as much as the rest of the crowd. The following nights service was televised as we were amazed at how much it took to produce such a large-scale program with such small-scale staff and equipment. They were just trying to do their best to be the best they could be for Christ.
During the PTL shows, she provided a sentimental touch to stories and loved to sing. In a move that sharply distinguished her from other televangelists, she showed a more tolerant attitude when it came to homosexuals, and she featured people living with AIDS on PTL, urging her viewers to follow Christ and show sympathy and pray for the sick.
The PTL empire continued to grow under the Bakkers' leadership, but the concern about their opulent lifestyle grew as media reports of an air-conditioned dog house at their Tega Cay, South Carolina lakefront parsonage as well as gold-plated bathroom fixtures dominated newscasts in the 1980s. The Bakkers' home, owned by the ministry, was actually an older home built in the early 1970s and it was a few miles away from Heritage USA. Jim Bakker stated that the much-talked-about dog house was heated with an old heater to keep the dogs warm in the winter and the reported gold-plated fixtures were actually brass. The home was later sold by the ministry and burned to the ground not long thereafter. Jim Bakker wrote in his book I Was Wrong that he watched the home burn on live television while incarcerated.
Worthy of note is the Epilogue from the publishers of this book is the following:
"On July 22, 1996, shortly after Jim Bakker had completed the writing of this book, a federal jury ruled that PTL was not selling securities by offering Lifetime Partnerships at Heritage USA. The jury's ruling thus affirms what Jim Bakker has contended from the first day he was indicted and throughout this volume."
Wikipedia Excerpt
UCF honors those who promote the cause of Christ by helping stretch social boundaries with Christian faith for all people because in the underlying basis of beliefs Unidiversal Christian Faith can be found revealing God out of the box
COMMENTS RECEIVED
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Such a beautiful spirit, who came through the fire with a heart bigger than Texas.
Tammy Faye, you may have led more to the Lord than most and I look forward to the day I get to meet Jesus and then you.
Thursday June 18, 2009Brian Cordova Broken Arrow, OK______________________________________________________________________________________________
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