I have to make a confession: I am a huge fan of the show, “American Idol.” I just find it so fascinating that I taped every episode just to make sure I didn’t miss it.
For those of you who don’t watch much TV (and I am sure that your brains are much better because of it), “American Idol” is a modern version of “Star Search,” where amateur singers from across the US vie to win a lucrative recording contract and hopefully, a ticket to stardom.
One reason I think I’m so riveted to the show is because it’s reality TV. These are real men and women laying all their hopes and dreams on the line in front of 30 million people a week.
However, there was one episode that was more “real” than I think the producers of the show ever imagined.
A contestant named Mandisa was hailed as a stand-out among all the female singers. She has an incredibly strong voice, so much so that she can make difficult songs appear effortless. But there’s another thing you notice about her, and this is the fact that she’s quite overweight.
At Mandisa’s first audition, Simon Cowell, the nefarious judge who pulls no punches, made an inappropriate comment to her about her weight. A few weeks later Mandisa came before the judges to see if she’d made the cut for the final twelve women. Before the judges had a chance to tell her whether or not she made it, she announced that she needed to say something. She addressed herself to Cowell and uttered some of the most startling and amazing words I have ever heard on television.
Mandisa said, “What I want to say to you is that, yes, you hurt me and I cried and it was painful, it really was. But I want you to know that I’ve forgiven you and that you don’t need someone to apologize in order to forgive somebody.” She continued, “I figure that if Jesus could die so that all of my wrongs could be forgiven, I can certainly extend that same grace to you.”
Wow! Now that is reality television, not the dramatized “reality” TV the producers want you to see with all the fights and tension. This is reality as God intended it, full of forgiveness and honesty and love.
For the reality is that we’ve been forgiven for EVERYTHING we have done and therefore, have no grounds for holding anything against others, as if we were perfect. If only all of television could be that real.
(Monte Johnston is the pastor of Clayton Presbyterian Church. You can contact him at 
claytonpc.com