During this season of Lent, I am always interested to hear what some of my friends have given up. Several of them gave up dessert. That was awkward during my birthday this past weekend, when I had to eat cake and ice cream more than once in front of them. But one dear friend of mine didn’t give up food or Cokes or anything she could put in her body. She gave up negativity for Lent. Which is interesting, considering she’s one of the most positive, upbeat people I know. And actually, she has a few reasons to be negative in this season of life: her husband, an Air Force pilot, is being deployed and is currently stationed far away from their current home in Minot, North Dakota. She has a 15-month old and gets to be a single mom for the time being. And she loves warm weather, so North Dakota is not her cup of tea. And just to top it off, she’s in school, studying to be a nurse practitioner.
When I saw her last weekend, she was coming off a two-day roadtrip during which she’d loaded her baby and as many possessions as would fit into her car and headed down from North Dakota to Mississippi to live with her parents for awhile during her husband’s deployment. Her mother-in-law had flown in to help and come along for the ride. My friend was likely tired—mentally, emotionally, and physically. Yet she still summoned the strength to bite her tongue when the temptation to be negative struck. It was quite convicting to watch her adeptly change the subject that we were (negatively) discussing. And this happened more than once in the 24 hours we were together.
It’s so easy to get caught up in the negative side of things. After all, life rarely goes as we plan. But whether or not you give things up for Lent, will you consider checking yourself before those negative words come out of your mouth? I’m planning to . . . and not just until Easter. I want it to be a new way of life for me.
So, with that being said, I’m going to try to positively (but truthfully!) review some of the music on the Top 10 charts this week.
Top 10 in the Billboard Hot 100
There are not many positive things I can say about the songs that are most downloaded and played on the radio these days. (Philippians 4:8 just keeps coming to mind for some reason… 
) But here they are:
1. “E.T.” by Katy Perry, feat. Kanye West
2. “S&M” by Rihanna
3. “Just Can’t Get Enough” by The Black Eyed Peas
4. “F**k You (Forget You)” by Cee Lo Green
5. “Born This Way” by Lady Gaga
6. “Look At Me Now” by Chris Brown feat. Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes
7. “Down on Me” by Jeremih feat. 50 Cent
8. “On the Floor” by Jennifer Lopez feat. Pitbull
9. “F**kin’ Perfect” by P!nk
10. “Rolling in the Deep” by Adele (I love this song! So retro, pretty, and fun to sing along with. Although, there is some disagreement as to one word in the lyrics that can be interpreted as a curse word. But others think it’s “ship” or “sheet.”)
Let’s all go to the movies
If you’re looking to go to the movies this weekend, you might want to check out Soul Surfer. The story of Bethany Hamilton, a teenage surfer who lost her arm in a shark attack, comes from a Christian film company and has received lots of kudos from everyone who’s seen it. Starring Carrie Underwood, Helen Hunt, Dennis Quaid, and AnnaSophia Robb, it’s rated PG and officially opens tomorrow, Friday, April 8.
Here’s what’s in the top 10 for movies right now:
1. Hop [PG]: From the creators of Despicable Me (which was hilarious!), this is a story about the Easter Bunny’s teenage son who wants to be in a band.
2. Source Code [PG-13]. This one looks fascinating to me. It’s an action thriller centered on a soldier who wakes up in the body of an unknown man and discovers he's part of a mission to find the bomber of a commuter train. Supposedly, it’s got action, mystery, and love all rolled up into one intense movie.
3. Insidious [PG-13]: I don’t like scary movies, but apparently this one is quite original. It’s about a family trying to prevent evil spirits from trapping their comatose child in a realm called The Further. (That’s not biblical at all…)
4. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules [PG]: Brothers are forced to bond in this flick.
5. Limitless [PG-13]
6. The Lincoln Lawyer [R]
7. Sucker Punch [PG-13]
8. Rango [PG]
9. Paul [R]
10. Battle: Los Angeles [PG-13]
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