The Rich & Famous

Some of the Saddest Last Words Ever Spoken

Jamie Francis The Rich & Famous, Tragedy and Suffering

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“So much wasted time.” According to his daughter Katie, these were the last words uttered by former teen heartthrob David Cassidy. He succumbed to liver failure on November 21st, 2017. The news of his passing, as well as every person who dies, reminds us all that we are only here for a short time, and then we vanish. I know that sounds awfully morbid and depressing. But it’s true. We experience it close to home and when we read the news. And Scripture affirms it. “Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes” (James 4:14).

Yet, most of us try to forget about this sobering truth. It’s like we push it aside purposefully and think death won’t happen to us for a long time. We live sometimes with reckless abandon when it comes to our Christian faith, not applying ourselves to the very Word of God. We always think we will have another day to make something right that we have previously wronged. Our mindset if often warped. We think things like……..

I’ll call her sometime and try to work things out. I’m just too angry right now at what happened.

Oh, you know what, it’s his fault. he needs to reach out to me first.

I’ll start praying more when the new year rolls around.

When I don’t have so much work to do, I’ll start spending more time with my wife.

I’ll stop looking at porn soon. I just need to get my fix for a little while longer.

Get the picture? We should not play such dangerous games with God. Time is running shorter every moment that passes. God can take us at any given moment.

Now, it would be really easy for us to point the finger at David Cassidy. His alcohol abuse and legal problems were well known. And while we can see clearly as to why such a lifestyle would be considered wasting time, we don’t often take the log out of our own eye first. Cassidy’s last words should not make us judge him harshly, but ought to break our hearts. And it ought to make us think more soberly about our own failures and sinful patterns. At least Cassidy had the humility to recognize that he had indeed “wasted much time.” He had the fame, the girls, the alcohol, and everything else that Hollywood excess is known for. But it took organ failure and being surrounded by loved ones on his death bed, to bring him to the place of agonizing regret.

At the end of one’s life, what does all that ill-gotten pleasure matter? What does it matter if you have wasted your time? What does it matter if you had numerous hit singles? What does it matter if the illicit sex felt good, or the drugs gave you a nice high? What does it all matter when you failed to love your family? And what does it matter if you constantly put other things before Jesus Christ? I am not sure what all was going through David Cassidy’s mind before his death. But his final words ought to bring us Christians to our knees and pray that we would stop wasting time. There is a line in the famous poem by British missionary C.T. Studd that goes like this: ‘Tis one life, it will soon be past, Only what’s done for Christ will last.’

There is something more frightening than being on our death bed. And that is being on our death bed with regrets related to disobedience and wasted time. Time that could have been spent in the Word of God, praying, putting our sins to death, loving our spouses, and sharing the gospel. And what about spending time with church family and reconciling broken relationships? All too frequently we put these things on the shelf, supposedly waiting for a “better” time to deal with it. We foolishly assume that we will have time to take care of important things later in life. But folks, this is not Christianity. God does not give us “Time Outs” in our walk with Christ. He gives us commands to obey, and He doesn’t negotiate the time frame on when we start obeying them. The time is now. “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:15-16). So let us get busy doing things for Christ that will last. Let us get busy now, so that we don’t regret it later.

Our biggest problem is that we often resort to other more ‘comfortable’ things so we don’t have to deal with the hard stuff. We end up watching too much Netflix, commenting on too many posts, tweeting about anything and everything, and stressing over matters we cannot control. Do we really want to wait until we have just a few hours (or minutes) to live before we realize that we wasted so much time? Do we really want to wait until we have stage 4 cancer to become diligent about eternal matters? Do we really want to stay angry and frustrated about the past and things that we cannot change? Do we really want to grieve the Spirit and harbor anger toward a brother or sister in Christ? I think not.

Lying on a hospital bed, surrounded by family, David Cassidy wished he had done things differently. We all have choices to make everyday. We either destroy our lives, and others around us, by giving in to sin. Or, we redeem the time we have by living for God. I hope and pray that Cassidy’s last words would be a wake up call to Christians everywhere. I pray that we would stop wasting time, do the hard and obedient things, and store up rewards that are everlasting.

And for those of you who aren’t Christians, you need to look to the God-man Jesus Christ, who redeemed His time on earth by living perfectly in thought, word, and deed. He spent 6 hours hanging on a cross, bearing God’s wrath for sinners like you and me. And He didn’t waste a single second of time doing it. He died, and then He rose from the grave 3 days later. All of this was purposefully planned. I urge you to repent of your sins, and receive Christ by faith. Otherwise, you will just be wasting your time on earth, and storing up wrath for eternity. And God doesn’t waste time when He is inflicting His wrath on sinners in hell.

Our days are already marked out by God beforehand. Christians, don’t put off obedience to the commands of God. Do them now. None of us will be on our deathbed regretting that we shared the gospel with too many people, or that we agonized in prayer too often, or that we humbled ourselves and asked someone for forgiveness. No, what we will regret are the times we did not share the gospel, or that we spent fighting with other Christians, or that we held a grudge against our spouse. Instead, how about we do these things to redeem the time:

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry (Colossians 3:5).

And also “aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one” (1 Thessalonians 4:11-12).

And of course………..

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age (Matthew 28:19).

Just a few weeks ago in a Florida hospital, the teen idol who once sang “Daydreamer” could only dream he had more time. Not just more time to exist, but more time to truly live…….with good and noble purposes. God gives us one reserve of time. And He desires that we use it for His glory. Let us repent of time wasted and begin redeeming it to glorify His Name.

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Two Sad Legacies Buried Together

Jamie Francis The Rich & Famous

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“Spending eternity next to Marilyn Monroe is an opportunity too sweet to pass up,” Hef once quipped. And while this quote was probably spoken somewhat in jest, it gives many clues into his twisted, self-centered worldview. A worldview that believes women are placed on this earth to be objectified, exploited, and used to further the satisfaction and reputation of ungodly men.

No Glamour in Death

As news broke over the recent death of Hugh Hefner, there is one little known fact about his life that was made widely known rather quickly. According to numerous sources, the Playboy mogul purchased his own gravesite directly next to Marilyn Monroe in 1992 for the price of $75,000. Their remains will be interred side by side in Los Angeles at the Westwood Village Cemetery, the resting place of many historically famous names. One thing this tells us is that, even in thinking of his impending future death, Hugh Hefner could not break free of his idol. The idol to turn a woman’s outward sex appeal into the be-all and end-all of existence………..his existence. Even in death, he wanted her sex appeal to be linked with his legacy in some lasting way. A way which he believed would give his life ultimate meaning, even when he wasn’t alive to enjoy it any longer. Yes, Hefner used Monroe’s lifetime sex appeal to further his post-mortem reputation. In the eyes of others, he could still be seen as “Hef…..the ultimate ladies man.” This was one of his driving motivations in buying the grave lot to begin with. By purchasing a grave next to hers, Hef was using her beauty for almost the same reason he made her the first cover girl and centerfold of his infamous Playboy magazine. That reason: attention, pleasure, and adoration………..for himself. Indeed, this is a very deep, disturbing level of depravity. 

A Faulty Worldview

Hefner believed these things with all his heart. That is why he wanted Marilyn “next” to him in death. He was pulling teeth to make sure his worldview (of exploiting women for his benefit) would “fit” his situation when he actually died. Because if not, his worldview collapses into nothingness. If your worldview doesn’t give meaning after you die, then get rid of your worldview. It is phony. And you are deceived. Ultimately, I am certain that Hugh Hefner believed in an afterlife, but one devoid of all meaning. At some level, the Bible recognizes that everyone is aware of this thing called ‘forever and ever.” It is made clear in the Book of Ecclesiastes when the preacher declares, “He (God) has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.” (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

Idols Only Bring Destruction

There is something deeply evil- even satanic– about the opening quote at the beginning of this article. Notice that he used the word “eternity.” I believe that there is something more going on here than simply the ‘pleasant’ thought of being buried next to Marilyn Monroe. Hefner was so blinded by the enemy, and his own evil heart, that he was fooled into believing either one of two things. Either that he would be buried forever on this earth, next to Marilyn, in an unconscious state of being, with no end of the world ever coming. Or, as I suspect, he may have been saying that he believed that he and Marilyn would somehow, some way, spend eternity together…….consciously……sexually. And why wouldn’t he think this way? If you are dead in your sins, and you create an idol in your heart about how to live while you are on earth, then why would you not make an idol out of the afterlife too? Oh Mr. Hefner, what did you become?

A Deeply Troubled Beauty

There is a strange irony in all of this ‘being buried next to each other’ stuff. Both Hefner and Monroe were very lonely people. Lonely in very different ways, but lonely nonetheless. When most people think of Marilyn Monroe, they don’t imagine her, first and foremost, as a deeply troubled and unhappy woman. They remember her as smiley and carefree, standing over a subway grate in a beautiful white dress which was nearly blown over her head. They remember beach photos of her laughing and playing in the sand, again while wearing teeny, tiny outfits. And yes, they most certainly remember that magazine cover. In every instance, men ogled. Women were envious. These are the ways most of the rich and famous are remembered, especially if they died young and beautiful.

More Than Just Pretty

How sad that Marilyn was exploited instead of treasured. How sad that she was, for the most part, an object of lust and riches in the eyes of men. Yes, she made poor decisions. But where were the rescuers? Where were the real men? Why didn’t some young, chivalrous man run over and pull her dress back down to cover her fully-exposed legs? And did anyone ever warn Marilyn about having her naked self plastered all over a magazine circulated to millions of perverted men? Did anyone really care? Did anyone sacrifice for her? The men who saw her in Playboy and with her dress riding up did not care about her gasping, starving heart. They just wanted her body. For the most part, she will be remembered as a sexy blonde who appeared on the first cover of Playboy, made some decent movies, and ended up committing suicide. How sad it is to remember people without their struggles, emotional pain, and loneliness. Her face may have been really beautiful, but her life wasn’t. Folks, as beautiful as she was, there was more than meets the eye. Her face was the face of loneliness.

A Lonely Playboy?

But Hefner was lonely too. Yes guys, Hef was a lonely man. I imagine some men might read this and think I was smoking weed or something. No, completely sober I am (Yoda moment……sorry). But yes, he was lonely. His life was a series of jumping from one idol to another. Most of the things he desired were good things (or neutral things), in and of themselves. But as is the case with idolatry and the wicked heart, he took good things and made them ultimate things…….destroying many lives in the process. One of his many idols was money. Money which gave him more of a platform to exploit and use women. For it was his money which purchased his infamous “Playboy Mansion.” A place known for unspeakable debauchery and exploitation of women. And this same money also increased his desirability among the opposite sex, which ultimately didn’t help him in the least. You see how one idol fuels another idol. What a vicious cycle. Girls, sex, money, fame, reputation, mansions? What do all these things mean to him now? They all have one thing in common: they are things that cannot produce steadfast and eternal joy. And he knew it. No doubt about it. Hef was a lonely man.

A Modern Day Solomon

Hefner’s life sounds a lot like Solomon, the writer of Ecclesiastes, doesn’t it? The former King of Israel experienced many of the same pleasures as Hugh Hefner did, and it never completely satisfied him either. Their lives were strikingly similar, at least in Solomon’s early years. But Solomon learned from his folly, and wrote about what he learned. He passed it on through the written Word of God. Readers, pay close attention. Here is the some of the gold Solomon passed down……..

I amassed silver and gold for myself, and the treasure of kings and provinces. I acquired male and female singers, and a harem as well—the delights of a man’s heart. I became greater by far than anyone in Jerusalem before me. In all this my wisdom stayed with me. I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure. My heart took delight in all my labor, and this was the reward for all my toil. Yet when I surveyed all that my hands had done and what I had toiled to achieve, everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind; nothing was gained under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 2:8-11)

The Same, But Opposite

On the other hand, Marilyn was craving genuine attention and affection from men, and she never found the satisfaction she was looking for. Sadly, she sought escape in turning to prescription drugs. But satisfaction didn’t come from pills either. Ultimately, the pills led to her demise. But the drugs were simply the evidence that she was a tortured and lonely soul. Hefner was lonely because he didn’t want that which was real (love, stability, family), and therefore never searched for it. Marilyn was lonely because she did want that which was real. She just never found it. She wanted real feelings, real joy………….real love. It wasn’t about the sex for her. Not primarily anyway. Forget about the bikinis and the dress flying over her head. She was looking for something more ultimate than sex. Things like genuine affection. Love. Good and natural desires for sure. But when we expect humans to ultimately and always fulfill those desires, they will disappoint us. And we become disillusioned. Again, what loneliness this is! How sad and desperate she must have been. The only One who can satisfy us with infinite love, joy, and satisfaction is Jesus Christ. His love is eternal. I hope Marilyn found this out before the pills became too much for her body to handle.

How These Things Should Affect Us

Christian, we ought to be so thankful everyday that we never have to be lonely. Yes. we may feel like we are sometimes. But God still says to us, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). Let us take comfort, and rejoice in that precious truth. And when we see others struggling mightily to replace their loneliness with idolatry, let us reach out to them with the precious gospel of Jesus Christ. I can only hope that someone did that for Hugh Hefner in his final days. I can only hope that God’s Holy Spirit gave Hugh Hefner and Marilyn Monroe a new heart before they died. And if that were the case, neither one would be searching for happiness in sex, money, fame, or emotional affirmation. None of that “striving after the wind” anymore. They would be where Christ is, wondering why they ever searched for ultimate joy in the temporary, finite things of the earth. God help us to minister to the hurting people of our day and age. God help us to point them to the hope of the gospel!

Conclusion of the Matter

After searching for ultimate fulfillment in just about everything except God Himself, Solomon wrote these famous words:

Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the duty of all mankind. (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

And C.S. Lewis once said………

If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.

Being buried next to a sex symbol like Marilyn Monroe adds a final, disturbing notch to Hefner’s name and legacy (a very sad legacy). And not only that, it adds insult to injury for a woman who struggled deeply with the pain of loneliness. We Americans have defined “beautiful, successful life” in all the wrong ways.

I know that both Hugh and Marilyn are in another world right now. I just hope it is the world where God is pleased to look upon them as His children. I do not take any pleasure in the thought that either, or both, of them could be under God’s wrath for eternity. But if they died the same way they lived, searching for and clinging to idols that cannot satisfy, then hell is where they would be. Sad, terrifying thought.


Dear children, keep yourselves from idols. (1 John 5:21)

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Your likes or comments are always appreciated! I will do my best to respond to each one. And if you enjoy my posts, I wouldn’t mind an extra subscriber either. (-:  God bless you, and thanks for stopping by!  – Jamie

Dear Scarlett Johansson, I Beg You From Inside the Womb

Jamie Francis Abortion, Poetry, The Rich & Famous

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Dear Ms. Scarlett,

You don’t know me, but I have heard of you. I think you have a really pretty name, a name I would love to have, a name I would love to keep,
But guess what? Babies like me don’t get to have a name, even though I am a person made in God’s image, a human being, truly unique.
And I am a baby girl, just like you once were, but now someone is coming to hurt me, and no one hears me when I cry,
Oh Ms. Scarlett, won’t you speak up for me? Won’t you stop them? Won’t you at least try?

I hear you gave a famous speech recently, fighting for rights that are being denied,
It must have been great, it must have been powerful, for I hear many people even cried.
I was wishing real hard that you were fighting for babies like me, but then I found out that the lady with a really pretty name,
She was not fighting for me, she was fighting for those who are trying to kill me, please tell me that you were just playing a silly game.

There isn’t much time, they are coming for me, I hear them walking into the room,
Ms. Scarlett, was I bad or something? What did I do? Why should I meet my doom?
I am in a place just like you once were, inside my mommy where it’s supposed to be safe to stay,
But now I’m scared in here; but it wasn’t scary for you. Oh, Ms. Scareltt, I don’t wanna die, would you please pray?

I hear them saying things to mommy, horrible things they are gonna do to my organs and my bone,
Oh, Ms. Scarlett, please make another speech, and tell the scary people to please leave me alone.
Mommy told them that some man did something bad to her body, on the day I got made,
Now they are going to do something even worse to me, they don’t care about either of us; the scary people got paid.

Many people are telling mommy that it’ll be better if she doesn’t have to worry about me anymore,
They told her that, if I live, I would just be a nuisance, a reminder of a bad memory, an unpleasant chore.
I heard my mommy talking to these people about that speech you made, she said it’s the reason she brought me to the scary place today,
She said you told everyone that this place is “safe” and “gentle”, and I wondered how that could possibly be?! Ms. Scarlett, your silly game I don’t want to play.

I wish that man didn’t do those bad things to mommy, I wish he wouldn’t have been so mean and full of hate,
I bet she was very afraid when he did that bad stuff; it wasn’t her fault, she only wanted to wait.
But it wasn’t my fault either, and now the scary people are going to murder me. And you know what? They won’t even bury me in a tomb.
Oh Ms. Scarlett, please hear me! Please! There is no time to spare. Listen to God’s voice who said, “For You formed my inward parts; You knitted me together in my mother’s womb.”

Yes, lady with a really pretty name, don’t you know that Jesus Christ put me together in my mother’s womb?
And now, because of your speech, the scary people are going to suck my insides out with a vacuum!
Don’t let them do this, I beg you! Make them stop being scary. Make them go away. Make them flee!
Oh Ms. Scarlett, won’t you help me?! Won’t you stop them?! Won’t you speak up for me?!

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