So, some of you may have heard the hubbub about famous gospel artist, Kirk Franklin, being recorded cursing his son out. Or rather, cussing his son out. It was a big deal for some. Why? Because some Christians get off on holding people to a standard they can't even meet, especially ones who represent the church.

Melodies from Heaven
Smile
Stomp
Jesus Is the Reason

If you've heard these songs, then you've heard of Kirk Franklin. And this short list doesn't even begin to represent the hundreds, maybe thousands of songs, that Kirk Franklin has written, produced, or co-produced. Let's be honest - the man is a musical genius when it comes to writing gospel or hip-hop oriented gospel music that either makes you cry in worship or jump up and jam. That's him. It's who he is, and its who we have always loved.

For the most part, Kirk stays out of the media. Only one instance comes to mind and that's in his interview with Oprah Winfrey, where he confessed to be addicted to porn at one point in his life. Of course, in judgemental church fashion, we blew it out proportion because how can someone so anointed struggle with his humanity? Kirk is awesome, amazing - his songs take you behind the spiritual veil. How could he struggle with porn??? Despite the chastisement of church people, Kirk went on to produce grammy-awarding winning albums suggesting that his open struggle was identifiable. Some people needed to know that even with an issue, God can still use you. It worked for him.

That fiasco was 16 years ago and from that point, Kirk hasn't been mentioned in a negative light, until a couple of weeks ago. Kirk was recorded threatening and cursing at his son, Kerrion Franklin. The reason Kirk is estranged from his son is unknown, but based on this recent event, I think I can guess. But the grand question is, why did Kirk behave the way he did on the recording? And I've got a couple of ideas:

1. No one can push you to your limit like your child I don't know Kirk personally, but as a mother to a toddler and an eleven year old, I understand. Children, regardless of the age, can push your buttons like none other; and considering that Kerrion is in his 30's, I am sure he pushed every button he could reach because he's grown. The part of the conversation that wasn't recorded was what Kerrion said to anger Kirk past his normal behavior. Not to mention, it was a set-up from the start. I call my mother everyday and I don't record any of our conversations, because they are private. I share personal things with her and she does the same. Why would I break that trust by recording her, especially if at some point she chose to act out of character? Kerrion was setting his father up. Maybe to prove a point or maybe to be a jerk. I don't know, but it wasn't cool.

2. Its a toxic relationship Mother, father, child, cousin, grandma, aunt - it doesn't matter. Some people are just toxic to be around and they cause you to become someone you're not. And try as you may to not allow their ways to get to you, they just do. Frankly, a person who does things just to get a rise out of you so they can present themselves as the victim is passive aggressive and borderline narcissistic. Toxic - Kirk should probably continue to stay away.

3. He's just a man My opinion of famous, Christian stars is they aren't allowed to travel their journey. So many people want them to be perfect. They can't fail because their failing is public and unforgiven because people have placed their hope in them. Its not fair. Perfection is a myth created by those who want to be the first to throw their stone. We all strive to be 100% ourselves. But on just the right day, or just the right situation, or just the right words, we can morph into a darker version of ourselves. Its the concept of the angel on the left side and the devil on the right side. We all strive to reconcile the theory, but its there nevertheless. To expect Kirk or any other christian, famous or not, to act outside of their known nature is ridiculous. And maybe we should stop acting like we are God.

Kirk posted an apology, which I quickly commented to tell him he didn't owe me or anyone an apology; and that situation was between him, his son, and God. The problem with talent like Kirk's is his fans put him on a pedestal, leaving a long distance for him to fall. I love his music, but I don't worship him because at the end of the day, he is just a man. A human, just like me and you. He deserves God's grace just like all of us do, despite the platform that he operates on. We have to be careful holding up an unbreakable banner that we dismantle behind closed doors. What would our conversations sound like if someone recorded us?

To Kirk, keep your head up; keep writing; and keep doing you. The finger-pointers just needed someone to take the limelight and you just happened to be there.