It's understandably thrilling to discover that one of your heroes shares your worldview. That's why we Christians can't contain our excitement when we find out that a high profile celebrity is 'one of us' too, and especially when they begin to talk about their faith. There are many examples of famous Christians doing just that, some of which have been explored on this site (such as our articles about Bear Grylls, Bono, Denzel Washington and more).
But perhaps there's one figure who usurps even those luminaries in terms of heroic influence. A man who made jewellery a truly unisex business; a man who could overcome any evil without the need to ever get on no plane. I'm talking of course about Lawrence Tureaud, more commonly known to you and I as Mr T. Still one of the most recognisable cult figures on the planet, the legendary son of a preacher speaks often and openly about his faith, and it's usually both inspiring and entertaining. Here are just a few soundbites from Clubber Lang himself...
On the Mr T Christian lifestyle
"My mother told me, 'Son, nobody else but God knows.' And that's what I'm about – reaching out to the people, crying with them, giving them hope. Visiting the hospital, visiting the kids with cancer, visiting the adults, and stuff like that. That's what I do.
"As a Christian you forgive and you feed the hungry, and clothe the naked, and you visit the sick, and comfort the lonely. If I'm a true follower of my lord and saviour Jesus Christ, I got to do the things you're supposed to be doing. You just can't say, 'I believe in Jesus' and then don't forgive somebody or hold a grudge against somebody. Don't get me wrong – if somebody jumps me I'm gonna fight, but I don't send out hate vibes if I don't like that person or the way that they dress. That's negative energy. Then there's a contradiction to the God I serve, the God of love. He forgave me, and I should do good to the people who cross me."
- From an interview with Beliefnet
On being a "mama's boy"
"My mother raised me with God. We were poor financially, but we were rich spiritually... My mother never cursed at home; my father never cursed at home, my father didn't drink. Even though we were poor, we would say a blessing over the table. So that's who I am... I always say I'm one of the toughest mama's boys you're ever gonna meet. And I say that to send a message to all the young thugs out there; that it's nothing to be ashamed of to say you love your mother."
- From an interview with TBN's 'Praise The Lord' TV show
On his childhood as a preacher's son
"I was being trained because I wanted to be a preacher like my father. I wanted to talk about Moses, I wanted to talk about God... I wanted to talk about the apostles, the disciples and all that. I was baptised by my father when I was four years old. I used to carry my father's Bible and put it on the pulpit so he could preach."
- From an interview with HuffPost Live
On forgiveness, and learning from Christ
"If God has touched me, I've got to touch somebody else. God has forgiven me, so I've got to forgive the people who did me wrong. If Jesus can forgive all things – with the crown of thorns upon his head on the cross... I say with all the things people done, nobody [has] crucified me, nobody put nails in my hands, in my palm, or a spear in my side, or a crown [of thorns] on my head. If Jesus forgives, then I've got to forgive. If I don't forgive, I'm not a follower. If I'm not kind, if I don't share, I'm not a follower, I'm a liar. I can't be greedy."
- From an interview with Beliefnet
On why he stopped wearing gold chains after Hurricane Katrina in 2005
"As a Christian, when I saw other people lose their lives and their land and property... I felt that it would be a sin before God for me to continue wearing my gold. I felt it would be unnecessary and disrespectful to the people who lost everything, so I stopped wearing my gold."
As reported by Sky News
On why he turned down a million dollars because of his faith
"They offered me almost a million dollars to do a beer commercial in Japan. I said, 'I won't do it.' First, it was $700,000 and then they moved the price up. Why [did I turn it down]? Because of what I stand on."
- As reported by FaithIt
On how his faith sustained him in his battle against cancer
"[I realised] How I am letting my father, Re. N.B. Tureaud, down by doubting the power of God. He warned us that it would get rough, and hard... but not too hard for God. I can feel my faith returning; now, I can put up a good fight against cancer, if not beat it! My fame couldn't save me! My gold, my money couldn't stop cancer from appearing on my body. If they can't save me, then I don't need them."
- From an interview with Coping with Cancer magazine (before he was given the all-clear)
And on Twitter...
Martin Saunders is a Contributing Editor for Christian Today and the Deputy CEO of Youthscape. You can follow him on Twitter: @martinsaunders
