I recently had the pleasure of attending the movie Respect based on the life of the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin.  I have always loved her music and admired her talent.  Her voice control and interpretation of the songs she sang were impressive.  I did not know much about her life before seeing the show, but I did know she started singing in a church where her father was the minister.  He encouraged her to use her talents to praise God, but he was not always the best father and role model and certainly lived by the motto “Do as I say and not as I do”.  In Aretha’s young life, her family was surrounded by such people as Etta James and Dion              Washington as well as Martin Luther King, Jr. who were often house guests.

Aretha’s life was difficult from a young age, enduring sexual assault, teenage pregnancy as a result of this assault and a problem with substance abuse.  At times she was able to put away the alcohol, but her trials as a young teenager followed her and made it difficult for her to navigate her life in a positive way.  She associated herself with men who tried and usually successfully controlled her personal life and her career until she could no longer function.

On the outside, Aretha seemed to have it all.  She was a successful performer with many number one hits, wore beautiful clothes and had a beautiful home and lots of money, but something was missing and her substance abuse began to overtake her.  Her family tried to intervene, but by this time she was tired of people telling her what to do.  While performing one night, she finally collapsed on stage and everything came to a head.

You probably wonder why I write about Aretha Franklin in this blog. Well, it was at this time she had to confront the “demons” of her past that haunted her.  At the lowest time in her life, she prayed for help and got the answer she needed. She decided to record a gospel album against her producer’s wishes because it would not make money.  She told all of them she needed to return to her roots and to the Lord.  To me, the most important line in the movie came from the organist and old family friend from her father’s church.  He told her she would never be okay until she faced her demons and gave them over to God.  Until she did that, they would continue to chase her and control her life. 

Of course, the movie didn’t show the difficult process she went through to get her life back together, but she ultimately did with God’s help. Her gospel album was her most successful one ever. She was deeply affected by the death of her family friend and mentor, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and went on to be a leader for civil rights, using her strong foundation in God’s love to do good works.  God’s unconditional love brought the Queen of Soul back to Him, He shouldered her demons and freed Aretha to be the best version of herself.

He will do the same for us if we only ask and turn our problems over to Him.  This is his promise to us.

Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall fine; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh is shall be opened.  Matthew 7:7-8 KJV

Patty