Kathie Lee Gifford Would ‘Be in an Insane Asylum’ Without Faith
By Movieguide® Contributor
Kathie Lee Gifford says she “never would have made it” through her life’s hardest times without her faith.
“I’d be in an insane asylum without Jesus,” she told Fox News. “I’ve been through a lot of crappy stuff in my life. I’ve been blessed beyond belief as well. But I’ve had a lot of things that ended up being very public too, that would have put me away for a long time and done a lot of damage to my family, to my everything.”
Gifford continued, “I was already holding Jesus’ hand. When you go through the kinds of things that I went through in the last, you know, 20 years, you just cling. You just cling tighter. You’re already there. You already have them. And I know people always talk about, you know, people coming to God in a foxhole. Fine. Whenever you come to God, it’s a good thing. The better thing is to come to know him early in your life and then cling to him for their whole life.”
She also spoke about how important it is to her to study the Bible, saying, “There are so many terrible translations of the Bible. And if you’re studying a terrible translation, you’re not going to learn anything that’s going to build you up in your faith or give you power in your life. And so many of the churches around are — that’s what they’re doing. They live on it.
“You can’t grow unless you feast. And then the scripture talks about how my people perish for lack of knowledge. And I was perishing,” Gifford concluded.
That desire to study is what led her to write her latest book, Herod and Mary: The True Story of the Tyrant King and the Mother of the Risen Savior.
“I learned so much about Herod that I came back, and I said to my son, I said, ‘Cody, get me every book there is on Herod,’” she shared. “If Jesus is the greatest story ever told, Herod is one of the greatest stories never, ever told.”
Her book “reveals deep insight to how Herod came to power, how corruption and an ancient evil threatened the stability of a nation, and how a teenage Mary was called to traverse these obstacles to bring the Savior, Jesus, our living hope, into the world,” per a synopsis of the book.
“My initial fascination with Herod and Mary started in 2012 when I went on my very first rabbinical trip to the Holy Land,” Gifford told Crosswalk. “A brilliant teacher named Ray Vander Lon taught me so much about the Bible and how important it is to go to the source material, which is the original language. A brand-new fire started in me to want to know more about God’s word, which led me to write the book.”
Movieguide® previously reported on Herod and Mary:
Giffords newest book, Herod and Mary: The True Story of the Tyrant King and the Mother of the Risen Savior, released yesterday.
A synopsis of the book reads:
Delve into the complex history of Herod the Great—his rise to power and ultimate fall in pursuit to be the “King of the Jews.” Under a flourishing yet tumultuous background of Jerusalem, consider Mary of Nazareth’s place under Herod’s rule and the promise of a Messiah to free her people. Kathie Lee Gifford with Bryan M. Litfin, Ph.D. deftly weave a truthful historical narrative full of accurate details and sweeping prose that ushers in the true King and glorifies God’s powerful plan to bring a savior into the world through unlikely means. A coda between the authors, full of honest revelation and insightful meaning, follows each chapter for added in-depth reading.
Gifford shared a trailer for the book on her Instagram account where she explained what she wants it to achieve.
“My hope when you read this book is that you are able to dive into the fascinating, intertwined lives of King Herod and Mary, the Mother of Jesus,” she wrote. “You’ll follow Herod’s tumultuous journey from boyhood dreams to his dark, oppressive reign, and witness Mary’s incredible faith and courage as she brings the light of the world into existence.”
- Content: +4Share:
- Content: +4