DREAMZ TEACHES US A LESSON IN FAITH IN SURVIVOR FIJI SEASON FINALE by Elaine Davenport (WEDNESDAY, MAY 16, 2007)

I'm a writer but I'm also an interpreter of the landscape. I know many faith people
watch little or no television, but I do selectively. I look for faith stories. Television doesn't intend for it to be that way, but sometimes it happens; especially in Reality shows. I won't watch many of them. However, I like watching Survivor.


When Survivor began it's new season, few people expected they would have a formerly homeless young Black man. He wasn't polished or refined but he sure was likable. He talked a lot and too much but we still kept liking him. We have this "thing" for the underdog. I never expected him to get to the end of the game. The pattern is that generally minorities get voted off right off the bat. Somehow, Dreamz made it.


There was a wild Season Finale on Survivor Fiji recently, the popular reality television show. I watched it looking for a faith story. I wasn't disappointed.



Dre Heard, (also known as DREAMZ) age twenty-five years old, had a tough life. He was homeless, was forced to drop out of high school and went back and got his GED. He was a popular underdog amongst many. My friend Anna Holmes always says, We're all going to face lessons but they don't all have to be hard. Dreamz faced a hard lesson in the Season Finale of Survivor Fiji last night.


The significant thing about this is that DREAMZ is reported to be a Christian.
The whole SURVIVOR situation forced him to take what I call: "The Faith Test."




SIDEBAR:
Earl Cole, age thirty-five wins Survivor Fiji. He is the first African American male to ever win. Every single jury member voted for Earl. This has never happened in the history of the show. Raised by a single mother, Earle quickly announced that he would share the money with his mom 50-50. It's safe to say, that if it were not for the faith test that DREAMZ had to take, Earl may not have won.



HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED:

In one of the competitions, Yau Man (one of the survivors) won a 2008 Ford 350 Truck. He knew how much Dreamz wanted a car. So he made a deal with him that in exchange for the Ford 350 Truck, Dreamz would give up the Immunity Idol to Yau Man if he won it, when there were only four Survivors left in the game. It was a crazy request, but Dreamz agreed to it and took the truck.

THAT WAS HIS FAITH TEST.



END OF PART ONE******************************************************



PART TWO


WHEN EXACTLY DID DREAMZ GET HIS FAITH TEST?


His test was when Yau Man offered him the truck. He had to decide then whether to walk by faith and believe that God would give him the victory or to walk by sight and take the truck.

When there were four people left in the game, Dreamz won the immunity Idol. At that point it was clear that IF he gave it to Yau Man and kept his word, he'd miss out on an opportunity to win the million dollars.

So he had to decide: Would he keep his word and maintain his integrity as a Christian or would he succumb to the temptation to try for the million.




According to your faith be it unto you...Matthew 9: 29


DREAMZ MAKES SOME DECISIONS


Dreamz decided to take the Ford F350 TRUCK! He also agreed to give Yau Man an immunity idol in case he won it with four people left.


HE DID NOT KEEP HIS WORD

DREAMZ KEPT THE TRUCK AND THE IMMUNITY IDOL. FOR THE MEMBERS ON THE JURY; IT PROVED TO BE AN UNPARDONABLE SIN.

Dreamz had an opportunity to sit before the jury to be considered for the one million dollars. However, they had no sympathy for him because they felt he double dealed, back stabbed, betrayed alliances and did not keep his word. They didn't trust him in a game that many call: BACKSTABBING 101. Is it possible to win this game without smear or blemish? It's hard, but the people who generally win have usually managed to do this to a great degree. DREAMZ did not win the one million dollars but, will still win $100,000.

THE WAY SURVIVOR WORKS...It "looked " like Dreamz never could have won whether he kept his word regarding the truck or not. However, I would have hoped to see him keep his word. I truly believe his doing the right thing could have opened up the door for a Blessing for him. We'll never know.

I want to add that anyone can face a test of faith at almost any time. The only reason we saw the test that Dreamz faced was because he was on national TV. Make up your mind today that when your test comes, you'll pass it. If you fail your test, you'll have to take it over.

NOTE: I just want to say to Dreamz that I'll keep praying for you and believing that another door of opportunity will open for you. I know you'll be ready. Keep persevering.

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