"Love doesn't hide. It stays and fights. It goes the distance.
That's why God made love so strong, so it can carry you all the way home."
--Monica, The Southbound Bus
Hi all,

On September 21, 1994, Touched by an Angel premiered on CBS.  For the first time, the world met Monica, Tess, and Adam.  Week after week, the angels reminded us that God loves us and that life is eternal.  Though I caught TBAA as often as I could during its first year and a half, it wasn't until 1996 that I became a devoted viewer.  I really have no idea what changed.  Huh...  Mystery, I guess.  ;-)  Oh wait...  Yeah, it was this guy:


As much as I'd like to do a lengthy issue celebrating TBAA's twenty years, I have a lot of writing to do so this is another short one.  But I hope you have fun with it and take a few moments to reflect on all the ways TBAA has impacted your life. 

God bless,
Jenni
Who Said It? Part II

I know we did this not terribly long ago but the words the angels spoke, week after week, on TBAA are so important that I felt like this issue needed to focus on quotes, in part.  So see if you can guess who said what quote and even better if you know the episode!  Rather than supplying an answer key this time, I'm just gonna direct you here: TBAA Quotes.  Maybe you'll be able to revisit favorites in the process!

"The shining moment between past and future is what now is."

"Make every minute count."

"Where you're going, God is already there.  Yes, He is."

"There's nothing about a woman's heart that God doesn't understand."

"You must never be afraid to ask for what is good and right. You just have to know where to go to ask for it."

"Just know that you're in God's hands... and that is the very best place to be."

"God can redeem time.  God created time.  Just as He created you.  He loves you.  And He's given you all the time that you need, right now, to do the right thing.  Will you do it?"

"There is mercy for you in heaven even though it's hard to find on earth."

"How can He blame you for being human when He made you human?"

"Families should stick together.  Not be stuck with each other."

Twenty Things TBAA Taught Me

So you can learn a lot from a show over nine years.  Below are ten amusing lessons, followed by another ten serious ones, that TBAA either taught me or reiterated for me.

1.  Coffee makes everything better!!!  Lots and lots of coffee makes everything super awesome!!!!!! 

2.  I do not like loafers.  This fact does not change even if a super handsome male angel is wearing them.

3.  Don't lose track of your friends for any length of time.  They could turn into demons.

4.  An angel of death will wait around for you to finish viewing your favorite game show.  They will also run errands for you.  Yay AODs!

5.  Angels might suffer from a form of amnesia that makes it difficult for them to remember when they met each other.  Was it during a wedding or before an old timey hunt for treasure?  They're not sure.

6.  Umbrellas are fantastic dance partners... but not as good as AODs.

7.  Satan can sure belt out Sondheim!

8.  Certain angels are very good at choosing nicknames.  Certain other angels are very bad at it and should never be allowed to pick them...  Never.  Ever.

9.  Doves are good.  Lions are evil.  Oh, wait...  Yeah, let's just scratch that one...

10.  Flannel...  That is all.

11.  Even during those times in human history when there seemed to be so much pain and cruelty... angels were there bringing God's love and peace and kindness.

12.  Angels do care.  A lot.  They're not just God's dutiful robots. 

13.  You've never fallen too far to be outta the reach of God and His angels.

14.  God loves the sound of your voice and wants to hear from you no matter how you sound.

15.  Seriously, don't lose track of your friends.  They're going to be the ones to bring you coffee when you're tipsy and soup when you're sick.  They'll hug you when you feel low and, when tragedy strikes, they'll remind you that God is there.  And then, one day, you'll do it all for them and that's pretty great.

16.  Music is sooo important.  And, yes, Andrew: it is definitely more important than money.

17.  It doesn't much matter how you pray.  What matters is that you pray.

18.  No one is ever truly alone. 

19.  God's love is unconditional.

20.  God's love for us is eternal.  So is life.

This newsletter is dedicated to John Dye for being a really wonderful teenage obsession.  Okay, so to be completely honest, I was obsessed with Andrew (am probably still...)  Cause I just don't get attached to people really easily and while I totally admired and respected John, I didn't know him.  But Andrew... Andrew I knew.  I watched him every week and daydreamed about him every day.  And it was good.  I know I'm rambling but I watched a news story recently about how destructive obsessions with fictional characters can be.  But with Andrew, I daydreamed about telling people God loves them.  I imagined helping people and counseling people and just generally making life better for people.  And I really think all that fantasizing made me want something of the same in real life.  I think it made me a better person.  So, yeah, I'm grateful to John for that and I'm grateful to all TPTB behind TBAA.  It's been a wonderful twenty years!

JABB TOC

JABB 421/ CABB 21

(Photo Credits: The photographs used on this page are from Touched by an Angel and owned by CBS Productions, Caroline Productions, and Moon Water Productions.  They are not being used to seek profit.)