Six things Dolly Parton said about faith, anointing: ‘My life’s purpose is to do something for God’

By Leah MarieAnn Klett, Entertainment Editor

(Republished from The Christian Post – christianpost.com)

After her death at age 80, country music legend Dolly Parton is being remembered not only for the songs, charitable work, philanthropy and larger-than-life personality that made her a global icon, but also for the Christian faith she said guided her throughout her life.

The “Jolene” hitmaker died on Tuesday, according to her nephew, Bryan Seaver, who announced her death on behalf of the Parton and Owens family. Parton was reportedly surrounded by loved ones when she died in Nashville after a brief battle with cancer.

“It is an honor, an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly. Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents and countless others who have watched her and longed to meet her in the heavens,” he said.

Raised in the Smoky Mountains in a large family, Parton grew up in the church under the influence of her grandfather, a Pentecostal preacher. Long after becoming one of the world’s most recognizable entertainers, she continued to credit God with guiding her life and said she viewed her platform as a responsibility to help others.

Over the years, Parton spoke to The Christian Post several times about her faith and the role it played in her life, from discovering her God-given purpose as a child to forgiveness, prayer and trusting God through difficult seasons.

Here are six things Parton told The Christian Post about her faith.

1. She believed she was ‘anointed’ for a purpose

Parton said one of the defining moments of her childhood came when an older woman told her, “You are anointed.”

“We grew up in the Church, and my grandpa was a Pentecostal preacher,” Parton recalled in a 2019 interview with CP. “So healing and praying and being anointed and all that stuff, that was nothing new to us, ’cause we survived because of our faith in God to get us through and all that. But when that old lady told me that I was anointed, I didn’t know what that was. I was just thinking it was like, olive oil.”

When she asked her mother what the woman meant, her mother explained: “That means that God has His hand on you; that you may do something special.”

Parton said the words gave her a sense of purpose that stayed with her throughout her life.

“That triggered a faith in me because I believe that I was supposed to do something good,” she said. “After she told me that, I thought, ‘Well then, this is my responsibility. I’m going to do something good.'”

2. She felt responsible to God while acknowledging her own sin

Parton was candid about her imperfections and her continual need for God’s forgiveness.

“I never let go of that,” she said of the belief that God had a purpose for her life. “I always felt responsible to God that I was supposed to be doing something for God. I still feel like that, and I’m still doing it, trying to.”

Then, with her characteristic humor and humility, she added: “Sinning all the way, but trying my best, and asking forgiveness seventy times seven.”

3. She said forgiveness ‘cleans’ the heart and soul

Parton also spoke about the importance of extending forgiveness to others rather than allowing bitterness and anger to take root.

“There’s a lot to be said about forgiveness; it cleans you for other good stuff to come in,” she told CP in 2020. “If you go around with a bunch of hate and anger and bottled up stuff in you, you can’t blossom. As a person, you’re not doing yourself any favors or anyone else. It’s just so much better to forgive.”

For the “I Will Always Love You” singer, forgiving someone did not mean pretending the hurt never happened; it requires humility on both sides.

“And of course, we can’t forget; we still remember things,” she said. “But I think when they say ‘forgive and forget,’ that just means to forget about that now and move on.”

“I really think that that’s so important to cleanse your own heart and your own soul, to be able to forgive and to ask forgiveness. You never should be too proud to ask for forgiveness.”

4. She prayed every day to be a ‘light’ and ‘vessel’ for God

Parton’s faith also informed her extensive philanthropic work. Through initiatives including her Imagination Library, she sought to use her success and resources to improve the lives of others.

“Every day I pray for God to lead me and to take out all the wrong things, wrong people in my life, and bring all the right things, right people, and to let me glorify Him and uplift mankind, to do something in this world to make it a little better than it was,” she said.

“And let me be a light and a vessel to be used.”

Parton said she believed having the ability to help others came with a responsibility to do so.

“I just wanted to do what I can in this world to make things better if I can, and I’m in a position to do it,” she said. “If you get in a position to help, you should help.”

5. She believed God gave her a calling and would tell her when to stop

Even at 73, when she spoke to CP in 2019, Parton dismissed the idea of slowing down simply because of her age, saying she believed her work was part of a larger mission.

“I live on spiritual energy, creative and spiritual energy, because I do go a lot,” she said. “I work hard. I work really, really hard. But I love my work.”

Parton said difficult seasons had only reinforced her reliance on God.

“It’s like, only when you go through family problems or heartaches [that] you actually have to lean on God for even more,” she said. “But I really feel like I have a calling. I always felt I had a mission. Don’t know what all it is, but I feel like God had told me early in a feeling that I was supposed to go until He told me to stop.”

“He ain’t said nothing yet about quitting,” she continued. “So I ain’t said nothing about retiring yet.”

Parton added: “Until God says stop, I’ll keep going.”

6. She trusted that God was with her in life’s hardest moments

Parton said her faith gave her a framework for understanding suffering. Rather than asking why something difficult had happened, she tried to discern what God might be teaching her through it.

“Even when I’m going through really hard times, I try to see what God is trying to teach me,” she said. “I just think, I’m supposed to be knowing something, I’m supposed to be learning something. I’m supposed to be becoming a bigger person, being taught responsibility or patience.”

“I just know that everything I go through, I like to feel that I’ll come out of it better.”

Parton compared her perspective to the “Footprints in the Sand” poem, which depicts God carrying a person through the most difficult seasons of life.

“[God] didn’t leave me, or He was carrying me then,” she said. “I either left Him or He was carrying me. So that’s kinda how I look at that.”

And when she found herself wondering where God was amid suffering, Parton said she imagined His answer would be, “I’m down here, with the people.”