I am not your typical female. I have no
desire to: cook, clean, decorate, own more than six pair of footwear including
boots, own more clothes than I can wear in two weeks, have expensive jewelry,
get a mani-pedi, or shop for anything other than tools (especially power),
electronics or school supplies. So it was with trepidation that I agreed to
shop with two girlfriends at (gasp, choke… come on- breathe) Victoria Secret.
(shiver)
We entered the mall food court to find
that store located on the left when I noticed a DQ (Dairy Queen) straight
ahead. I pointed and gave puppy dog eyes hoping to be relieved of the torment
within ‘those’ wretched walls when my companions had mercy on me and agreed. I
sat, enjoying my large chocolate dipped cone while they did that ‘girlie thing’
I hate.
As I ate my cone, I did one of the things
I love to do- people watch. There were many parents with young children that
day. The kids appeared to be an average age of 8. Then I looked over at the
store wondering how long I would have to wait when I noticed the advertisements
outside the store facing into the food court. On each side of the doorway there
was a gigantic photo poster of a girl in nothing but a fancy bra and panties.
Where people were eating.
In full view of young
children.
For the first time I realized how badly
our consciences are seared (1Tm. 4:2) in North America that mostly naked
females are displayed without shame. In fact, upon hearing the story my son
said… Mom, this is normal. He is right: it is normal for the times, but that does not make it right. We now accept
indecency without even expressing concern. Oh how far we have fallen.
Let’s consider tv for a moment. We watch ‘tv
couples’ who have affairs and we are glad because one of them deserved to be
happy. Little do we consider all the couples we watch are committing adultery (or
fornication) for they are all the real life spouse of someone else. Thus all
the couples we watch kissing or pretending to have sexual relations are doing
so with someone else’s spouse. Oh, but they aren’t really doing it! Sometimes.
Sometimes not. Does the appearance of really make it better?
Watching tv is looking, observing…
adultery, nudity- partial or not, gross sin, perversity, murder… it is making
me sick thinking about how far down we have sunk in our morality that we no
longer see or care about the sin. We are so burned by it that we are
insensitive to it. Jesus said even looking can be wrong:
But
I say to you that whoever looks on a woman to lust after her has already
committed adultery with her in his heart. Mt. 5:28
Father,
help us remember that right and wrong are determined by You, our Creator. We
cannot judge right or wrong by morals of today or of the majority view, but
only by You and Your Word. Help us to be bold and strong in this dark world, to
do right whether others see us or not and make a stand for right AT ALL TIMES.
For
his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have
been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things
that have been made. So they are without excuse. For although they knew God,
they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in
their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Claiming to
be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for
images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
-Therefore
God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring
of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God
for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is
blessed forever! Amen.
-For this
reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged
natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise
gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one
another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the
due penalty for their error.
-And
since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased
mind to do what ought not to be done. They were filled with all manner of
unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder,
strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God,
insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish,
faithless, heartless, ruthless. Though they know God's righteous decree that those
who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval
to those who practice them. Rm. 1:20-32 ESV
