Society Led?

I have been thinking a lot about this topic over the last few months.  It has never been far from my mind but for some reason it seems that I just have been thinking about it nonstop.  So much so that it has burdened my soul.  I think it is time to share.

When I became a mother 20 ½ years ago I never could have imagined what was ahead of me.  I became responsible for little lives that were in my care.  Life didn’t seem to be so dangerous or threatening when it was just me.  I never noticed things before that all of a sudden just seemed to JUMP out at me when I saw them.  Now that one son is 20 and one almost 18, I find myself even more attentive.  I see things that now are common place.  Things that even just 20 years ago would have NEVER been talked about let alone put on the television and there was no such thing as internet to “vent” it.  What is acceptable has changed GREATLY!  Don’t get me wrong, things were still misconstrued when I was growing up but there were still those things you just never saw.  When I was in high school, I remember this so clearly, I came back on a Monday and someone told me that a classmate had her baby.  WHAT????  I didn’t even know she was pregnant.  She hid it VERY well.  It was not something that you wanted to show if you did happen to find yourself in that circumstance.  I also remember that yes there was homosexuality but it was not something you announced openly.  I had to deal with that reality at a VERY young age and the shame that it brought.  Now it is typical to see a pregnant teenager or know a homosexual.  We have become comfortable and tamed by this world we live in.  As a country we have become fast food.  As Christians some have become “fast food Christians”, get it how YOU want it.  And if it isn’t fast enough complain that you didn’t get it your way.  It isn’t just sex or sexual acts before marriage and homosexuality that I am speaking of.  Those two are just the easiest targets.  Check with your children to find out where they stand on those because what society tells them is acceptable is speaking louder than you know or think.  I’m talking about a lot of things.  What we say, how we conduct ourselves, what we watch or listen to, even what we allow in our lives have been compromised. 

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.  Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.  Because of the privilege and authority God has given me, I give each of you this warning: Don’t think you are better than you really are. Be honest in your evaluation of yourselves, measuring yourselves by the faith God has given us.” ~ Romans 12:1-3 (NLT)

“Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you.   For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.   And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.” ~ 1 John 15-17 (NLT)

We are called to live in the world dear brothers and sisters but we are also called to be set apart from this world.  How can we be a light to this world if we look a lot like it?  How can God’s saving words go out from our lips if we act like those we are telling it to?  My challenge this week . . . Do you measure yourself by the faith of God or have you allowed yourself to be tainted by this world?  Have you allowed society to water down how God wants you to live a Christian life?  Take a little time and examine your life and ask God to show you if you are His faithful servant.  Be set apart my sisters and brothers!  Show this world what God can do if you totally give your life to Him!