Monday, October 10, 2016

Morals

If anything beneficial could come out of the distasteful political landscape of late, it may be that it could cause us to confront the lack of morals we, as a country, have espoused in recent years.

Morals. Every body's talking about morals all of a sudden. On any given day in modern society, they are a nuisance to many. Yet, this week, you would think "Leave it to Beaver" is once again the only type of entertainment consumed by the American public and that we all live and behave like the Waltons in our little houses on the prairie. I would love it if that were true, but that ship has long since sailed.

In the real world, I began to question the sincerity of a suddenly puritanical approach to American politics and society, in general. Ponder this, if you dare:

1. How many of the same people outraged over the terrible language Donald Trump uttered on tape some 11 years ago can claim they have always been morally upright in every way? Maybe a few, but probably not many.

2. How many of those who were the first to throw stones, might need to be reminded that God sees their own thoughts, hearts, words and deeds? A few indictments for moral failure may be in order, if we are in a court of honesty and transparency.

3. How many of us use foul language, ourselves? Do we have a potty mouth either in public, or in private? Have we ever had inappropriate sexual behavior that is outside of God's will?

4. How many of us are diligent to guard our eyes, ears, hearts and souls against immorality? Do we keep offensive things from entering our world? Here are some questions to help us answer honestly:

- Have I ever in the past viewed, or am I presently viewing, anything that could be considered pornographic or, at least, sexually promiscuous?

- Do I watch television shows and movies, read books, or consume any kind of content that has bad language, sexual intimacy or lewdness - for example, have I read or watched Fifty Shades of Grey, Magic Mike or the like? Do I ever see sex scenes on the TV shows I watch? Are shows like the Bachelor and the Bachelorette things I watch because the relationships are wholesome? Or am I aware that sex is the norm in that atmosphere?

- Do I listen to music with lyrics that consider sexual conquests an accomplishment? There is sexual innuendo in much of today's popular music genres. Do I consider that offensive? Especially, if the music is fun and I don't really listen to the words they are saying?

- Do I make excuses for any of the above to rationalize that it's different for me and it's somehow okay?

I'm not defending the mistakes of Donald Trump. He has made many. I could not and wouldn't even try. I have even been angered by his words in the past. It's never okay to denigrate others with our words or actions. I hope he has changed, or can change, because I know that no one is exempt from being redeemable, no matter what they have done or said.

But, I started taking an honest look at how hypocritical many of us can be. The point is not to exonerate him, but to show us how shallow our own views and hearts can be. Our own sin looks pretty ugly on someone else, doesn't it? It should, at least.

But then, maybe we're not really looking at ourselves because we think what we do, personally, doesn't really have an effect on anyone else. Especially, since we didn't say what he said! And it's unlikely, even if we did, that it would be broadcast for the whole world to hear.

I contend that many of us have our own vulgarity issues. Pornography, for instance, that can be found in many of the above examples, has an effect on God, ourselves, our families and our relationships. It's not harmless. A large percentage of men, and some women, really have an issue with this. Some of us have never gone there, but too many have.

So, really, many of us are not in a position to throw stones, insults and innuendos, lest they turn into boomerangs. I'm reminded that I should take care of my own shortcomings instead of broadcasting others'. Forgive me, Lord. For I have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. I don't think I'm alone in that.

We can try to be good. But we are incapable of being good and embracing the morals that would honor God unless we know Him, personally. A Christian worldview is one in which we live and evaluate everything we do through the lens of a Christian perspective. We look at the life of Christ and we attempt to follow Him in obedience, in spirit and in truth. We fall short. It's not an easy path. We are humans and we tend to revert to human behavior which is sinful. We can be disobedient to God's Word and insist on doing things our own way. Or we can try our best to be obedient and rely on the Holy Spirit of God to help us be more like Jesus and carry out good behavior that we can't even begin to carry out in our own power. If we are willing, God is able to help us as an individual, and as a nation, to return to the morals that bring Him glory.

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