2/11/07

Love not the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him (1 John 2:15)

There was a sad article in the newspaper some years ago, about a boy who ended his own life. The note he had written revealed the reason why - he was depressed about the cancellation of the first Battlestar Galatica television series, and he died rather than live without his favorite show. There have been other tragic instances of that sort, but I believe the strangest and most terrible so far was seen in a Long Beach Press Telegram article dated January 15, 2007.

The article was entitled Kids Hang Selves, Mimicking Saddam,on page A11 of the “Press Telegram.” Here’s the article: The boys deaths scattered in the United States, in Yemen, in Turkey and elsewhere in seemingly isolated horror had one thing in common: They hanged themselves after watching televised images of Saddam Hussein's execution. Officials and relatives say the children appeared to be mimicking the former dictator's Dec. 30 hanging, shown both on a sanitized Iraqi government tape and explicit clandestine videos that popped up on Web sites and some TV channels experts are concerned about the images of the deposed Iraqi leader dropping through the gallows floor and his body swinging at the end of a rope. The experts say such graphic images can severely affect youngsters who do not yet understand the consequences of death and violence.”

Here's some obvious inferences we can draw from these tragic deaths:

• Trust in the Lord. His presence in you will change who you are, and others will see the difference and want Him, too. Your conversion may save your loved ones in ways you did not expect.
• Bring your children to the Lord. When they are tempted to harm themselves or others, the Spirit and love of God that is in them will work against the angry thoughts and depression that is the cause of great harm.
• Consider and pray about what you are watching, and realize that what you see has a profound influence on who you are and how you effect others.
• No matter how much they complain about it, DO monitor what your children watch, and prayerfully and firmly (but also gently) STOP them, to the best of your ability, from being exposed to graphic violence.

There are certain common denominators in the deaths reported in that article, and one of them is a graphic reminder that all people, not only children, tend to copy others to a very great extent. Look around you and note that most people are wearing the same kind of shoes. This year it's tennis shoes, but next year it might be wooden clogs, if some popular movie star or athlete decides to wear them. If you haven't seen what's popular at the moment, your children will probably tell you about it and demand those shoes for themselves. We wear precisely the kinds of clothing our neighbors, fellow workers, fellow students, and especially the "stars" of television and movies are wearing at the time. We listen to certain types of music, but be honest - most want what the "in-crowd" is listening to. We think we buy cars and other devices based on our likes and dislikes; but the truth is, we are also swayed by what we feel is "in" at the moment.

Tattoos are a good example. Just a few years ago, older men who had tattoos from a time when they were young, were often embarrassed by the marks on their bodies and wished they could get rid of them. I spent some time recently with someone at a Christian Men's Retreat. When I met him previously, he had an extensive spider web on his face from a decision made in his youth. The tattoo was now gone! A Christian plastic surgeon from his church had seen the disfiguring marks on him and volunteered to remove them for free. The spider web had been an attempt to copy, even exceed the tattoos of other young men he knew. Initially, he felt good about it; then he tired of them, but could do nothing about it. God helped him by sending that plastic surgeon.

We understand that we copy others, but the article quoted from the “Long Beach Press Telegram suggests very strongly that imitative behavior is deeper than we knew. How many of us have smoked cigarettes because we thought it was the "in" thing to do? How many lives have been lost to some kind of drugs or the over use of alcohol, ingested by those who wished to be "respected" by others?  How many marks on our bodies and souls will we find we dislike at some time in the future?

And how much is in your life right now; not because you like it, but because you want to think well of yourself and impress someone else? John the Apostle, who, in the power and love of the Holy Spirit, wrote today's Scripture, knew about the intense pull of the customs, styles and ways of this world. He was aware that we tend to follow literally to the death, attitudes and actions that actually will destroy us. Incredibly, some even strap bombs to themselves to be appreciated by their peers!

John said in today's Verse, Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him (1 John 2:15). By that, he meant just what he said. If your energy is spent on appearance, status and acquiring earthly things, you should consider that Your love for God the Father is less than it should be. God is like a great magnetic field, pulling you to Himself. The world is also magnetic in its attraction for you. We are all pulled and we cannot resist we will go in one direction or the other.

John said, all that is in the world the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world (1 John 2:16). Since you are pulled strongly in two directions; you should know that Scripture provides the answer. It says, The world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever (1 John 2:17). Give in to the attraction, the magnetism of God, and you will LIVE! Everything else is just shifting sand it is, as they say, here today, gone tomorrow. TRUST in the Lord. Your decision will affect who you are forever.

Father, we feel pulled by this world too much. And like the man who no longer liked his tattoos, but could not do anything about them, we have been marked by sin and are helpless. Jesus is the Surgeon who will restore us. Heal me now, Lord, that I may be clean in Your sight forever. Thank You. In Jesus Name. Amen.