entice them, there are things you should check and correct, especially
for women:
Okay, I’m guilty.
Over the years, I’ve obsessed over makeup, skin care products, my
weight, working out, pink clothing, cute shoes, Cinderella dolls, should
I keep going? I have run after many things, all the while attending my
Bible studies and being a good Christian girl. It isn’t until the last
couple of decades that I have had to take Christ’s words seriously:
“Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of
me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of
me”
If we’re not supposed to love our own family more than God, then
certainly we aren’t to obsess over things or activities either.
Women
are experts at obsessing. We can obsess over neatness, over
cleanliness, over avoiding germs, over our looks, or our houses, or our
husbands, or our children. Whatever we pour our hearts into, whatever
occupies our thoughts and desires, whatever becomes a priority in our
lives over than that of loving God, is something we obsess over. This is
also considered unfaithfulness because putting anything (food, causes,
friendships, dating relationships, fiancée or husband, children, job,
career, success) higher than God on our list of desires turns that thing
(or person) into a god that we seek. God is a jealous God. He hates
when we run toward, obsess after, or seek for anything above Him
(Matthew 6:33). A Christ-follower is just that – one who follows hard
after Christ, not anything or anyone else.
2. Gossip about Others
It
happens. We gossip about others in the form of “sharing a prayer
request” or voicing our concern about another person’s “fall from
grace.” But a Christ-follower is burdened by the sins and frustrations
of others and lifts them up in prayer, without hanging them out to dry.
Scripture instructs: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your
mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to
their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29).
Jesus
said the second greatest commandment, next to loving God with all your
heart soul, mind, and strength, was to “Love your neighbor as yourself”
(Matthew 22:39). Love doesn’t gossip. It doesn’t run down another’s
reputation. Instead “it always protects” (1 Corinthians 13:7, NASB). A
Christ-follower speaks words that Jesus would. And Jesus didn’t gossip.
3. Fill Up Social Media Platforms with Self
Okay,
I know I’m going to step on some toes here and lest I sound judgmental
and become guilty of number 8 which I just told you NOT to do, please
hear me out. I’m sorry if you see it as a healthy self-esteem, but
posting selfie after selfie on social media says “I’m all about myself.”
Scripture says when we follow Christ we become all about Him. John the
Baptist said “He (Jesus) must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30,
NKJV). For me to decrease, my selfies must decrease, too.
Showing
no selfie-control means we haven’t yet grasped the truth of Galatians
2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but
Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in
the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Put other people
in those pictures with you and make it about the good time you are
sharing with someone else. When people see you, they should see Christ,
not a bunch of pictures of just you.
[written by Cindi McMenamin]
