Thoughts

Philippians 4:8

New International Version (NIV)

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.

As a teenage girl, I spend way too much time on social networking websites. Twitter, which I've spent quite some time on, has this cool little feature where you can see what topics are "trending." In other words, I can see what the world, or the United States, or even my own city has been "tweeting" about. Currently, my little trend box is set to see the trends of people in the United States.

This is the little box I'm talking about. After reading through the list, I was caught off guard by the fourth trend on the list: #PornHasTaughtMe. The fact that people think porn can actually teach them anything other than how to ruin future relationships is truly scary.

Philippians 4:8 instructs us to think about things that are true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent or praiseworthy. Quite frankly, porn doesn't fall into any of those categories. It certainly isn't true; many if not all aspects of it are exaggerated. It's not noble, pure, lovely, or admirable. In fact, if most people were to meet a porn star, I'm under the impression that they would not admire them for their noble career choice. I may be sounding like a harsh crazy Christian here, especially considering the fact that I'm talking about something I don't have much personal experience with, but I don't need experience with porn to know that it isn't what God wants for our lives.

In an article written by Rebecca Hagelin in The Washington Times, Hagelin discusses the destructive harm that occurs when people become addicted to porn. "So what’s the harm? Dr. Hilton’s article explains how the production of the natural and powerful hormone oxytocin, which occurs during sexual encounters, helps us form emotional bonds with our mates. Dr. Hilton writes, 'We are wired to bond to the object of our sexuality.' In the case of the pornography user, the sexual side of the user, 'becomes, in a sense, dehumanized.' Many develop an 'antisocial lust devoid of most values' and the high they get from pornography 'becomes more important than real-life relationships.'"

That's code for "pornography can literally destroy relationships." God doesn't give us commands because he doesn't like us or because he wants us to live boring, miserable lives. Rather, he gives them to us to protect us. Sometimes, hurt is unavoidable in the world; we can't control other people's actions that negatively impact us. Nonetheless, there are some hurts and pains that are avoidable, and God desperately wants us to avoid them! His commands are "How to" instructions on how to avoid that sort of pain.

All of God's commandments follow this pattern. We might hate the fact that God commands us to avoid certain activities that the world tells us is fun, but we have to trust that God knows what he's talking about. Actions in life have consequences; sometimes the consequences are great, and sometimes they sting like a slap in the face. Sometimes, the consequences don't show up until many years down the road. If we follow God's instructions for us, then when the consequences finally happen, we won't have anything to worry about.

Don't get me wrong; my intention isn't to condemn those who have struggled with pornography, or any other sin for that matter. Sometimes, it isn't easy to follow God's instructions. I know I have made my fair share of mistakes. However, why would we continue in that behavior when God gives us hope for a better life?


Therefore, let us be thankful that we have a Father who loves us enough to give us these instructions; trust that, although they may be hard to follow at times, they are truly for our good.

<3