Key Bible Verse: I will refuse to look at anything vile and vulgar (Psalm 101:3). Bonus Reading: Matthew 6:22-23

The first time you heard a curse word, saw a sex scene, or witnessed a televised kiss between two people of the same sex, you likely reacted with disdain. But the more you're exposed to things that you may consider wrong, the less negative reaction you'll have to them. If these subjects are presented in a favorable, acceptable manner, you may begin to accept them as the norm and possibly even decide to indulge in such acts yourself. Our initial reaction of being repulsed by something can change with oversaturation and move us to acceptance, and, even worse, make us approve.

The phenomenon of oversaturation changing the views of the public about what's considered normal, tolerable, and appropriate can be easily seen in the difference in today's television, movies, magazines, and advertising as compared to just a couple of decades ago. Overexposure to the many vices of the world through the media has caused our views of what's right and wrong to dim to the point that today those views are barely visible. As our views of right and wrong change, we find ourselves experiencing appetites for things that just a few short years ago we'd have run away from.

—Debra Cherry in Feeding Your Appetites

My Response: One thing I've begun to tolerate that used to be off limits is …

Thought to Apply: We Americans have always considered Hollywood, at best, a sinkhole of depravity. And, of course, it is. It is not a Protective Monastery of Aesthetic Truth.—DAVID MAMET (playwright)

Adapted from Feeding Your Appetites (Integrity Publishers, 2004) by permission.

Prayer for the Week

Lord, when I relax, it's easy to let my guard down. Please keep me spiritually vigilant all the time.

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