Teaching Our Youth The Full Truth

            Last week most young people, as well as many underage tweens, witnessed a show of unadulterated nastiness on television. A rating of TV-14 meant that any child over the age of 14 could watch the show without parental supervision. Of course I am adding my two cents to the 2013 MTV Video Music Award (VMA) discussions. I am glad to say that I did not watch the show, however, it was impossible to later watch any news programing or visit AOL or Facebook without being bombarded with some of the images of Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and other so called entertainers nearly nude on stage. The images were nearly pornographic and most certainly for adults only or at least for those adults who like that kind of stuff on their television.

            There is enough blame going around. This blog is not intended to bash Lady Gaga or Miley Cyrus, or even the VMA. They live in a different world than most of us. Their purpose in life is to shock through their entertainment. It seems that the lyrics of the songs are no longer bad enough; now they have to strip their rear ends on television and show as much of their privates as would be allowed and call it talent. My biggest concern as a pastor of young people, both boys and girls, and as a grandfather of a 16-year-old and two other granddaughters who will soon enter their tween years is the message they are receiving. Young girls today watching their idols on television receive the message that this is ok, that public nudity and showing your body in public is ok and that they also must do the same and learn "to twerk” or “twerking” when they dance.

            I want parents to recognize that their teens and tweens are being sold a bunch of garbage and lies that can only come from the enemy of their children. The behavior they see from some of these entertainers on television is not good and does not lead to the glamour or the success, or the fame they perceive in them.

            One of the things I taught my daughters, I have tried to teach my 16-year-old granddaughter and will teach the other two and all our youth is that every action and every decision we make has consequences–some good and some bad. Seldom does anything that begins with a bad decision end with a good consequence. See, this is the lie that these entertainers are teaching them; that there are no bad consequences to their actions. The form of life and behavior they are advocating to our kids and youth leads to a disastrous life–promiscuity, sexual exploitation and experimentation before they are ready, teenage pregnancy, children having children, drug abuse, pornography, sexually transmitted diseases, and a destructive way of life. Parents should sit down with their teens and tweens and explain to them that the glamour they see in these entertainers, such as the ones mentioned above, is just smoke and mirrors, fantasy, pipe dreams, and lies. Parents ought to explain to their children that the actions they take today will have consequences in their lives tomorrow.

            What say you?

            Let’s Blog!