What I find even more disturbing is that some parents even encourage their children to undergo such enhancement surgeries. We give to the needy not out of love or compassion but for the enhancement of our own image. One person is spending 5 million dollars buying a race horse, while in the opposite part of the world a person is starving to death. We want what we cannot have, and we will do anything to get it. It's all about money, power and fame.
I grew up in a society that placed high regard to money and status. The more money you had, the better status you had in the community. You were "cool" if your parents owned the best looking or most expensive cars, lived in an affluent area or attended an affluent school. I attended an all girls' school that wasn't very highly regarded and I remember feeling a little embarrassed whenever I was asked which school I attended. Quite a materialistic and shallow mindset I believe. As sad as it may seem, this is something that still exists in the world today and will continue to in the years to come.
So much is changing in this world that sometimes I even shudder to think what will happen to future generations. Gone are the days when people viewed attending church as a good thing. Now it is viewed by many as a strange thing and to some, even a bad thing. Things that are bad or disrespectful are now widely accepted as proper or even glorified. Violence, adultery and other sexually immoral behaviour are often portrayed as acceptable when in actual fact are unacceptable.
Troublesome issues
People don't find anything wrong with their children listening to such catchy Pop songs as "I kissed a girl" by Katy Perry, which explicitly promotes sexually immoral behaviour or the vulgarity in songs by some artists like Eminem and Pink. Have we become so desensitized to things that are wicked?
Materialism is one of the major problems that exists in the world today. So many people, governments and businesses are more concerned about their financial gain than the well being of persons. Individuals will go to the greatest extent for financial gain. Some businesses, without our knowledge, will even put harmful substances into our food just to make a profit. There is always someone gaining from the sale of illicit drugs meanwhile caring less for the people negatively (mental illnesses, addiction and death) impacted but the consumption of these drugs. How far are people willing to go for the love of money?
When I think about the way the world is going today, I am reminded of 1 Timothy 6 verses 9-10 that states: "People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many grief". I think this is something that is true of society today.
I have watched a couple of interviews with popular recording artist Katy Perry. She grew up singing in church and even produced a gospel album before her now successful music career. She has mentioned in some of her interviews that she wanted to be the "Amy Grant" (well known Christian music artist) of music but that it didn't quite go well for her, and so decided to sell her soul to the devil. Katy Perry doesn't stand alone in such a confession.
A number of other recording artists have confessed to selling their souls to the devil (e.g. Kanye West). Could it be that Katy Perry has fallen into this trap (per 1 Timothy 6:9-10)? Did she let greed get the better of her? Could she have wandered from her faith for the love of money and fame? Are we willing to sell our souls to the devil for material gain?
The Scriptures
Scripture clearly states that there will come a time when some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons (1 Timothy 4 verses 1-2). I believe that time is now. As a Christian, I have come to realise that I need to be careful that the things I feed my mind are not destructive to my walk with Christ. We can so easily allow such un-godly things to infiltrate our lives not realising the kind of impact it will have on us and generations to come.
I need to continually store up my treasures in heaven. Is the world my guide? Most certainly not. At the end of the day, God doesn't look at how beautiful you are or how much money you have in your bank account. He doesn't even look at how many accolades you have attached to your name. God looks at what matters the most - our hearts (1 Samuel 16 verse 7).
Furthermore, what good will it be for a man to gain the world and yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? (Matthew 16 verse 26). What we need to be doing instead is submitting ourselves to God and resisting the Devil and he [Devil] will flee from us. I need to draw closer to God and He will come closer to me (James 4 verses 7-8). He will guide me in living a life that is in line with His word, and not with the world.
Let us not be deceived. The devil is a liar and a stumbling block in our faith. He does not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men (Matthew 16 verse 23).
Kandima Awendila was born in Mozambique and lives and works as an IT Service Desk Engineer on the Gold Coast.
Kandi Awendila's archive of articles may be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/kandima-awendila.html