Proverbs 4:18-19“The path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day. The way of the wicked is like darkness; they do not know what makes them stumble.”
I read an eye-opening article in the American Family Association Journal on the growing epidemic of teen suicides that mimic a teenage suicides as a means of revenge from popular cable television show. Targeted for teens, the show is full of gratuitous profane language, drug and alcohol abuse by high school students, homosexuality, empty friendships, bullying and violence, graphic sex (including rape) and a gruesome depiction of a teenager’s suicide. Yet, teens are drawn to it – immersed in it and, in ways, controlled by its haunting darkness. Christian Counselor Julie Lowe explains that young people do tend to be drawn to dark things, especially if we are not giving them something or Someone better to be drawn to.
Romans 6:10-12 “For the death that He (Jesus) died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Likewise, you also reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts”.
The article cites a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association showing that internet searches about suicide were significantly higher than expected within the three week after the release of the cable show; 19% increase in the first 19 days. Past studies have validated that Internet searches mirror real-world suicide rates. Psychiatrist Dr. Fadi Haddad states that such shows distort the realities of teen suicide and depression, thus leading to copycat suicide attempts. Social worker Brooke Fox call them “tutorials on how to complete the ending of your life. The major difference is that fictional teens and their decisions played out as part of a script are reversible because it is fake/acting. Actual teen’\s decisions to end their life are real, the outcomes permanent, and the effects on their families devastating.
Proverbs 4:23-27 “Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life. Put away from you a deceitful mouth and put perverse lips far from you. Let your eyes look straight ahead, and your eyelids look right before you. Ponder the path of your feet and let all your ways be established. Do not turn to the right or the left; Remove your foot from evil.
Though, maybe raised in a God-fearing home, young people become desensitized to the content in popular shows like these, when they immerse themselves in it, becoming their everyday reality. Lowe explains that these programs create a distorted sense of what is typical for American teen culture and set a bad precedent for the average teen/preteen, who is watching. If you get a chance, read the book Amusing Ourselves to Death" by Neil Postman. The fact is that our homes have been invaded by darkness. The influence of media is powerful, especially when it feeds the innate sin in one’s heart. What you watch and take in through your eye-gate, and what you listen to is so important. Not everything is profitable to us, and some things are downright detrimental. We need to guard our heart.
Philippians 4:8 “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.”
The article concludes that there is hope and that hope is Jesus Christ, manifested by resting in Him, trusting in Him with our lives, and being faithful to point our new generation to he One who fights on our behalf and saves. We must choose to take up the sword of the Spirit (which is the Word of God), then stand firm and fight each and every day for the Lord’s honor and glory. That is the life that is truly abundant and worth living.
Blessings in Christ
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