Today was my mom's birthday, so I drove from Moorhead to Perham to surprise her. On the way back, I saw the same billboard that I always see outside of Detroit Lakes. And it always makes me feel the same way.
The billboard I saw was for Zorbaz, a pizza and Mexican food restaurant/bar. One side of the billboard has a man dressed up like a hippie and the words "nicely baked" in huge letters. This implies a pot reference. The other side has a tap beer and the words "one is the loneliest number you'll ever do". You need to have more than one beer. One beer isn't enough. You MUST binge drink.
Both of these signs fill me with disgust and sorrow. Growing up in a household with alcoholics and pot-heads, I know how torturous these common drugs can be. Why does culture have to glorify them?
Why do we have a culture that glorifies sin and not God's love? The high that Jesus gives us is so much greater than anything alcohol or pot can produce.
When I drank, alcohol would just draw me towards more sin. I would become filled with lustful thoughts. I'd want to eat even though I wasn't very hungry. I would become sad, either because the alcohol itself made me depressed or just amplified my preexistent depression. Either way, that should have been enough of a reason to stop, but it wasn't. Even after I woke up from a night of throwing up, falling over, and realizing that I'd done some pretty shameful things, I'd decide to drink again some other time.
The one time that I smoked weed, I was filled with similar thoughts, only happier. I was past my depression bu this point, but I still made terrible decisions.
Why does media feel the need to portray these destructive drugs in such a positive light. As social objects. As adventure starters. As tools for fun.
Why aren't they just show for what they are? Physical poison. Mental poison. Spiritual poison. Why do these substances get attention as the source of fun when they are the source of pain? Why do they get more exposure in our media than the only true source of love, Jesus?
Why do we continue to intentionally expose ourselves to this filth every single day? Why do we watch TV and movies about the adventures of druggies? Why do we listen to songs about drinking all day? Why do we read magazine articles about night clubs and the best-tasting mixed drinks? If we want to end the prevalence that these drugs have in our media, shouldn't we boycott the media that emphasizes them?
Shouldn't we replace these toxins with more positive media or no media at all? Imagine how much closer we could be to God if we spent our time absorbed in the media absorbing ourselves with Him.
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