Rant

I have friends and relatives who post on Facebook, and I'm sure you do as well. It has become the most amazing thing - millions and millions of people have accounts there, and it seems that most of my friends and a whole lot of my relatives post there daily, if not hourly. I put up photos of things I am doing all the time.

But - what to do about behavior. What I mean is: what to do when I come across a picture posted by a person who I care about who posts pictures of themselves involved in self-destructive behavior? You know - them in a drunken stupor, or at a drinking party, or a drug party, or holding a joint, needle, spoon, coke line or other drug-related paraphernalia? I'm not talking about them at a work meeting at a bar, where everyone has a drink in front of them - I'm talking about a constant flow of pictures with behavior which has been proven to destroy lives when practiced with regularity. Yes, it breaks my heart, and I suppose I should stop and pray on the spot. Most of the time I do. But it is getting to be the standard, not the exception. I guess I should never assume that just because a person has been raised right that they will continue to live right - but how can I have input into those lives? What, if anything, can I do when I see them wandering? I want to love them back to righteousness - not condemn or belittle them. I want to say, "I know! This stuff IS inviting, and when you surround yourselves with friends who live like this, it seems the right way to live. I understand! But it will kill you!"

So - are these people all becoming defiant? Rebellious? Angry? Bitter? Or is society just getting to the point where we accept any kind of behavior, and mock those who sit and try to call us to righteousness instead of those who party hardy?

I suppose the rule applies: don't post anything on Facebook which you don't want the whole world to see. How about giving it some more thought and ask - would seeing me drinking or cuddling while wearing scant clothes (or fill in the blank here) break the heart of your parents, grandparents, pastor, friend, etc. You can't 'aim' the photos so only another wild child sees them. So - shows who's opinions you value, and who's you don't.

OK - Rant off.

Limitations.

We have a cage for my dog. It's a bit oversize for her, actually, but she sleeps in it every night. It was part of the 'deal' which helped me talk my loving wife into allowing us to add this creature to our lives - "she sleeps in a cage, how much mess could she possibly make around this place?"

Yeah, right. It's funny that the dog does enjoy laying right near us at all times. I take her with me to San Diego in the truck, and she will sprawl across the rest of the bench seat, but she has to have her head on my lap or at least touching against my leg. And at home, IF we are sitting nearby, she will go lay in the cage and sigh. It's her 'den,' her little private place.

OK - so the bloom might be off the rose a little bit on the animal - but the cage sits there in the corner and it makes me think.

Do I have limitations in my life? Hard lines I have formed which I will not cross? Some of them are like the dog's cage: they are useful, positive, good healthy control and even safety. Once I even put the dog's cage into the back of the truck and she went with us to the lake, an hour drive one way. That time the cage was not a limitation, but a tool to allow more freedom. Without it, she would have had to stay home alone, something she despises.

So what limitations do I have which give me freedom - and how often do I let limitations become anchors - things which limit me, stymie me, even grieve the Spirit of God?

I think it's time to look at limitations, lines, barriers, limits in my life. God, show me the good ones and help me bolster them. Show me the ones which limit me from doing the things you have called me to do. Bust those down, turn them to rubble.

Amen.