Ignorant Historian

“Because a man without a sense of purpose, even one whose bank accounts are stuffed with money, is always a small man.” – Under the Dome by Stephen King, p. 404

“…If you live your life trying to please a man by how you look and being concerned over what he things about you, you’ll never please God.” – Lakita Garth’s father, quoted in Girls Gone Mild by Wendy Shalit, p. 62

“Most spurned lovers would not pursue the unfaithful spouse, but God pursues you.” – How People Change by Timothy Lane and Paul Tripp, p. 142

“Whatever your views on the sexual revolution, surely we can all agree that it’s sad when male teachers instruct 14-year-old girls that romance is ‘hopeless,’ or when it’s conventional wisdom that sexually inactive girls are ‘ugly.’  Where are these messages coming from?  Where aren’t they coming from would be an easier answer.” – Girls Gone Mild by Wendy Shalit, p. 22

“Run mad as often as you choose, but do not faint.” – Mansfield Park

“The prevailing view is that if you think sexuality should be private or special, then you must be ashamed of it.  You’re a prude.” – Girls Gone Mild by Wendy Shalit, p. 26

Emile: “Wait a minute… you read?”
Remy: “Well… not excessively.”
Emile: “Aw, man! Does Dad know?”
Remy: “You could fill a book — a lot of books — with things Dad doesn’t know. And they have, which is why I read.” – Ratatouille

A week before her wedding: “…I look forward to next week, and I am really excited that I can look my husband in the face and say, You know what, I loved you before I even knew you.  I saved myself just for you.” – Lakita Garth, quoted in Girls Gone Mild by Wendy Shalit, p. 63

“English’s drive to exploit the new and the alien, its zeal in robbing words from other languages, its incapacity to feel qualms over the matter, its museum-size over-abundance of vocabulary, its shoulder-shrug approach to spelling, its don’t-worry-be-happy concern for grammar–the result was a language whose colour and wealth Henry loved.” – Beatrice and Virgil by Yann Martel, p. 23

Retelling a discussion about itemizing for taxation: ” ‘Is that all?  How about your wife?’ he says.  ’By mighty,’ I says to him, ‘she says I don’t own her and I don’t aim to pay no taxes on her,’ and I didn’t.” – Mr. Edwards in The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder

“If doing away with ‘repression’ was supposed to be liberating, why are things now so bad?  It is bad enough that we cannot seem to protect children, but the attractive, intelligent women surfing for tadpoles and grown men trading intimacy for inflated megapixels do not exactly seem to be thriving, either.” - Girls Gone Mild by Wendy Shalit, p. 16-17

“You don’t want to give God the credit because you don’t think he exists.  But if you’re going to blame him for all the crap, kid, you got to give him credit for what grows from the fertilized soil.” – Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card, p. 342

“It’s essential that you spend time reading and studying the Bible.  Trouble is, that advice sounds a lot like ‘Eat less and get more exercise.’ In one ear and out the other.  The difference is that fitness is good for life; God’s word is life.” – Get Married by Candice Watters, p. 73

“Will meeting God be like that?  Will I be disappointed with the real thing, because I prefer the substitute I made do with?” – Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card, p. 341

“Consequence management.  That’s how we view sex – it’s why there’s so much emphasis on avoiding pregnancy and preventing STDs.  But condoms can’t protect your heart.” – Get Married by Candice Watters, p. 129

“Our friendship was delicate, like a bubble, and I was afraid it would pop if I asked the wrong question.  Where is this going? definitely felt like the wrong question.” – How to Say Goodbye in Robot by Natalie Standiford, p. 101

“Sometimes I feel doomed [because I'm single] to be less godly, less sanctified and vulnerable to the auto mechanic.” – Did I Kiss Marriage Goodbye? by Carolyn McCulley

“Men report that the number one reason they are choosing to marry later, if at all, is that sex without commitment is so widely available.” – Girls Gone Mild by Wendy Shalit, p. 15

“I’m willing to be obedient, as long as you order me to do what I was going to do anyway.” – Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card, p. 345

“When plan B gets all the attention, it becomes plan A.”  - Get Married by Candice Watters, p. 139

“Any God worth believing in could make up a better plan than the mess the world was in now.” – Shadow of the Giant by Orson Scott Card, p. 39

“She had the knowledge that she was small, but lacked the courage to be otherwise.” – A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith

“The time today’s singles have available for spiritual service is the same time the leisure and etnertainment industry demands from them.” – Get Married by Candice Watters, p. 34

“You and I do not have to be lost in the middle of our own stories.” – How People Change by Timothy Lane and Paul Tripp

“Why aren’t you married?”
….”But because I often lack a good, pithy answer to one of life’s mysteries, it feels like a tabloid reporter’s inquiry to unocver waht’s really wrong with me.” – Did I Kiss Marriage Goodbye? by Carolyn McCulley, p. 19

“A recent survey said more people under age 30 believe in flying saucers than believe they will receive a dime of Social Insecurity.” – Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, p. 156

“…we naturally conclude that human beings are inexpressibly complex creatures in whom great good and great evil often cohabit, sometimes in separate and well-insulated rooms and sometimes in an intimacy so deep and twisted and twined that we never get to see the one moral quality without the other.” – Not the Way It’s Supposed to Be: a Breviary of Sin by Cornelius Plantinga, Jr., p. 81

“Well, if not gold, there must be something else that interest you.”
“Learning.”
“Learning what? You already know so much.”
“I have everything to learn!” – Daughter of Fortune by Isabel Allende, p. 232

“The wealthy person who is ruled by his stuff is no more free than the debt-ridden consumer we have picked on thorughout the book.” – Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey, p. 220

“I suppose some women really do prefer career to family. But I wasn’t one of them.” – Get Married by Candice Watters, p. 14

“There should not be the sacrifice of oneself for another, because we were all created equally.” – Green by D. Malone, p. ix

“The dangers of premarital sex had been burned into my soul. And indeed, before the contraceptive pill, it was a risky enterprise for girls. But all that had clearly changed.” – The Spiral Staircase by Karen Armstrong, p. 10

“Guilt, I was told, usually sprang from misplaced pride, it might simply be chagrin that you were not as wonderful as you hoped.” – The Spiral Staircase by Karen Armstrong, p. 51

I’m not sure if you’ve noticed (okay, I’m sure you have), but our society is obsessed with sex.  Sex sells.  ”Adult” content primarily means sex, as if that’s what it means to be an adult.  Even children’s movies can’t seem to stay away from a little sexual innuendo or suggestive content.  Showing two people having sex or implying it is often the easy way out for movie directors, as it allows them to show a connection between the characters without having to work out another way to get that point across.

Of course, one of the main problems with this presentation of sexuality is that by-and-large, what is presented and promoted is sinful: sex outside of marriage, lusting, etc.  Not that that isn’t bad enough in and of itself, but there’s a greater issue.

The problem with this message isn’t just that it is fuels lust, but that it gives a false picture of what matters.  Believe it or not, life’s not about sex.  I’m sure sex is great and all (don’t confuse being a virgin with being asexual), but it’s not the end-all be-all even in it’s proper context, marriage. No wonder there are more and more people that are addicted to pornography.  They’ve been sold the idea that the good life=sex and they’ve bought it.

My message quite simply is, life is not about sex.

Photo by mikebaird