Things I learned at the mall

If you are debating whether or not to have, or when to have kids, don't go to the mall. Amy and I are having a kid, and are really excited, but our recent trip to the mall gave us something to think about. Or rather worry about.

First there were the teenage girls wearing long belts for shorts and giving their breasts as much oxygen as possible. I guess these girls fear that if their breasts don't get enough oxygen, they'll turn blue or something. But that's really not true-they'll be just fine if fully covered. Nevertheless we really did feel compassion for these girls. Seriously.

Next we saw many dudes that looked like, well, like I would not want my kid looking. I'll never get the skin tight jeans that dudes wear these days. The jeans we saw even tapered at the bottom, just to make sure the ankles were included in the tightness.

We of course had ideas of how we wouldn't let our daughter out of the house looking like that and how our boy could buy those tight jeans with his own money. But I really discovered a lot more about myself than just future parenting strategies.

Amy and I were expressing the difference between compassion and prejudice. For the most part (our motives are never 100% pure), we felt compassion on these girls because they had fallen prey to a worldly picture of how girls should act, interact, dress, etc...Their lack of clothes expressed more than a fashion statement. Jesus had compassion on those who had no shepherd but the status quo.

For the lads, I saw their tight jeans and immediately judged them. Simply by their appearance and nothing else. My evaluation of them had nothing to do with their heart. I was concerned my child would one day look like them. This exposed to me how I was way different than Jesus. He hung around folks who didn't look socially acceptable. And he rebuked those who did look good on the outside.

So I had to repent and realize that while tight jeans are not my style, they are not inherently sinful. Not my taste, but not sinful like my own judgmental heart. Things I learned at the mall.