Jesus Christ Blog

One of my friends/buyers emailed me a video that she said was the funniest thing she had
ever seen. She asked me to share it with all my friends  because they would love it.
I started watching it expecting it would indeed by funny.  It turned out to be a very nasty, inappropriate video that degraded women, marriage and intimacy.

I didn’t say anything to her but I did not forward the video.  But, there was a time
that I can remember when I would have found this video funny and gladly shared it with, at least, “select people”…..those people who I prejudged would put their beliefs and faith aside for a moment and laugh at this very crude video.  Plus then I could have joked to them about
how funny it was and we all get a big laugh, which I would have enjoyed because it would
of kind of made me the center of attention since I was the one sharing the video.

Several things about this incident are important for me to note.

First, I am embarrassed that at one time, regardless of what I “thought” my faith was,
 I would have gladly shared this filth to get attention. But I am relieved now that I know
better.

Second, I realized that when I would have sent other inappropriate things and jokes, etc., to
friends, in the past I was very negatively influencing them.  The reason I know that now is
that when I  got this email video last week, I wanted to impress the person who sent it to
me because it was an important buyer. So I felt a lot of pressure to forward it. I guess
my point is, I never realized how peer pressure and my actions still today can have a
very negative effect on those I know. I always thought peer pressure was only for teenagers……not so.

Third, I am disappointed that I did not say something to the person who sent me that
video this time. I should have said please don’t send me anything like that again
because it is offensive. I was afraid saying that might somehow negatively effect our professional relationship. I feared worse case, if I embarrassed her, she would try to
punish me somehow through work.

I know Jesus is disappointed in me as well for not speaking up. I could have done it in
a very low key, quiet and soft way to try to avoid embarrasing her. It might have been
good for her to hear someone tell her the truth. If I had it to do over, I would speak to
her about it. But this opportunity has passed and I probably won’t even see her again
until next summer at a trade convention.

I am going to pray about this so that hopefully the next time I have an opportunity to
show my faith, I won’t take the coward’s way out.