Alright…last one. This is part four of the reasons why we need to abolish this fear of being called “judgemental” in 2024. Because all it’s doing is silencing those who should be speaking up, while enabling those who need to hear the Truth.
In this thrilling conclusion, I’m going to explain why you shouldn’t be afraid or look down on the Christians who YOU THINK are holier than thou. These might be the very same people who have a hand in saving your life.
Sure, some can be annoying. Some people don’t know the meaning of discretion, time and place. And when you really do love your sinful behavior, when you just want to relax, take it easy and not care about how God feels about every little thing…these Christians can be infuriating. I get it. So, let’s talk about it.
Last night, I got into a debate with an older woman about waiting till marriage to have sex. I told her about the peer pressure I faced and she sided with my old friends who encouraged me to have sex before marriage, saying, “well, I think they’re speaking to you from a place of practicality and common sense.”
Before I begin, allow me to make some points about faith. What is faith? People have written whole books about it, but for this essay, I want to focus on this notion. “Faith is having a “belief in something not yet seen.” (Hebrew 11:1)” Faith is believing in something that hasn’t happened yet. It’s believing in something that has happened, but you weren’t there to see it for yourself.
Alright…let’s begin.
The older woman I conversed with is a 60-something year old widow I befriended at the gym last year. We’ll call her, Stella. Stella seems to have a good heart. She lost her husband about three years ago. We text from time to time, keeping each other’s spirits up. And while she does claim to be Christian, we’ve had several conversations where it’s made clear that she’s very liberal and loose with her Christianity.
Last week, I flew to Colorado to attend my cousin’s graduation. With God on our side, it was definitely one for the books. And honestly…just what I needed.
Ever since she was a baby, my little cousin Allyssa has always been one of the most cherished persons in my life. Sometimes, I don’t even like to refer to her as my “cousin” because she’s something much more.
As many of you know, this year didn’t start off the greatest. One of my most cherished cousins was murdered and if that wasn’t bad enough…the proceeding funeral events were almost as painful.
When I came back to Tampa, I spent at least two weeks in unimaginable pain and anguish. To cope, I kept telling myself, “Rock, you’re not that important. You’re not that important. You don’t matter. No one cares about you. It’s just you.”
That’s just a complex I have, where it’s more comfortable to stay nestled in the belief that I’m on my own. Here, you’d have the common response of, “But Rock. People do love you.” But what good is their love if they never express it? How do you benefit from their love and affection if they don’t show or demonstrate it?
This one gets a bit political. I know it might sound like it’s unrelated to how Millennials date…but ladies and gents, most Millennials are now grown adults in their 30s. We pay attention to what’s happening in the news. If you don’t think the constant sex scandals haven’t played a part in the way we think…you’re sorely mistaken.
Here, I expound on the fifth of eight main points I’ve personally observed to help explain how one thing after another has sabotaged (ruined) my generation. And at the end of each section, I’ll try my best to provide a solution because, I know…these sound like excuses. But I haven’t given up. I still have faith.
The Hook-Up Culture (Non-Monogamous Dating)
Tinder (Dating Apps)
Cat-Calling and False Accusations
Gynocentrism – The Worship of Women
Brett Kavanaugh and Weaponizing Women
The Rise of the Manosphere
The Sisterhood
Leaving Christianity at the Door
This entry is a little different than my entry about Cat-Calling and False Accusations in that this one focuses on the bigger picture. It’s about the deliberate attempt to bring down a man and using a woman to do it. What happened with Brett Kavanaugh was just one clear example of many we’ve seen over the years. Aziz Ansari. Chris Hardwick. Tory Lanz. Gervonta Davis. Johnny Depp. It’s not just about the MeToo Movement, it’s not just about false accusations, it’s about how the culture is clearly using Women as a weapon to ruin and take down the men they don’t like.
Five days before Christmas, I learned that my 26-year-old cousin was shot and killed. This person wasn’t just any cousin. She wasn’t just any family member. Ever since she was a baby, she was like a little sister to me. And apart from her surviving sister, I don’t think I ever loved anyone more than Autumn.
This one delves into the criticism many have voiced about the “Mary Sue” and Hollywood continually pushing the “strong female protagonists” in which most of those women act like men.
These opinions…don’t worry, they aren’t feelings that I’m super passionate about because there’s not much I can do about it. But I have held them for a long time. Even when I was in film school, my instructors used to tell me, “Rock, you have to play the game to win it.”
Sometimes when more scholarly Christians toss around words like “Redemption” or “Sanctification” it can be a bit difficult to comprehend or understand what that looks like or what it is. What’s so appealing about it? Why should I care?
Seriously…when I was a kid, my parents used to talk about the “kingdom of heaven.” Then, I looked around the church and thought to myself, “No, Thank You!” That’s because I couldn’t understand what the Kingdom of Heaven was. Back then, they made it seem like “heaven” was this place where there was nothing but a bunch of stiff, pious, monks and nuns who don’t really do anything interesting.
It’s like being back in Advanced Algebra. When I asked when I would ever need to use things like the Quadratic Formula in real life? The teacher didn’t have an answer. And since I saw no benefit, I wasn’t motivated to learn. I didn’t care about getting better beyond that which was required to pass the class because…what’s the point?
I think it’s the same with concepts like “Redemption” or “Sanctification”. Now, to be completely honest. I was prompted to write about Redemption and encouraged by another website called, SigmaFrame. You should check it out, because Jack’s an awesome intellectual and the comments sections are always full of thinkers I’ve come to have a tremendous amount of respect for.
But after much reflection and ample prayer…I asked myself, who do I want to reach? Who’s my audience? Other knowledgeable Christians who are already striving to do what’s good in God’s eyes? I don’t think so.
Instead, my aim has always been on those who call themselves Christians but don’t know what Christ taught. I also target the agnostics who are on the fence, and the Christians who are indifferent towards the Truth because of terrible experiences they may have had with Christianity. If my aim is to help the layman to “embrace” the truth, I believe we have to talk to them at their level. So here goes…
This is a little embarrassing to admit because…as men, we’re told we have to be “masculine” and apparently everyone’s coming up with their own pre-conceived notions of what masculinity is…but if you know me, then you know honesty is forte.
This is about getting Likes or even Emojis for your work, posts, and social media. Essentially, it is “validation.” It’s cool to say things like, “I don’t NEED any validation”. Sure, sure.
The truth is…I don’t “NEED” it. But would I like it? Absolutely! Why does anyone post ANYTHING, if not to share and get some kind of reaction or validation back from the people who “follow” them. This isn’t a bad thing. We’re humans living in the age of technology. Once upon a time, we had local fairs and town squares. Now, we have social media.
Kevin Samuels used to say, “Y’all want a Boaz, but y’all not Ruth!” After reading the Book of Ruth for the 3rd time and taking the criticism into consideration, I had some thoughts here.
Points Discussed:
What Happens when People Do What’s Good in their Own Eyes
The Levite’s Concubine (Gibeah’s Crime) and how Women were Treated
Boaz as a Role Model for Men
Ruth as a Role Model for Women
Marriage and Divorce
A Biblical High-Value Man
Ruth MADE THE FIRST MOVE!
As always, I encourage everyone to read the Bible for themselves. Don’t just rely on the pastor or what someone told you the Bible says. Go to the source. Read it for yourself. Use your own mind to make conclusions about what you believe. God bless!
Stage In The Sky 