Is the World Comfortably Abiding in Your House?

A stubbornly resistant cold/virus has held me housebound for nearly a week now. Because there's not much else I can do but rest, I've had time to surf through cyberspace, and to scroll through the blogs of other Christian women. It's been wonderful to see the threads of Christian virtue woven through the writings of so many good ladies and young women.

It's always a good thing to try and imagine what you would do should the Lord Jesus Christ stop in for an unannounced visit. It helps to assess what one has in her home and whether or not it should remain there.

Yet I am troubled... troubled by a book. A book that I've seen highly praised by those who have read it and by those who have only heard about it yet cannot wait for a quite moment to sink their minds into its pages.

Many blogs I've seen have posted a picture of the book's front cover; and as soon as I saw its title I determined in my heart not to buy it and not to read it, ever! Maybe the information stored within its chapters would be quite worthy of my time. It may be chock full of applicable principles. But its title speaks of a separation issue right off the bat. You're curious about the title, right? Here it is, "Passionate Housewives Desperate for God." I think if all of us are honest, we'd have to admit that it brings to mind a less than virtuous television program—a sitcom that's worse than the worst, revealing and reveling in the ugliest traits a woman could possess. "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." A perfect verse to describe the television program I'd rather not mention—it's that bad.

Why would an author who says God is her Father find it necessary to look to the world to title the book she, no doubt, labored over for months and months? Does not the Scripture exhort God's children, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." Could it be the perfect will of God that the title of one's book conjure up polluted images of the world in the mind of the reader? Could it be acceptable to the Lord that one blogger mixed up the title's adjectives while writing her intentions to read this short volume? There's something very wrong about this, I think.

It's always a good thing to try and imagine what you would do should the Lord Jesus Christ stop in for an unannounced visit. It helps to assess what one has in her home (magazines, catalogues, DVDs, CDs, etc.) and whether or not it should remain there. And if He did come for a visit, each one of us would greet Him with much adoration and deep reverence, wouldn't we? But would we be ashamed at some of the items lying about the living room? Would we hurry to change the radio station? And what would we do if "Passionate Housewives Desperate for God" was displayed on the coffee table directly in front of the place where the Lord was seated? I can hear it now: "It's not what you think, Lord, really. The title is different, it just sounds the same, but it's not the same thing as that television program. It's this book about Christian living, and it's really good, but it's not anything like that show. I know it looks that way—my unsaved neighbor thought the same thing—but it's not, really. Here, I'll just hide it for now." Shame. Not because of its contents (like I said, it may be a very good book), but because its title is equated with the wicked world. The unsaved around us should be able to plainly see the difference Christ has made in our lives. May it never be said of the professing Christian woman that the world comfortably abides in her house.

But why should we pretend that Christ may pay us an announced visit? There's really no need to merely imagine His divine presence. He is here, right now. Remember what the Lord said to His children, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." His all-seeing eye inventories the life of the Christian every single second. My life, your life. Have you anything you'd rather He not find? Is there something in your home, such as the above-mentioned book, that just doesn't seem right? Get rid of it. There's an abundance of good, unquestionable reading material out there for the Christian woman's betterment. To end this post, I will leave you with Scripture, "Abstain from all appearance of evil." I Thessalonians 5:22. As for "Passionate Housewives Desperate for God"? I'll never buy it, I'll never read it, ever. No apologies given!


Sincerely in Christ,

Mary Engesetter


Author Info: Mary Engesetter is a happily married mother of three, writer, Sunday school teacher, church secretary, business owner, lover of nature and natural medicine, and, most importantly, child of God. She records her thoughts and observations about life through the keyboard and camera at her blog entitled "The Way It Is."