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The Price of Purity  

Imagine hearing this conversation…

"I was all excited—and then—not so excited."

"What do you mean?" I asked Timothy as I offered him a plate of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. 

"No secret that I love to read," he mumbled as he crunched one I'd left in the oven too long. 

"You're forever talking about your latest book," I teased. 

"And you know I like action novels, right?"

"Again, not exactly a secret."

"Well, I recently discovered this author—an ex-military guy that spins a story like few others. Gritty characters. Action that never lets up. And, of course, the good guys always win."

"I'm not seeing the problem here, Timothy," I said, unable to resist the stack of cookies myself. Here, Timothy grew thoughtful—nervous maybe—and he wolfed down the last of his original Toll House treat. And then the conversation took an abrupt turn.

"This year," Timothy blurted, "I've felt like God is calling me to focus on personal purity. And one phrase keeps echoing in my head: 'Purity—in all my thoughts, words and ways.'"

"Great goal, Timothy," I encouraged. 

"It's just that in these books I was reading, the language got rough. Tons of F-bombs. The more I read, the more uncomfortable I got."

"I see your point."

"Here I am having conversations with God about purity and then reading conversations that are anything but pure."

"Whatcha gonna do?" I ventured.

"It's what I already did. Took those books out of the house to a donation center. Bummer. I'll never know how the stories end." 

I wanted to say something wise, pithy even. But nothing came—until Timothy half whispered, "I guess purity comes with a price."

Guess so. 

Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
-Psalms 51:10


P.S. If you like action books, too, Timothy shared some Christian authors you might like:

  • Ted Dekker
  • Jerry Jenkins
  • Joel Rosenberg
  • Frank Peretti
  • Terri Blackstock
  • Amir Tsarfati

 

 

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Jon GaugerJon Gauger

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