Day 155: Seductive Foolishness

Today's Reading: Proverbs 7-9

As teenagers in youth group, we put on a play called "The Choice." The stage was set with three doors. One was fiery red, one was made of gold and the third was a trashy, unkempt door. The play started with a seedy, "car-salesman" type figure dressed in a red tuxedo. By door number 2, the gold door, slept a man dressed in white, and by door number 3, the trashy door, slept a "hippie."

The man in the red tuxedo represented door number 1, the red door. He served as the scene setter, telling the audience that soon Common Joe would come and have to chose door number 1, 2, or 3.

As Common Joe arrived, the man in red threw him a sales pitch, offering him a world of pleasure, riches and fun. Soon the man in white for door number 2 awoke and warned Common Joe to not be deceived. He offered holiness, purity and fulfillment.

While Common Joe was troubling over whether to choose door number 1 or door number 2, the man in red brought out from door number 1 a woman dressed in very seductive red clothing, complete with very dark red lipstick and fishnet stockings.

Not to be outdone, the man in white brought out a beautiful young woman who was dressed modestly in white.

Common Joe struggled, being tempted by the woman in red and yet, knowing the woman in white would be the more righteous choice.

By the end of the play, Common Joe was so torn and confused, he decided to ask the hippie by door number 3 what he had to offer. The hippie was not a salesman at all; in fact, he was completely apathetic. He didn't care which door Common Joe chose. He just wanted to be left alone.

Common Joe chose door number 3, the door of no choice.

The lights dimmed, and when they re-lit, the hippie was now the salesman for door number one and the red dressed man was the hippie at door number 3.

The point of the story was that by not making a choice, we still make a choice.

Now I've told you this story for a reason.

As we read the book of Proverbs, we see Wickedness and Foolishness personified as a harlot, the lady in red. She is seductive and aggressive. She is hard to deny.

Wisdom comes across as the beautiful and pure woman in white.

But ask any young buck which he would truly prefer and he would tell you, "Give me the Victoria Secret Temptress any day."

Now here is the sad thing.

When tryouts were held for the youth group play, all the guys wanted to be the charismatic and "wicked" man in red.

And sadly, we gals were all hoping we had enough sex appeal to be chosen for the "Lady in Red."

Even though we knew the obvious choice for church youth group kids was the door number 2 cast, we wanted to dabble in the seduction.

I am grateful for the book of Proverbs which sees so clearly into the human heart, its temptations and its weaknesses.

The red whore is always very seductive.

The pure way of righteousness, though the better choice, is not at all the easy one.

We should be more surprised when we meet someone doing the right thing, instead of being shocked when we find out someone has made a poor choice.