Campus CrossWalk Magazine: 2006-07 Winter Issue -- 30-Second Seduction

The program ends. My TV fades to black. Here it comes. Time for the commercial. Time for her.

It doesn’t matter what she sells. Sometimes it’s clothes. Now and then it’s food. Occasionally she even sells lumber. One day it was Jello. But it doesn’t matter. What’s important is that she’s there. She’s always there.

Actually what she sells isn’t a product; it is an idea. She doesn’t truly care if you buy something or not. In fact, it doesn’t matter to her if you spend any money at all. She’s there to plant a seed; to propose an idea. This idea is more powerful than deodorant, ham, or new cars. She rarely just comes right out and says it; instead, you have to listen for it. And, if you listen closely enough, you will hear her prompting, “You are almost there.”

“I don’t care if you buy what I’m selling. I just want you to feel important, to feel sexy, and to be powerful.

But here’s the problem -- you are not yet important, sexy, or powerful. You are not there yet. However, if you will buy this one thing, you can start to become what you desire. You are not buying ham, a new truck, or a nice watch. What you are buying is power. What you are trading cash for is importance. You are emptying your wallet for a bigger and better image. I don’t care for this product in my hand. I care for you. Your life isn’t yet where it should be. But I can help you get there…”

The commercial ends. She drifts away. The message remains.

Does one commercial diminish my life? Am I seduced in 30 seconds? Probably not. The real issue however is how often that message is shared. During one hour of primetime network TV there are an average of 18 minutes spent on advertisements and promos.[1] That is 36 ads/promos per hour.

Let’s say you average just 7 hours of primetime TV per week. In a typical year you will see over 13,000 TV ads and promos. And more often than not, she is there; over 13,000 times whispering her seductive proposal to you, “You can be more…”

Is it any wonder that if I don’t regularly feed on God’s word and strictly limit my intake of “her” message, then I will begin to look at you with a faulty set of lenses? According to her message, I see you as something to please me. I care about you only in that you can make me feel good. So I look at your body, not as a dwelling place for a soul, but as a sensual space for self gratification. And yes, her message is a breeding ground for addiction!

So many of our habits start off with an idea or thought. Paul urges us to take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Full blown addictions are more than just the result of bad thinking. But there can be no denying that they are fed by what we carry in our hearts and minds.

Let’s watch the ideas we accept, even unconsciously. And let’s purposefully seek God’s word first, before we acknowledge the words of others. Thirty seconds may not be long, but it is just enough time to plant a seed.

[1] See usatoday.com/life/television/news/2005-10-11-ad-glut_x.htm

Craig Altrock, D.Min. My wife Leslee and I currently serve with The Let’s Start Talking Ministry which mobilizes and sends hundreds of colleges students every year to share their faith and their lives in mission settings around the world. We live in Fort Worth, TX with our three boys Joshua (9), Matthew (6), and Andrew (3).