A father of some teenage children had the family rule that they
could not attend PG-13 or R rated movies. His three teens
wanted to see a particular popular movie that was playing at
local theaters. It was rated PG-13.
The teens interviewed friends and even some members of their
family's church to find out what was offensive in the movie. The
teens made a list of pros and cons about the movie to use to
convince their dad that they should be allowed to see it.
The cons were that it contained ONLY 3 swear words, the ONLY
violence was a building exploding (and you see that on TV all
the time they said), and you actually did not "see" the couple
in the movie having sex - it was just implied sex, off camera.
The pros were that it was a popular movie - a block buster.
Everyone was seeing it. If the teens saw the movie then they
would not feel left out when their friends discussed it. The
movie contained a good story and plot. It had some great
adventure and suspense in it. There were some fantastic special
effects in this movie. The movie's stars were some of the most
talented actors in Hollywood. It probably would be nominated
for several awards. Many of the members of their Christian
church had even seen the movie and said it wasn't "very bad."
Therefore, since there were more pros than cons, the teens said
they were asking their father to reconsider his position on just
this ONE movie and let them have permission to go see it.
The father looked at the list and thought for a few minutes. He
said he could tell his children had spent some time and thought
on this request. He asked if he could have a day to think about
it before making his decision.
The teens were thrilled, thinking: "Now we've got him! Our
argument is too good! Dad can't turn us down!" So, they
happily agreed to let him have a day to think about their
request.
The next evening the father called in his three teenagers, who
were smiling smugly, into the living room. There on the coffee
table he had a plate of brownies. The teens were puzzled. The
father told his children he had thought about their request and
had decided that if they would eat a brownie then he would let
them go to the movie. But just like the movie, the brownies had
pros and cons.
The pros were that they were made with the finest chocolate and
other good ingredients. They had the added special effect of
yummy walnuts in them. The brownies were moist and fresh with
wonderful chocolate frosting on top. He had made these
fantastic brownies using an award-winning recipe. And best of
all, the brownies had been made lovingly by the hand of their
own father.
The brownies only had one con. He had included a little bit of a
special ingredient. The brownies also contained just a little
bit of dog poop. But he had mixed the dough well - they
probably would not even be able to taste the dog poop and he had
baked it at 350 degrees so any bacteria or germs from the dog
poop had probably been destroyed.
Therefore, if any of his children could stand to eat the
brownies which included just a "little bit of crap" and not be
affected by it, then he knew they would also be able to see the
movie with "just a little bit of smut" and not be affected.
Of course, none of the teens would eat the brownies and the smug
smiles had left their faces. Only Dad was smiling smugly as they
left the room. Now when his teenagers ask permission to do
something he is opposed to, the father just asks, "Would you
like me to whip up a batch of my special brownies?"
. that's how the world sees all this. it does no harm after all it just affects them. the Bible says a little leaven leavens the whole loaf . so does a little sin hurt us ?
Last edited: Sep 25, 2015