The Cut..........WHO CARES!!!!
I am somewhat embarrassed to admit this but I just finished watching the second episode of The Cut, a new reality show on CBS where contestants compete in various challenges involving style and creativity to impress designer Tommy Hilfiger in order to win a position within the Hilfiger design empire.
Last week the challenge was to design a billboard in Times Square. Tonight’s challenge was to customize a Lincoln Navigator for a celebrity. In a separate challenge two of the contestants were chosen and given the opportunity to go to Los Angeles and interview celebrities on the red carpet for Entertainment Tonight.
What strikes me as so repulsive (that is the only word I can think of to describe it) is the way in which Mr. Hilfiger spoke of these celebrities. It was as though these people were to be venerated and worshipped. “You must speak to them on their level” he said. He also talked of how hard it is to please the refined taste of celebrities because they are so wealthy they can have whatever they want.
What is wrong with this picture? I believe the sign of a sick society is one which admires all the wrong people for all the wrong reasons. We have television shows, magazines, and websites all devoted to following celebrities and their tastes, but what about those people in our society who we often take for granted but who deserve our appreciation and admiration such as, doctors, teachers, soldiers, and most importantly Godly parents. The services of these are a necessity. Ask the person with cancer or a serious illness who is more important to them, their doctor, or Tom Cruise. Sure we give lip service to the “unsung heroes” but as with anything in life our actions speak much louder than our words.
Don’t get me wrong I enjoy a “good” movie or television show, the problem is the importance we have placed upon their stars. Were a person from some obscure Amazon tribe to step into our culture today they would think our celebrities were some sort of deities. It is important that we remember that these celebrities are mere humans who are equally as accountable to God as the greeter at you local Wal-Mart. When we are ushered into the presence of God one day there will be no such thing as status or celebrity.
Another thing which I find disturbing is the emphasis placed upon “style” as evidenced in The Cut. Only a culture with a lack of moral clarity could become obsessed with style. Think about it. Does style matter to those living in the poverty of the third world. I wonder where style ranks on the priority list of those affected by the tsunami in Indonesia. Tommy Hilfiger’s design empire is a multi-billion dollar corporation. Amazing! A person could make that kind of money simply by choosing the right color fabric and pairing it up with just the right pattern to please a group of people whose taste changes as often as the weather. When many people in the world are happy just to have clothing we are a society that judges a person’s character by the style of their wardrobe. Style is by its very nature self-defeating. It is not static. You don’t get it and keep it. It is not an asset. It does nothing to make a person nobler and really does nothing for the greater good of society as a whole. In fact style and sacrifice for the greater good don't seem to mix. In fact most people who fall into its trap convey one message to the world and that is; “Hey, look at me I am self-absorbed!”
I like to look at this life from the perspective of the casket. On that day it will not matter whether or not I was stylish. That in fact will be the least of anyone’s concern. I have never seen Joan Rivers doing a “Best and Worst Dressed Funerals” special.
In closing I am reminded of the words of Jesus in Luke 12 when he was asked to resolve an inheritance dispute between two brothers. Jesus told the man “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” The “things” of this life amount to nothing in the end. They are not the essence of life.
I am currently reading Don’t Waste Your Life by John Piper and his words have driven this point home as well. To live your life apart from the one purpose God has created you for, that being to glorify Him, results in a wasted life. That is scary! It is entirely possible to live your entire life and have nothing of value to show for it. Maybe in our minds we would think otherwise but remember we are not the determiners of value, God is. Only that, which we do for the glory of God, whether at home, work, church, etc., has any lasting and eternal value. The rest is just “rubbish” as Paul so succinctly put it (Phil. 3:8).
God Bless
Duane
Last week the challenge was to design a billboard in Times Square. Tonight’s challenge was to customize a Lincoln Navigator for a celebrity. In a separate challenge two of the contestants were chosen and given the opportunity to go to Los Angeles and interview celebrities on the red carpet for Entertainment Tonight.
What strikes me as so repulsive (that is the only word I can think of to describe it) is the way in which Mr. Hilfiger spoke of these celebrities. It was as though these people were to be venerated and worshipped. “You must speak to them on their level” he said. He also talked of how hard it is to please the refined taste of celebrities because they are so wealthy they can have whatever they want.
What is wrong with this picture? I believe the sign of a sick society is one which admires all the wrong people for all the wrong reasons. We have television shows, magazines, and websites all devoted to following celebrities and their tastes, but what about those people in our society who we often take for granted but who deserve our appreciation and admiration such as, doctors, teachers, soldiers, and most importantly Godly parents. The services of these are a necessity. Ask the person with cancer or a serious illness who is more important to them, their doctor, or Tom Cruise. Sure we give lip service to the “unsung heroes” but as with anything in life our actions speak much louder than our words.
Don’t get me wrong I enjoy a “good” movie or television show, the problem is the importance we have placed upon their stars. Were a person from some obscure Amazon tribe to step into our culture today they would think our celebrities were some sort of deities. It is important that we remember that these celebrities are mere humans who are equally as accountable to God as the greeter at you local Wal-Mart. When we are ushered into the presence of God one day there will be no such thing as status or celebrity.
Another thing which I find disturbing is the emphasis placed upon “style” as evidenced in The Cut. Only a culture with a lack of moral clarity could become obsessed with style. Think about it. Does style matter to those living in the poverty of the third world. I wonder where style ranks on the priority list of those affected by the tsunami in Indonesia. Tommy Hilfiger’s design empire is a multi-billion dollar corporation. Amazing! A person could make that kind of money simply by choosing the right color fabric and pairing it up with just the right pattern to please a group of people whose taste changes as often as the weather. When many people in the world are happy just to have clothing we are a society that judges a person’s character by the style of their wardrobe. Style is by its very nature self-defeating. It is not static. You don’t get it and keep it. It is not an asset. It does nothing to make a person nobler and really does nothing for the greater good of society as a whole. In fact style and sacrifice for the greater good don't seem to mix. In fact most people who fall into its trap convey one message to the world and that is; “Hey, look at me I am self-absorbed!”
I like to look at this life from the perspective of the casket. On that day it will not matter whether or not I was stylish. That in fact will be the least of anyone’s concern. I have never seen Joan Rivers doing a “Best and Worst Dressed Funerals” special.
In closing I am reminded of the words of Jesus in Luke 12 when he was asked to resolve an inheritance dispute between two brothers. Jesus told the man “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” The “things” of this life amount to nothing in the end. They are not the essence of life.
I am currently reading Don’t Waste Your Life by John Piper and his words have driven this point home as well. To live your life apart from the one purpose God has created you for, that being to glorify Him, results in a wasted life. That is scary! It is entirely possible to live your entire life and have nothing of value to show for it. Maybe in our minds we would think otherwise but remember we are not the determiners of value, God is. Only that, which we do for the glory of God, whether at home, work, church, etc., has any lasting and eternal value. The rest is just “rubbish” as Paul so succinctly put it (Phil. 3:8).
God Bless
Duane
posted by Duane @ 10:20 PM
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