Such a Prude

 "So Maddy, give us the details," Janine teased playfully.  "Did anything happen on your date last night?"

"Yeah, tell us," the giggly girly group gushed.  "We want to hear all the juicy details."

"Sorry, I don't have anything much to report.  Chad and I, we just sat out under the stars on my parent's porch swing and talked."  Maddy answerd.

"Huh!?  What!?"  The girls chorused, "Are you a prude?"

Maddy chuckled, "I haven't known you all for long having just moved here not too long ago, so I guess I need to explain something to you.  It was only natural to feel some very nice vibes sparking between Chad and me but I want to exercise restraint; self control.  You see, girls, I'm a follower of Jesus Christ, so I want to honor Him and follow His way.  Not sure if you all will get this but I'll keep talking if you want  me to."

"Well," Janine, who seemed to be the spokeswoman for the group replied, "this is certainly DIFFERENT!  Not sure I'd want to follow His way but sure, let's hear the rest.  Can't do much harm, I suppose.  Girls are you all up for it?"

Sally stomped off but the rest stayed.  Sally knew what was coming as she'd been brought up like Maddy had been but rejected all that "prudishness" as she thought of it now.  She didn't have the time of day to listen to "old fashioned" nonsense.

The other girls watched Sally go then turned their attention back to Maddy, "OK, Maddy, carry on.  This could be good gossip too."

"To me, this is not a fad, not old fashioned and not being a prude."  Maddy explained.  "It's called not living to please ones' self but to have holy living instead that pleases God."

Maddy continued, "If a person belongs to Jesus, he or she has His Holy Spirit living within him or her.  The Holy Spirit can help a person to have the power and authority to have self-control and to live a more holy life, to please his or her Heavenly Father."

"Now I don't always follow well, " Maddy confessed, "as I have a will of my own, so don't go and think I'm a Miss-Goody-Two-Shoes or anything.  I do fail, I do make mistakes.  However, with the Lord's help I have pledged to live to honor my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, as much as possible.  This relates to dating as well."

"So is there a law against getting into 'juicy bits,'?  Jemma asked, snickering.

"Good question," Maddy said.  "I wouldn't exactly call it a law like one of the ten commandments, but it is pretty clear from the Bible, which terms it, "sexual immorality" that we need  to steer clear of it, live a holy life and only have sexual relations with our own husband or wife, as the case may be in a heterosexual bond.   Chad is not my husband, nor am I his wife, so with the Holy Spirit's help I will not engage in any touching or kissing or more with Chad or any other guy, until such a time as when I'm married to him or some other godly gentleman of similar beliefs."

"Am I making any sense, girls?"  Maddy smiled her question.

"Well," Janine interjeted, "Sort of, but it's not for me. I want to have all the fun I can get while it lasts.  I don't even think I want to get married."

Maddy sighed quietly to herself.  She'd have a lot more praying and work to do to bring these friends to Christ and under His authority.  Until then, she'd pray that she herself would stay true to her own pledge,  "So help me, God," she prayed fervently.

"Girls," we better get back to class; break time's over,"  Maddy directed.

Maddy's standard of 'holy living before  God', is certainly a foreign one in society today.  However, it also seems to have been the case, ever so long ago in Bible times.  Sadly, not much has changed with human nature.  Look at Acts 15, especially verses 27-29.  Read the whole portion to get the context, but in these verses pinpointed, there are a few things mentioned that the Gentile believers were to abstain from.  One of those listed was, "sexual immorality".

Sexual immorality was one of those sins that was taken lightly even back then.  In fact, it was often associated wth heathen, pagan practices.  Thus the Gentile believers, as seen in the book of Acts needed to realize, this was now unholy behavior to them and unseemly for a follower of Jesus Christ to engage in.  Instead, it was part and parcel of Christian living to be holy as God is holy.  We all do well to adhere to this, to be the salt and light in our own times even if we are mistaken for being "such a prude".

                                                      ~ERC  October 2021~

Based on Acts 15:1-29.