It’s hard to get away from the top storyline of the week. Sadly, that storyline has nothing to do with the chemical weapons used on the innocents in Syria or the fact that Christians are still being killed for their faith on the streets of Egypt. Not, the thing that has everyone talking this week is Miley Cyrus and the VMA awards. There have been an array of opinions thrown out by network commentators, entertainment reporters and literally a plethora of bloggers. Honestly, this story resembles a train wreck; no one can look away, but everyone has an opinion about what caused the train to derail.
MTV isn’t a channel that we watch, so the VMA’s (Video Music Awards) is just another awards show that I usually hear about after the fact. This year, the only difference was that Facebook and Twitter literally exploded on Sunday night with people discussing the Miley Cyrus performance. I admit it… I was intrigued. For goodness sakes, what’s twerking? (This from the 45-year-old woman who got into trouble at 17 years old for watching Dirty Dancing!) Like most of America, when I saw what had become of Hannah Montana, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
Sadness filled my heart. When I heard that her “new” manager was the same person who had managed the come back career of Britney Spears, my heart sank deeper. Not sure if anyone remembers a few years back when Brittany took to the stage of the same awards show, a python draped over her half naked body. Then she shocked the audience again by giving Madonna a seductive kiss on the mouth.
Like Miley, this was her attempt at breaking out from under the umbrella of being a child star… and showing the world she was all grown up!
My perspective on this topic is not from the mother of a daughter, but rather someone who has dipped her toe in the entertainment industry long enough to see first hand how important it is to surround oneself with professionals and friends who are not bent on sacrificing the artist in order to re-brand them.
“Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals'” (1 Corinthians 15:33)
So what does this have to do with our kids and the choices that they make?
Quite honestly, a lot. Being a good parent is vitally important. Understanding upfront that being our kids’ best friend may be something that sounds awesome, but in reality, we have to be the one who’s job it is to shake up their world before bad decisions are made. Many times we have to be the uncool adult. The bad guy. The only person(s) that say, “NO!” “No”, to wearing that sexy outfit that “all the other girls are wearing”. “No” to dating at an age that we feel is too young. “No” to listening to music or watching movies that are not going to feed their spirit, but give the enemy a foothold into their lives.
And, “No” to hanging out with people who the Holy Spirit moves us to see as being bad influences.
When our kids are home, their decisions are a bit easier to oversee. But when they leave the protection of our home…our eyes…our rules… that’s when trouble can happen. It’s so important to make sure the people who they spend time with away from us are like minded people. Who we choose to befriend matters. Those relationships can help build us up into who God wants us to become. They can also have a devastating affect on us. They can lead us down paths that will spiritually kill us. God’s word specifically tells us to be mindful with whom we associate. This is yet another lesson we can take from poor Miley Cyrus.
“Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.” Proverbs 13:20
Lisa Strnad is a weekly contributing writer/blogger to What’s in the Bible? and JellyTelly. She has been a homeschooling mom of two, who works independently in Christian media in the areas of writing, promotions and marketing. She lives with her husband and children in Nashville,TN. Follow her personal blog posts on Talking Like A Girl.
