How Jersey Shores Helped Me Understand the Love of Christ

Yep. That's right. Odd, I know. But let me explain (or at least give it a try).

See, I was watching Jersey Shore for the first time tonight (I had only seen some clips of it on comedy shows and such before). And I was watching it I, of course, was a bit shocked. I'll fully admit that I grew up a sheltered girl from the farmlands of the Midwest, but I've since seen quite a bit of the world. And yet, watching Jersey Shores I was still left with my mouth gaping open as the girls bickered about the dumbest things, the boys hooked up with girls they'd met for the first time just hours before, friends failed to stand up and defend each other, etc.

Anyway, I just kind of brushed it off and went on with my night.

Then, as I was taking a shower (because all good thinking happens while in the shower. Fact.), I started thinking about it again. For a long time I've been questioning what it means to be a Believer and what it means to be loved by Christ. And maybe, just maybe this is part of it (because I know I'll never understand the full of it in this lifetime!!). I've been hurting for a while, thinking to myself that if God really loved me that he would fix everything...not just in my life, but in the lives of all His people. But maybe part of being loved by Christ is being aware. I feel as though the more I grow to know Jesus, the more my heart hurts...but I think the reasons my heart hurts changes. My heart hurts less often because someone was mean to me or I didn't get my way and my heart starts hurting more often for the poor, oppressed, and needy. Maybe that's part of what it means to be loved by Christ. I think less of myself and more about what His heart hurts for.

I'm DEFINITELY NOT saying I have it all figured out or that my heart is selfless all the time (heck, even part of the time). But as I watched Jersey Shore tonight and saw the selfish actions, I realized how unaware they are of world around them. They live in a world of finding gratification for themselves no matter what the cost might be to the people around them. I think as we grow to know and love Christ we become aware of the community and world around us. We begin to think about our actions and how they affect others. It may still make little or no sense, but we see it, we respond to it, we attempt to live out love even though we fail miserably.

It's starting to make sense a little bit. This is why we question...to look for answers.