Tangerine Tango. Really?

When I opened Internet Explorer this morning and my homepage came up, I was informed that the "color of 2012" is something called Tangerine Tango. Really? "They" say it will look great on any skin tone, but after seeing a picture, I'm not so sure. What do you think?

What is it about fads? I don't understand how someone could look at that shade of orange and say, "That would look great on everyone!" I can just imagine a year of women walking around looking like circus clowns because some apparently colorblind guy said it looked good so that's the only lipstick shade we'll be able to find in the stores.

Or what about the Justin Bieber haircut? Thank God he finally cut it! Seeing all those shaggy headed guys with their ears covered up has been driving me CRAZY!!!! Or what about the pants hanging down thing? I'm not sure if that qualifies as a fad anymore because it's stuck around for so long (probably because, as I've been told, it originated in jail, where you can't have a belt), but I personally still think it looks ridiculous. I don't need to know what kind of underwear anyone else is wearing, thank you. Honestly, I want to carry a big box of belts with me everywhere I go and pass them out to those guys, except that some of them actually use a belt to hold them BELOW their rear ends. Explain that to me!!!

Here's the thing I don't get about fads. Some  person we know nothing about decides one day that parachute pants look cool. Or that ugly haircuts are awesome. Or that bright orange is the best color for every skin tone. And everyone just goes along with it. Whether it looks stupid or not, everyone just decides for the moment that this is absolutely the best thing ever, knowing that next year it won't be "in" anymore. What is up with that? What happened to variety being the spice of life? What happened to personal style? The next time I see a feather in someone's hair I might just scream.

So why is it that we, as a society, can follow the whim of every nameless fashion guru and jail thug, but we reject the eternal, flawless Word of God? We question it and debate it, scrutinize it and edit it. We rebel against it and choose to conform to the way of the world instead. (Romans 12:2)  Unlike the unknown people who choose what you're going to wear this year, God is perfectly clear about who He is. The first time He ever told someone about His character, He was speaking to Moses when He said, "The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin." (Exodus 34:6-7) He also said in Malachi 3:6 that "I, the LORD, do not change." He is steadfast. He doesn't do fads. Just like fads and the people who dictate them, "the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever." (Isaiah 40:8)

How does God's way look, then? It's not easy, but it's simple. Jesus came not just to teach us the way of God, but to show us. And He summed it all up when the Pharisees asked Him, "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" (Matthew 22:36)  "Jesus replied, 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.'" (Matthew 22:37-39)

So there it is. God's way is love, always love. It never changes. It won't look different next year. He won't change the rules suddenly or expect something else from you. It's always love, from the beginning of time until the moment you read this and beyond, God's way will always be love, because "God is love." (1John 4:16) If you want to know exactly what that means, there's a whole Book just waiting for you to ask. But just to give you an idea,

"If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.

If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails." (1Corinthians 13:1-8)

Father, thank You that You never hide Yourself from me. Thank You that You want me to know You and to love Your way. Teach me today what love really looks like. Help me to give you even more attention than I give to the fleeting fashions of this world. Thank You, Lord, that You are perfect and You never change.

In His steadfast love,
Amy



copyright Amy Wallace, 2011