(I wrote the following article in September of 2006. How some things have changed. But others have stayed the same. Enjoy this glance into the past. Things have only escalated since then.)

           I was so excited I had to stop the car. I couldn't believe my eyes, so I pulled into the station and up to the pump. Quickly I reached into my back pocket and pulled out my wallet. Carefully I selected a credit card and inserted it into the waiting slot. Two dollars and forty-three cents for a gallon of gas, Amazing! I was so excited to see gas at such a good price that I couldn't resist filling up, even though my tank was still more than half full.

           Then a thought struck me. About a year ago gas was hovering around $2.40 a gallon and I was complaining at every opportunity. When you're used to paying $1.80 for gas, of course you'll complain when the price goes up to $2.40. But, when you're paying $3.00 a gallon, suddenly $2.43 looks pretty good. It's all a matter of perspective. When the prices are on the way up we don't like what we see. But we are always thankful to see them go down. Slow, but sure, is the criterion for what is considered normal change. Two steps forward and one step back; a little compromise here and there to make the change acceptable.

           The gas companies are not the only ones who employ this technique. The master of sin, the prince of this world, uses this same technique of compromise in the world around us, and if we let him, in our lives as well.

           TV violence is a good example. I recently watched an old rerun of the 80's TV show Knight Rider. I was startled by how innocent and non-violent this show was even when comparing it with commercials on TV today.

How did we arrive at this place; two steps forward and one step back? A little compromise here, a little compromise there, until people were willing to accept what is being offered. Slowly push things to the limit then step back a little and wait.

           Just as we become desensitized to high gas prices, we can become desensitized to the effects of sin all around us. Oh, it's not that bad, we say. But as we look at the history of the world, things have become steadily worse.

           I can't help you with the gas prices but I can encourage you to be faithful against spiritual compromise. Read Proverbs 4 today!