Junkfood and Low Riders: Is it Possible to Force Behavior?

New Mexico wants to make kids lose weight and they might use taxes to do it!  In order to raise funds to fight childhood obesity they want to have a tax added to the sale of televisions and video games that will go to this cause.   TVs and video games are often items that lead to less excercise and more weight.  Meanwhile in many cities laws have been passed to ban young men from wearing their jeans low and showing their boxers.  Many community leaders argue that this style of hip hop clothing is offensive and that men need to grow up!

Let me say up front that I am not supportive of kids being overweight and I personally do not like folks (male or female) showing their underwear in public.  Madonna wore her underwear on the outside long ago but now everyone seems to be doing it and I find it strange.  Yet I also admit we did some strange things in the name of fashion when I was growing up.  But what I wonder is can we really force people to follow a behavioral pattern through taxes and bans?  I know we have laws for many things that are needed but can we have a law or tax for everything?  I lived in Louisville when we did the smoking ban and I was in favor of that because second hand smoke is a reality.  Smokers say that the ban violated their rights and yet those of us who breath the smoke of others have rights too.  The talk moved from smoking to fast food.  Cities began to debate banning certain ways fast food is prepared to lead our nation into a healthier trend.  

I understand the reasoning and I honestly don’t know how I feel about the above issues.  I want kids to be healthy.  I want our society to have better values and be smarter.  Laws are good and often necessary to protect us from ourselves and yet I realize that in the end until a person wants to do better he or she will find a way to be ‘bad.’ 

This is a Christian dilema.  Within the church we want people to follow God.  We want Christians to act like Christians!  We want morality and we long for good decisions.  And yet we know we can’t force anyone to do right but we can sure pray, encourage, and hope for them to see the need to do just that.

 In various times in history Christian churches have tried hard to enforce morality and often fell into legalism.  Christians at times in various places have been rather harsh.  Yet arresting someone for not going to church on Sunday or reading their Bible probably will not work.  The best approach is to show people why they need Christ and to allow the love of God to change hearts.  And yet we have to speak out on issues and we do have to teach morality, ethics, and what it means to be a Christian.  But we can never force anyone to do what they need to do.  In the end they have to decide for themselves to follow Christ.  Converting by force has never worked.

So am I against such laws or taxes on saggy pants, Big Macs, and smoking?  I have no idea.  I’m not a politician and I’ll leave the merit of those laws to others.  Sometimes I like the attempts and other times I don’t.  Yet in the end I do know I can’t change anyone who doesn’t want to change.

Peace,

Derik