Do We Ever Grow Up?

I live in a 55+ community. Lately I've observed that, emotionally, many adults stopped maturing in Jr. High. I was in the fitness center of our complex the other day. A guy and his wife were working out together. He was the loud sort. You couldn't help but hear him all over the room. He proclaimed for the benefit of everyone how much weight he was lifting, how many sets & reps he was doing, and how it all was in spite of all the drinks he had consumed the night before. (he even named each one) Another man entered the room and was immediately challenged by the LM (loud mouth) to add weight to the max on the chest press machine.
Several times on the golf course I've noticed "mature" adult men trying to out-cuss each other. It sounds just like middle school kids who are trying to impress their peers with their "tough" vocabulary. They seem to think that dropping "f" bombs somehow makes them appear masculine. The sad thing is, I've heard women doing the same thing.
All of this makes me wonder if there is a sticking point in emotional maturity that some people never get past. Even among some evangelical pastors, I've noticed a penchant for using "tough" verbiage to show just how "with it" they are. All under the guise of connecting with the culture. Somehow I can't imagine Jesus comparing "tats" with some of His "bros" or rapping with them using the hip street lingo of the day. And I notice He had no problem communicating with every strata of culture. Paul may have been onto something when he penned Ephesians 4:29 & 5:3-6.

Comments

Allison Twigg said…
I hear you. An example of how people choose not to grow up is on TV (many places and many channels, I might add)...I happened to be looking for the Andy Griffith Show the other night and ran across something called "HIGH SCHOOL REUNION". Ridiculous. Won't be watching that sad sad show.
March 9, 2009 at 9:02 PM
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