Classic cars bring on a case of lust
I have just returned from a street rod show, and I'm obsessing
over a completely restored, beautiful 1955 Oldsmobile convertible.
I want to drive that car forever, but if I can't, I'll just have
to settle for being a poor man. Some might say the feeling that comes over me when I think
about that car is lust. Most Americans don't deal very well with
lust, and preachers are simply too embarrassed to talk about such
earthy tendencies. But that 1955 Oldsmobile convertible is the
kind of automobile that drives some people into a daze. But for me, this feeling was more about commitment. I want
to give myself to this car: my wallet, my sense of fun, my longing
for the good life, my pursuit of eternity - all suddenly and unreasonably
tied up in that red-and-white giant at the street rod show. We all know Jesus would not approve of those people at the
car show with such strong desires for cars. But that doesn't stop
them. People at the "Back to the Fifties" car show last
week in St. Paul, Minn., saw more than 9,000 cars, beautiful machines
that someone has worked on for hundreds of hours. Some have been
souped up into hot rods, while others have been returned to their
original splendor. All are unique and gorgeous. Every once in awhile at the show, a particular person would
suddenly stop along the center roadway, turn to his companions
and point to a car parked nearby. His party would coalesce, chat
for a moment and then begin moving through the crowd. Of course,
they would stop at the car and appreciate it. They say things
such as, "How would you like to have that in your garage?"
"Man, I'll bet that car will move OK." "Bet it's
quick and smooth, too." These statements could be interpreted as lustful. But as I
said earlier, for car owners, this feeling is more like a marriage.
We want to form a partnership with that automobile - we want to
blindly give our life to that vehicle, no questions asked. Lust is a funny thing. Of all the sins, it's the only one that
can be committed just thinking about it. You don't have to actually
make a move. You don't have to buy a street rod. All you have
to do is think about it - that's lust. I'm thinking about owning
that 1955 Oldsmobile even though I don't have the money and probably
never will. Still, I imagine it over and over. I know that is
a sin - one that I will confess that to my pastor - but right
now I can't stop. The New Testament says if a man lusts after a woman in his
heart, he has already committed adultery. I remember the first
time I read that passage, I was outraged. The whole concept seemed
so patently unfair. Here I was being a nice guy - just thinking
that a woman was attractive and perhaps a bit sexy. I knew at
the time that I would never act on my desires - I had made sacred
promises and I innocently was appreciating the beauty in a person
and then moving on with my life. But some pastor or professor explained to me at a vulnerable
point in my life that if I continued to think about a person,
or a car, sooner or later I was going to make a move that would
create a negative impact in my life. That's the sinister side
of lust. Oh, yes, at first lusting is so much fun. Your eyes are mesmerized
as you look over the body of a car, the frame, the energy in the
mechanics and the slick movements that would carry a person down
the road. Some people fall into a trance. Some collapse under
the emotions. Some simply lose control and commit their lives.
Suddenly, the car owns them. So what's the answer? And where is the strong medicine that
will flush lust from our lives forever? The knee-jerk answer is to wipe out all things men and women
might lust after. That, of course, is impossible. The second technique
is for people to learn to recognize when they are lusting and
to run like champions away from anything that makes their heart
beat faster. As for me, I've still got my eye on that red and white 1955
Oldsmobile convertible.
Clark D. Morphew
Posted For June 26, 1999