Collateral damage of sin is devastating

Collateral damage is a general term for deaths, injuries, or other damage inflicted on unintended targets. Sometimes we speak of civilian causalities of a military operation and those are viewed as collateral damage. It is so sad to see innocent people killed and thus hundreds are affected.

An example of collateral damage can be seen from the EF5 tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma, in 2013, killing 24 people and nine of those were children. Winds surpassed 210 miles an hour and everything in the tornado’s path was demolished. The collateral damage in that terrible storm was listed as two billion dollars. Schools were destroyed and dozens of businesses were demolished and thus incomes of those that worked there were affected. The collateral damage of the tornado was devastating.

Extreme collateral damage from earthquakes, fires, tsunamis and other weather forces have been documented through the years. Family members are lost, homes destroyed, schools wrecked, hospitals devastated and churches wiped off the map. Terrible times ensue when a and thousands of people’s lives are forever changed.

But think about the collateral damage of sin.

What about the collateral damage of drugs? A dabble in mind altering substances starts out as a small habit but with continued and more use turns into a constant habit and results in arrest or jail time. Was a job lost and a promising career ruined? Families and other relationships suffer and that is part of the collateral damage of what began as a little habit. The family’s financial status suffers because money is spent on drugs. One might just start to “dabble” but soon dependence develops; that habit takes a stronghold in that person’s life and those nearest and dearest are affected.

What about the collateral damage of pornography? It starts out as just a pastime. Innocent it may seem at first to the viewer yet it at times can lead to infidelity and divorce. Families are torn asunder. Further, when someone begins to regard pornography as an innocent pastime, are the risks, dangers, and effects of pornography assessed, particularly when it comes to children?

What about the collateral damage of gambling? “I have complete control” one might say. But after money is lost and deceit has run rampant, the family finds themselves without an income, without a home because it all was lost in gambling. The collateral damage extends to all family members; lack of trust, dissension, disgust and frustration are the results.

What about the collateral damage of gossip? It starts outs as innocent. They just go for coffee in the afternoon or a Coke at the drive-in. Soon someone has relayed some tidbit of information to another. The person they talked about is seen in a different light. No regard is given to the facts; the carrier of gossip just tells it, even if it is not true or even if some juicy bit is added. The result is a “tale” that someone spreads from one to another by whispers and innuendoes. The person talked about, their spouse, their children, mother and father are never viewed the same because someone has spilled “the goods” on another.

James had something to say about sin in its infant stages. He wrote: “… but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” (James 1:14) James wrote that sin all starts with evil desires and those desires are fed and nourished and soon they have grown into something that is devastating. Matthew Henry in his commentary on this passage wrote: “The origin of evil and temptation is in our own hearts. Stop the beginnings of sin, or all the evils that follow must be wholly charged upon us.” That habit, that activity, becomes a monster in our lives that leads to death.

My mother gave me this little saying many years ago and it sums up the collateral damage of sin very well. She said: “Sin always takes you further than you meant to go, keeps you longer than you meant to stay and costs you more than you mean to pay.”

Maybe before we indulge and entertain sin, we might stop and think of all the others that will be affected by our choices. The collateral damage of sin is devastating on many levels.

Judy Brandon is a Clovis resident. Contact her at: [email protected]