How I'm Responding to Target

If you haven't followed the news or live in another country, you might not be aware of the controversy regarding Target's latest partnerships and pride/trans-centered clothing line. I'm not here to dive into these details but to share how I believe Christian women should respond to companies making bold choices against God and His word.

At the center of these controversies are 3 main problems:

• "Tuck-friendly" swimsuits and garments that are aimed at children who desire to alter the bodies that God has given them in His image
• The over-the-top pushing of gay-'pride'-related merchandise that is front-and-center in their stores and has an emphasis on children's collections
• Partnering with a satanic graphic artist who creates satanic merchandise

My account, Weightlosshero, has two chief aims: to share my faith in Jesus Christ and to help women get healthy from the inside out. I don't usually dabble in anything in these arenas, but I had a particular burden to do so for 3 reasons:

1. In the past, I have partnered with Target by agreeing to sell my book there, promoting products via linking, and talking about my love for their store.
2. I think that Christian women should be bold in talking about how to walk out their Christian faith with respect to significant issues like this that come into our lives.
3. I believe that many well-intended Christians are boycotting Target, which I agree with, but are missing a significant step in the process (which I will explain below).

I also want to be clear that my position on this topic comes from someone who is a Christian wife and mother and bases my entire life on the truth of God's Word. I believe that God made humans male and female (Gen 1:27) and that no other genders exist. I believe marriage is to be between one man and one woman (Gen 2:24). I also agree with God that homosexuality is a sin against God and one of the few sins that He refers to as an 'abomination' (Lev 20:13).

In addition to all of this, I believe that as a Christian, it is not loving to turn the other way and ignore these issues, but it is the loving thing to love your neighbor well by telling them the truth! I have friends that are gay that I love dearly...but I also love them enough to tell them the truth about their sin!

The Bible tells us that to be friends with the world is to be at enmity with a holy, loving God! (James 4:4). That being said, I do not plan to continue partnering with Target, whether linking their merchandise or helping their profits by spending money in their stores.

Partnering with Evil

I am, generally, not one to seek to find things 'wrong' with companies or take extreme stances when we see evil from worldly organizations. We live in a fallen, sinful world, and if we started boycotting every company that did something sinful, we wouldn't have places to shop. I am currently typing on an Apple MacBook and do not doubt that Apple has evil agendas as a company. Despite that, I still plan to continue to use my Apple Macbook (unless a Christian alternative is created).

The most significant difference with Target is the strong emphasis on promoting that which is evil (my definition, here, is a biblical one that refers to anything that is against God) and an even strong emphasis on leading children to that evil.

The Bible is clear in Mark 9:42 that "whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung around his neck and he were thrown into the sea." Yikes. 

As mothers, The most significant issue we face is that even walking into Target may lead our little ones' astray. As mothers, we are called to guard and guide our children. I don't know about you, but I don't want to explain to my 4-year-old why one would need a 'tucking' swimsuit in the first place. I want to protect their innocence as long as possible, so I will no longer take my children into a Target store.

Since this latest issue began, I do understand that Target has made some attempts to rectify the problems, but only because they have experienced threats and not because they agree that it is wrong. I was glad to see that they severed their partnership with the Satanist, but many of the problems mentioned still exist.

The Bottom Dollar

The only reason for Target to move in a more 'woke' direction is because they believe that, by doing so, they will increase their bottom dollar. We should remember that Target is a big business, one of the largest retailers in the world, and cares about profit more than it could ever care about people. I also believe that other large retailers are watching Target to determine their next move with respect to promoting similar merchandise in their stores.

The bottom line is this: when we pull our support, they will pull their merchandise because Target needs Christian, conservative women to continue to shop there. I believe that we are responsible for showing Target, and all major retailers, that we care about their support of evil agendas and that we will stop supporting them when they target (pun not-intended) our children.

It Doesn't End There

I agree with the decision to boycott Target until we see change...but I don't believe our responsibility ends there. We need to be BOLD and speak the truth in the face of growing lawlessness. We also should pray for the LGBTQ community and anyone who professes to be a Satanist. These people are lost in the darkness and desperately need light!

It's one thing to stop supporting, but it's another thing to go and share the gospel with ALL and to lift up these lost people/companies in prayer.

The gospel of Jesus Christ is simple yet profound: we are ALL born as sinners who are completely against God and are destined for eternal torment in hell. There was no way to bridge the existing gap between man and God. But God, being rich in mercy, sent his one and only son (who was fully God and fully man) to walk the earth, live a perfect life, and die on the cross in our place to make us in right-standing with Him. 

We must turn from our sins and repent! To be saved, we only have to turn from our sins, profess our faith in Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice for us, and profess with our mouths that Jesus Christ is Lord. This salvation work, which is a gift from God, will always result in a changed life that goes from loving sin to hating it! It will produce someone who is not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ and wants to tell everyone about this beautiful gift that they have received!

If you have not confessed your sin and trusted in Jesus Christ, may I encourage you that today is the day of salvation! We are not promised tomorrow! Turn from your sin and place your faith in Jesus today.

Last, my DMs are open if you have any questions about what it means to be a Christian. It would be a great joy to walk you through what the Bible says about who you are without Christ and what it means to turn to Christ.