It's so common in today's oversexualized culture to not even notice things that are destroying our dignity and leading our hearts away from purity. From seductive women on billboards to the normalization of watching porn, society tells us that we should be able to partake in whatever level of sexual activity we desire, that anything less than that is impeding on our "sexual freedom."

If there is somebody calling us out on our faults and calling us up as people of character and dignity, our response is immediately to get on the defensive side and remind them, "You do you, and I'll do me," "Stop imposing your morals on everyone else," "It's my life, not yours." Then we retract telling our stories and isolate ourselves from those who call us to be better.

Have you ever thought that maybe we don't want to listen, not because they're wrong, but because they are right? We are afraid of being called out of our comfort zones to be better people. Getting so comfortable in our vices and staying there is one of the greatest tragedies of this time.

Today's culture is all about doing your own thing and not having an opinion of anyone else. We are all on our own path and it's not our place to tell people how to live.

While I agree with parts of this, the concept is so misconstrued. I agree that it's not our place to judge others for how they live, but it is our place to love and to call them up. When our friends are making bad decisions or our coworkers are taking shortcuts to get ahead, we can sit by and cheer them on like society says we should, or we can call them up. The difference between calling someone out and calling them up is love. It's not hard to call someone out on their behavior, but to call them up requires us to be intentional and loving.

God didn't place us here on earth to succumb to our vices or to live the "you do you" mantra. We don't become better people by going through life uncriticized and sitting in our own little corners. We are called to community, to accountability, to bettering each other.

"Iron is sharpened by iron; one person sharpens another" (Proverbs 27:17).

Our goal is to get to heaven and get others to heaven, leaving the world a better place. We are called to be vessels of God's love. You can lovingly disagree with someone's lifestyle. You can lovingly discuss your differences in opinions. It is 100% possible to love and call people to more.

So next time you see your friend being less than the best version of themselves, call them to more. Life is too short to go through it doing your own thing and minding your own business. Be bold in calling people up and be receptive when others call you up.