2 Corinthians 10:3-5 — For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (for the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Once again, I’m writing at thirty thousand feet. Leaving Las Vegas … and happy to be so. When I was a younger man, before I became a Christian, I enjoyed Las Vegas. It was a place whose reality matched its reprehensible reputation — and I loved it, although I would never dare sample its “headier” delights. I would gamble some, drink to much, sleep too little, ogle the girls and always leave feeling much worse than when I arrived.
Now, it’s different. The first thought I had, when I arrived at McCarran airport and saw the slot machines that greet the arriving traveler was that most of the people I saw walking to the departure gates were leaving much worse off, in one way or another, than when they arrived. They had been sucked into a whirlpool of sensation, and it had stripped away their joy and was spitting them out, bruised and battered.
Those slot machines … and then the gaudy advertising in the arrivals hall. They are designed to remove the visitor from any sense of reality as quickly as possible, and to soften them up for the lures of gambling, high living and sexual immorality.
It can’t be denied that many of the higher end hotels and casinos are masterpieces, full of spectacular artifacts and imagery, all designed to deepen the isolation. Then there are the retail and dining experiences … just in case someone should be lucky enough, or wise enough, not to gamble their fortune away!
So how is a Christian to deal with all this? The first, and obvious response is “Don’t go there!”. If you don’t have to go to sin city — either literally, or figuratively — then don’t go. Don’t go to Las Vegas, and if you must, then don’t go to the casinos, immoral shows, bars … I was fortunate this time, as the layout of the hotel and convention center I was at meant that I never had to walk through the casino, so I didn’t.
The well known passage from 1 Corinthians offers another layer of protection. If you have to go to the battleground, remember the war we are fighting! It may seem like the attractions are carnal … but the warfare is spiritual. So treat every distraction as an attack and use the power of prayer to take every thought that is provoked captive. The Las Vegas marketeers of sin have the foolish imaginations that the “high thing” that they purvey — hedonistic pleasure — is somehow higher than the knowledge of God it is for us to spear their conceit, and decline the distractions.