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choose to use men and shun marriage. Or they reject men altogether and seek intimacy in the company of other women. Some women try to resolve the love deficit they suffered with their fathers by giving themselves to any man who shows interest. Others become superachievers in an attempt to overcome the stigmas of poverty, racism, and other social limitations they experienced in childhood. On and on I could go, but the point is this: a woman's response to past hurts can become her primary worldview, driving many of her life choices.
The “Whatever's-In” Worldview
    The Bible speaks about this mind-set more than any other. Actually, it warns women about adopting this take on life. Paul said, “Do not be conformed to this world” (Rom. 12:2a). That's because despite the world's momentary popularity and the power of acceptance that goes with it (which we crave), being trendy in your lifestyle and mind-set rarely has long-standing value. Its power is in the moment. Unfortunately, whatever it offers you as in for today is usually out by tomorrow. And as its shine fades, it leaves you to deal with the consequences, either nagging emptiness or the serious pain of regret. And yet this is the worldview of choice for most people. Rather than think deeply or long-term about life, it feels right to go with the flow of culture and fit in, regardless of future costs.
    Few women represent this worldview better than Jane Fonda. If you are in your twenties, you may identify Fonda only with movies. But her “life du jour” spans decades. In the late ’60s during the Vietnam War, Jane teamed up with her draft-card-burningboyfriend, Tom Hayden (whom she later married), and joined the increasingly popular antiwar movement sweeping across America at the time. She soon made a name for herself as “Hanoi Jane.” Magazine covers, newspaper headlines, TV reports—Fonda was at the forefront and in the spotlight.
    Then times changed, and the war ended. So in the ’70s Fonda found a new identity. She shifted her focus and added her voice to the growing women's movement. She threw away her bra and her short-term husband and became an empowered feminist.
    Then came the ’80s when fitness and the hard body took center stage. Jane once again changed with the times. She shed her business suit for a leotard. She pumped her fists for exercise rather than protest and starred in Jane Fonda's Workout , the top-grossing video of all time.
    But times changed again. You can't be a hard body forever. Besides, in the roaring ’90s rich was the new in. And one of the richest men on the planet was Ted Turner with his CNN empire. So Jane followed the moment yet again and set off in a new direction. “Once again I seemed to have become someone new because” of a man,” she would later say of her relationship with Turner. 4
    By decade's end Turner was gone, along with the greed that had swept through the ’90s. With the stock-market crash, religion was now on the rise, especially the evangelical kind. And so as if on cue, Jane morphed with the times. In the late ’90s it was reported she had found Jesus. Christians rejoiced. Unfortunately Turner made it clear he would have no part of a born-again Jane, so a divorce quickly ensued.
    But Jane's evolution continued. By early 2005 she had come full circle and was protesting war again, this time America's involvement in Iraq. So where will she be next year? Who knows? But you can probably bet her life will center on whatever's popular at the moment.
    Now I know Jane is an extreme example of this worldview. But I've seen worldliness do strange things to many people-Christian women included. This mind-set unleashes a deadly malignancy that undermines and compromises the purpose-driven life Christian women like yourself are meant to live. Without regular intake of God's Word to counteract this, your life will more than likely default back to worldly conformity. The magnetism of living for whatever's in is that