Really!!?

I was listening to a preacher who was talking about Lot, the nephew of Abram (Abraham). I was listening when something caught my attention. Have a look at this. Genesis 13:12 "Abram dewelled in the land of Canaan, and Lot dwelled in the cities of the plain, and pitched his ten TOWARD Sodom."
I don't know why but I always had the impression Lot had pitched his tent IN Sodom. It is clear that he started by looking in that direction and being impressed with the riches of that land. (see Gen. 13:10) Then he took the first step that would change his family's life for ever; he pitched his tent toward Sodom. Slowly, he worked his way INTO Sodom.
Every morning he woke up, open the door to his tent and looked out there and desired that life in those 5 cities including Sodom and Gomorrah. The hustle and bustle of business, prosperity, self confidence and happiness. That's what he saw anyway.
I knew, from reading God's word, that Sodom, Gomorrah (& 3 other cities which I didn't realize) where destroyed for homosexuality and immoral sexual activity, but I thought that was it. Having that ignorance took away the importance of the state of my city's sin. I knew that the city and surrounding cities where sinful but not as bad as Sodom and Gomorrah. Right?!
Here's what Ezekiel 16:49 and 50 say, "Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread(eating in abundance), and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw [good]."
In Ezekiel 15:49 and 50, God tells us more in detail what was happening in that city. That put into a better light, how God sees the wickedness of our society.
Although God was displeased with Lot for being there, He gave him a chance to escape. Some of his family members laughed and mocked him, his wife turned back to see what she had left behind. The bible says she turned into a pillar of salt. I didn't know this but just on the edge of where Sodom was, is "Just opposite the site of Zoar, on the south-west coast of the Dead Sea, is a range of low hills, forming a mass of mineral salt called Jebel Usdum, "the hill of Sodom."" (http://www.sacred-texts.com/bib/ebd/ebd347.htm) I found that interesting.
God was displeased with Lot but gave him a chance, at his repentance but God was always pleased with Abraham. Hebrews 11:10 "For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker [is] God."
I know there's a lot of work to do in our society, to bring them back to God but we must make the first step; not to pitch our tents, our sights, towards Sodom, towards the glorification of wickedness. We must do like Abraham, set our sights on the jobs, ministries, actions, and lifestyle which has a "foundation, whose builder and maker is God." Then one by one we will be able to draw men unto God.
Keep focused on godliness.