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| Some flowers from my booth at a wedding expo this afternoon |
A daughter that reads like crazy (and we have a very hard time keeping her supplied with good books), a discussion in our Wednesday night class at church and just my daily Bible reading has made me think lately on the importance of being careful what we put into our minds. There are lots of ways that we can fill our minds- reading books, magazines, etc, watching TV or movies, spending time online, the people we choose to hang out with and entertainment (like plays or concerts) that we go to see.
Here are some verse that I have been thinking about lately that speak on this subject:
Romans 1:28-32 (I actually recommend the whole chapter but am trying to stay somewhat brief here)
"And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them."
My take on these verses (and you don't have to agree with me- it is simply what I get out of it) is that it is not only wrong to do what is listed in those verses (and if you will look them over you will notice that several of them are not among the things we often consider to be the "really bad" things) but to give approval to others that do them is also wrong. My question is this- Is it right (do I please God) for me to watch a movie or read a book that puts any of the items listed above in a good light? It is my goal to avoid them as much as I possibly can because I have no desire to be entertained by things that hurt God. Avoiding them can be very challenging as even little kids books can often contain some of those things. I do think it is worth it however!
Here are some other verse that prompt my thinking in this area:
"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things." Philippians 4:8
Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to your word. Psalms 119:37
If we are to live as Christians I believe that every part of our life should be done to honor our God and Savior. This is not something that I do perfectly at all but it is something that I want to grow in!
Very good thoughts. I love how God does this but the kids in our church had their Disciple Now weekend retreat (older kids than mine) and the service was a round table discussion by our worship pastor, or interim pastor, and the woman who organized Disciple Now. More than once, their discussion revolved around what we put in minds.
ReplyDeleteThis summer, my girls and I memorized Proverbs 6-8. I made the decision for us to memorize it before our pastor told us he was doing a series on Proverbs 8. It was neat to listen to the sermons as we memorized the verse.
I like the verse you mentioned Psalms 119:37 - maybe we should memorize it this coming summer (to much Awana's and Kidz Klub - memorizing during the school year).
Good thoughts!!
Yeah, great thoughts. I've been thinking a lot lately about thinking. Haha, that sounded kind of odd. :) One thing that I really struggle with is just thinking too much. A wandering and unfocused mind doesn't please God any more than a mind that resides in dark places. (At least, I don't think it does.) You may not be focusing on or enjoying evil things, but you're not focusing on good things either, and in the end you're still missing out on dwelling in God's presence and honoring him with your thoughts.
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