Be Careful Little Eyes
Did you know that as believers and followers of Jesus, we need to be careful with how we spend our time? We do. We need to be careful with what we read, what we watch, and what we listen to. A lady that I have “followed” for years through her blog posts made me aware of this fact. Before I start, though, can I just tell you how thankful I am for an online community of women who love Jesus that I have never personally laid eyes on? Social media gets such a bad rap, but when it is used for good, the enemy needs to beware!
I think that God is raising up an army of women who love Him with all their hearts, and when we are in constant fellowship with Him and reading His word on a daily basis, then we are a force to be reckoned with! When we are champions of one another, and spurring our people on to love and do good deeds, the enemy does not like it, but that is what living life beside one another looks like. When we live like this, we are pointing others to Jesus.
Back to how we spend our time, though. This lady whose blog I’ve read for years wrote about this a long time ago, and she started with the books we read. That stood out to me, because I am an avid reader. Even if we only read Christian fiction books, she warned us to be careful of them. Reading about relationships can cause one to put unrealistic expectations on the husband. And marriage usually isn’t like whatever is depicted in the book. It could also put an unrealistic vision of how we think our men should look physically, and that just isn’t fair. It’s not just about the looks, and I know you’ve heard that the appearance is always the first thing to change after a few years. We need to have a healthy view on what marriage truly looks like, and if we read too much about romance—even in the Christian fiction genre—we need to tread lightly.
Music is another big one we have to be careful about. I don’t know about you, but when I hear a song once, I can’t stop singing it, if it’s easy to memorize. I’m not suggesting you never listen to any other kind of music other than Christian music, but if there is language in it that is offensive, or if something not honoring to the Lord is being sung about, then we need to make some changes. It’s hard to find good, clean music, I know. I have sons, and they all love country music. I love it when the songs just talk about things like trucks and other such nonsense. But truthfully, they usually talk about a lot of other things.
Movies and television shows are the worst, though. We’re hearing them say things not honoring to God, we’re seeing images of them doing things reserved only for marriage, and to make matters worse, it is hard to get those images or characters out of our minds. I have a rule for myself when it comes to movies in the theater: I have to do my homework first. I like to use a website called “Plugged In” to do this. It tells you about the movie without giving spoilers, and it tells you about what made the movie have that rating. I need to know that it’s going to be okay for me to watch, and also, I don’t like wasting money if it’s not great. I also, just as a rule of thumb, never see anything rated R. I’ll watch PG-13, but I do my research.
In this world of binge watching shows by streaming networks, there is so much out there, and it is right at our fingertips. It’s scary to think of all that is offered on these new ways to watch shows, and I always pray that God would help all of us who live under the same roof together be vigilant about this.
I realize this seems like a lot of work, and it is, but the Bible tells us in Proverbs 4:23, “Guard your heart above all else, for it is the source of life.” There is another verse I love about how our hearts and our mouths are connected: “But what comes out of the mouth comes from the heart, and this defiles a person.” (Matthew 15:18) None of these things are easy, friends. But we are not supposed to look like the world. Read this warning we are given about the world in 1 John 2:15-17:
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in Him. For everything in the world- the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride in one’s possessions – is not from the Father, but is from the world. And the world with its lusts is passing away, but the one who does the will of God remains forever.
This is hard, and can tend to feel like you’re living in a bubble, but if we pray and ask God to make us okay with living backwards from everyone else, He will be right there to help. I’ve asked Him to make sin be as repulsive to me as it is to Him. Just a warning, though, about living so carefully: most people don’t live this way. Many of my friends disagree with me about these things, but it is not my place to judge them. I am called to love them, regardless of whether or not they live this way. I know they love the Lord, but maybe they’ve just not been convicted in such areas, like I have. And that’s okay, but if we are a true friend to them, then we can pray that for them.
Also, when I say that my friends aren’t like me on this issue, these are not my inner circle of friends that I consider my best friends. My best friends all are like me, when it comes to this way of living, and we’re all pretty equal in our walks with the Lord. A baby believer may not know all of this yet, but maybe you can gently and lovingly share with them why you live this way. If you do that, be careful. Don’t judge, don’t be harsh, and be careful with your tone of voice.
I think that when we live for God, He will help us to be lights for Him in this dark world. We are different than others, set apart. We should live as a reflection of Him, and prayerfully, our lives will provoke someone to jealousy over the relationship we have with Him. That’s what life is all about: loving Him, pointing to Him, leading others to Him.
Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and dearly loved, put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a grievance against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you are also to forgive. Above all, put on love, which is the perfect bond of unity. And let the peace of Christ, to which you were also called in one body, rule your hearts. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
A Closing Prayer
Lord, thank You for Your word, as it leads and guides us. Help us live out every single word of it, I ask in Your strong and mighty name. Amen.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
When Jennifer isn't focusing on her family of her husband and four (almost) grown sons, she is passionate about leading women to a deeper knowledge of and relationship with Jesus, through the reading of the Bible and through prayer. After years of serving in student ministry, the Lord pulled her out of that and planted her solidly in the women's ministry within her local church. She leads a small group on Wednesday nights, and together they study the word of God verse by verse, and book by book of the Bible. She loves to write, and you can find her sharing regularly on her blog, Overflowing With Thanksgiving. She also loves to sing and to help lead worship at her church, and will always be a choir girl at heart. You can find out more about her and her hobbies on her favorite social media outlet Instagram, as JenLloydGoodwin.