Focus

What do you watch? What music do you listen to? What books do you read? What do you choose to talk about? Where do you spend your time on the internet? All of these questions are important and depending on who you are and where you are in your life the answers very drastically.

My mother has always emphasized the same verse when it comes to choosing your media, and I still try to keep it in mind when I make decisions. 

"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 NIV

This is actually hard to do sometimes in our day day and age. For many of us, we go to work and complain or listen to others complain about our jobs, coworkers, or bosses. We get in our cars and listen to radio shows that criticize everything from our political leadership to the younger generation. Or you turn on the radio to listen to current and past hits that praise the sexually perverse, drugs, violence, and laziness. All while sticking to some sick beats. Lastly, when you get home and are choosing how to spend you evening you get to choose from TV shows that are either chocked full of sex, nudity, violence, profanity, crude humor and the like. Or you stay off the TV and stick to your phone and the internet where you are faced with the exact same set of problems.

Now, I am not trying to say that I can't ever watch, listen, read or talk about anything that I just listed above. I am just trying to emphasize the the vast potential for filling your life with things that do not conform with Philippians 4:8. Without conscious effort on our part the world will keep you from the true, pure, lovely, and admirable in this life.

And if we don't make this effort to focus on the good, true, and holy, we will find ourselves sinking into the depression of the ugly and the unholy. What you allow into your life on a daily basis will effect you. If you are living life and realizing that you are not feeling very holy in your thought life and in your attitude, I would encourage you to shift your focus onto the things of God and off of the things of this world. 

"We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

2 Corinthians 10:5 NIV

Make a effort this week to focus on the positives. Yes, your job might suck and yes your life might have the potential to be better, but take some time to focus on the admirable aspects of your life. I know this is the specific area that I need to work on personally. I pretty much only listen to disney and Christian music at this point in my life and my visual media consists of Disney and baby nursery rhymes videos.

My conversation however, especially at work, can easily slip into the cynical and the critical. At times when I should be building others up with my words and helping myself and my coworkers practice grace towards others I find myself making the much easier choice of complaining instead.

Whatever that focus is for you, make it praiseworthy. Make the music that you listen to lovely. Make the conversations that you have throughout your day noble. Make the visual media that you consume excellent. Make the things that you are reading about on the internet pure. Keep your thought life right and true. Make excellence your passion in all things, and God will be able to shine through you and your life will bring glory to His name.

God bless,

Joshua