True Competitor: A 10-Day Devotional for Athletes, Coaches & ParentsSample

Super-Size Me

WisdomWalks Principle
Toxic material makes you sick.

For 30 days – three meals a day – Morgan Spurlock ate nothing but McDonald’s. For his documentary called Super-Size Me, they tracked his every move. He super-sized when asked, had to try everything on the menu at least once, and had a doctor monitor his health throughout. About half way through, he began to feel sick and by the end his health was a “train wreck.” He gained weight, got fat, got sick and even got depressed. Worst of all, it took him 14 months to undo the damage done in just 30 days.

When we expose ourselves to toxic material we will eventually get sick. In Proverbs 25:26 we read “If the godly give in to the wicked, it’s like polluting a fountain or muddying a spring.” We have been made to be a vessel of living water that refreshes, but when we allow toxic material to enter not only do we get sick, but we make others sick as well.

There are three key sources of toxic material – words, friends, and stuff. Toxic material is a synonym for good old-fashioned sin. If exposed to it, it can do three things inside of us: work its way through us, tangle us up, and give the enemy a foothold.

Toxic words can be what is said or even thought. Words have the power of life and death. Reckless words pierce like a sword. Harsh words stir up conflict. Some words that are spoken stay with us for years or never forget. But sometimes the harshest words are the words we think in our head and say to ourselves, words like “I can’t”, “I’m not good enough”, or “It’ll never work.” Over time, negative and defeated thinking spreads and takes over. In competition, you’ll defeat yourself with your thoughts and words before your opponent even makes a play.

Toxic friends are false friends. They have no desire to help you become the man or woman God has made you to be. Toxic friends are Complainers, Criticizers, or Blamers. Complainers never have anything positive to say. They see the problem instead of the potential and the obstacle instead of the opportunity. Criticizers find all your faults and drag you down. Blamers always make excuses and pin the loss on somebody else. They never take personal responsibility. In the locker room, those who complain, criticize and blame kill the unity and spirit of the team.

Toxic stuff looks good, but goes bad. We can expose ourselves to toxic stuff on TV, the internet, movies, and even our phones. It’s available 24/7 now. We search for a substitute to satisfy our cravings. When we soak in substitutes, we get sick. Stuff always over-promises and under-delivers. It’s always a cheap substitute, and it never satisfies.

Let’s live a life worthy of the Lord. Isn’t it time to cut off the source and get rid of it? Let God reveal the toxic material in your life and clean it up!

WisdomWalks SPORTS, Ellie Claire (Nashville, TN), pages 71-74.