Counting The CostSample

MUSIC, MEDIA, AND ME:

When I was in high school, I had a friend who had gone trick-or-treating for Halloween as a kid. She had gotten so much candy that it took her a long time to eat it all. After few months, she opened a small candy bar to eat. Everything looked fine, but when she bit into the candy bar, it was full of little bugs! [Feel free to take a moment if you just threw up a little in your mouth…] They never did know exactly how that happened, but they did know that something got inside that candy bar, multiplied, and made the candy bar completely rotten and gross. 

Did you know that can happen to you and me?  All it takes is for us to allow things in our lives that have no business being there, and – even if everything looks fine on the outside – those things will actually destroy us from the inside out. In today’s world, that happens more than ever through social media, movies, music, websites, and other types of media. All of those things can be fine if they are used the right way, but they can be destructive if they are not used properly. 

Proverbs 4 says that we should guard our hearts above all else. Then the writer talks about guarding our mouths, our eyes, our minds, our decisions, and even the places that we go. Did you know that the things you see, the things you hear, the sites you look at, the movies you watch, the music you listen to, the places you go (online or in life) will all determine the course of your life?  

Action Point:

Take some time to think about the things you watch – Netflix, movies, YouTube, social media, etc. – and ask yourself if those things are helping you live for Jesus (not just on the outside, but on the inside). Think about the music you listen to. Think about the people you follow on social media. Your eyes and ears are pathways to your heart. Be careful about what you allow to come in. Last thought – don’t just get rid of the unhealthy things; build into your life by listening to music or watching movies that point you to grow in your faith, and by following people who will encourage you to follow God more.

Question(s):

Are there people you need to stop following, movies, sites, and media you need to stop looking at or watching?

What are some things you can do to replace bad media habits with good ones? 

Who are the top 2 people that would help you do this? Be sure to tell them!