“And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption” Ephesians 4:30
The Holy Spirit is a mighty and wonderful presence in the life of the believer. He guides us to do what is right and convicts us when we do wrong. The culture of Christianity today though seems to forget that what we put into our minds, what we allow ourselves to consume, can affect us greatly, for better or for worse.
Because of the pull from the world, we tend to be sucked in to seeing things that we should not necessarily be seeing, hearing, or reading. I can remember setting my boundaries on movies: nothing with sexual content or nudity, and while I wanted to avoid it, I was not as strict about cussing. I was blind to the fact that I deemed one sin as “ok” over another sin. I was compromising my values. I would never use that language myself, so why would I listen to it? I didn’t think about it at all for a very long time, until I was convicted once again by the Holy Spirit.
I realized I had been okaying sin to enter into my life instead of putting it all aside. I had to make a difficult decision and stop watching movies that had cussing.
What kind of limits, if any, do you put on yourself as you consume entertainment? Have you, like me, compromised on what we know displeases God? It’s time for us to stop suppressing the Holy Spirit. When we allow ourselves to live like the world, it makes it difficult to live. God calls us to be holy as he is holy, and he gives us the Holy Spirit to guide us into doing just that.
Dear Lord, give us the strength we need to conquer the sin in our life that we have ignored. Allow the Spirit to win over the flesh and forgive us of our sins. Amen.
Make a list of all the sources of media that you use, such as TV, the internet, books, etc. Write down what you specifically watch, read, or see and do a little examination of conscience. Would God condone what you are reading or seeing? Make a concerted effort to avoid content that might draw you away from Jesus. Explore media which might have a positive effect on your life!
By Ashley Massie
Used by Permission
Further Reading
• Spiritual Oxygen: Are You Getting Enough?
• How to be Filled with the Holy Spirit
• How to Spend a Day With the Lord
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