Five years ago I moved to a new town and was living on my own for the first time ever at the age of 31. I spent a lot of time going to the beach and taking walks along the breaking waves, doing a lot of people watching, and just listening to the surf on the shore. I was unemployed so I had a lot of time on my hands. That’s another story, but I’m not going to get into that.
I learned a lot just from observing people interact on the white sands of Florida’s panhandle beaches and watching the birds fly overhead. When people are at the beach they seem to let down their guard a little and just enjoy life, but that could just be me. I saw everything from love birds playing together in the surf to the familiar sight of two old people of large proportion just sitting in front of the waves maybe listening to music or chatting with a girlfriend.
When we observe things over and over it becomes a part of our DNA and the written code of our being. I can always go back to those beaches and feel the sand between my toes (if I wanted) and hear the surf on the shore. It’s like a muscle we exercise in our minds until we can see with our eyes shut.
Spiritual eyes are a lot like physical eyes. What we observe and look at becomes a part of our being. If you constantly behold that which is good and wholesome your thoughts become at peace and in order. If you constantly watch noise and terror and distress, that becomes a part of your thoughts too. That’s why I hate horror movies, at least the hardcore ones.
The Apostle Paul in the book of Romans, chapter 12, verse 1 says:
And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice–the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. (New Living Translation)
Probably the most valuable organ in our bodies is the eyes, at least externally. Nobody would likely trade their eyes away for any price. They’re priceless. The Bible teaches that man and woman were created by God in the beginning after he created the world. How could such an amazing design like our eyes be the product of random evolution? I’ve never believed it for longer than a moment.
Now if God created our eyes and our minds, how much more so then should we lend them as a living sacrifice to Him? This is what Paul is saying in this passage. We owe it to Him.
So how do we do that? By controlling what our eyes see. In just the next verse (verse 2) Paul goes into the subject of letting God transform our minds.
Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect. (New Living Translation)
Why would you let God transform your mind? Because without Him we are dead and have nothing. If you know Him, you know He’s your source of life and peace. That’s why Paul instructs us to learn God’s will by letting him change our minds.
How do we do this? By controlling what your eyes see and paying attention to the voice of the Holy Spirit when you are tempted to look at something. Though that’s not the only way, it is the most effective way to change the way your mind thinks. Your mind is not disconnected from your eyes. Even when you sleep you can dream.
I decided to stop watching Hollywood movies and TV shows at some point along the way because I realized it was all “garbage” which was the best, most harmless way, of putting it. When I stopped watching the dark, sinister, foreboding, and violent films coming out of Hollywood my mind literally became a place of peace and quiet. And I had more time for reading the Bible.
Choose what you see very carefully because it will stick with you for a long time, just like the seagulls pinwheeling overhead at the beach stick for me. Just because the whole world is rushing off a cliff doesn’t mean we need to follow them. Instead spend time in prayer, read your Bible, enjoy fellowship at your home church.
Choose how you spend your time and it will reward you. Wisdom comes to those who seek it diligently.
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