What Do YOU Think?

Feeding fear – inadvertently – can mark our children’s perception of life.

We periodically check the statistics on this website to see how many times each page was viewed. From this we can determine which articles are of greatest interest. The other morning I powered up my computer only to find that no stats had been calculated during the night. The lack of information frustrated me and finally, about midday, I emailed the hosting company and they quickly fixed the problem.

The incident caused me to wonder, though, what would happen if I monitored other areas of my life – like television viewing – as closely as I did my website stats?

• What if I monitored, for example, how many times during an hour of prime time, I received the notion that sickness and disease were imminent?
• How many times I received the idea that indigestion was looming and sleepless nights would require a sleep aid?
• How many times the side effects of chemotherapy would pass through my consciousness?

Exactly what was I feeding my mind, anyway? I decided to find out.

The results: The next evening I tallied the commercials during an hour of prime time viewing. To my surprise, in addition to the heartburn, skin rash, medicate-your-child, flu-is-coming-and-you-are-going-to-get-it dialogue, there was a barrage of coming attractions filled with terror, violence, and sexual promiscuity. I was filling my mind with 60-second snippets of mayhem and perversion, of fear and death! All things contrary to God’s Word.

Each evening the life of God was being siphoned out of me and replaced by all things negative! Even more shocking is when I did the math. If I watched just one hour of prime time television each evening – containing at least 6 “you-could-have-this-disease” or “look at this terror” ad – and multiplied it by 365 days, that would mean that in the next twelve months, I would be told 2,190 times that sickness and disease were coming or that I should be afraid. And if I watched 2 hours … well, you get the idea.

When I realized what was happening, I decided to make a change. I decided it was time to cherish the mute button. It was time to preserve my peace by allowing my thoughts to meditate on good things.

Now every time a negative commercial appears, I have my own 60 second commercial. I thank God for his protection, or that we are all well and whole, or I just close my eyes and rest.

Conduct your own survey. Tally up what you are receiving – what your children are receiving. What do you think?

Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”