Be careful how you think, your life is shaped by your thoughts. Proverbs 4:23 (NCV)
Don’t be jealous of sinners, but always honor the Lord. Then you will truly have hope for the future. Listen to me, my children! Be wise and have enough sense to follow the right path. Proverbs 23:17-19 (CEV)
While making the decision to commit to God’s standards is the first step in moving toward a holy life, we must find ways to manage ourselves and our temptations in the world around us. Some ways to help ourselves stay on the right path are to manage our mind, monitor our media intake, and to minimize the opportunities for temptation.
Our thoughts lead to feelings and our feelings lead to actions. When we can keep our thoughts in line with what God expects of us, it will be easier to keep our actions in line with those expectations too. Part of managing our thoughts is keeping track of the media we view. Social media, movies, television, books and more can all keep our thoughts pure or trouble them. We also need to be responsible and keep ourselves out of tempting situations. While it is not always easy to change our habits in these areas, they are important and useful ways to keep ourselves focused on God and not on the world around us.
Today, consider what areas of your life are keeping you from following God’s standards. What can you do to minimize the effect of those areas on you? How can you change your habits to avoid those areas or refocus your thoughts on them? Make a plan to change one area that is troubling you.