Protecting the Mind

"We capture every thought and make it give up and obey Christ." 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NCV)

Growing up, my parents were always very careful about protecting the minds of their children. They knew just how powerful the mind can be, and they always strived to fill our minds with good and pure things; never the opposite. For that reason, they were pretty strict about with our TV, movie and internet consumption. We would have Friday night "family night" and would watch movies along the Disney lines, never the stuff my friends at school would talk about watching! I can remember feeling lame sometimes as my friends talked about the newest horror movie they had seen... but I can also remember feeling grateful for never having seen that stuff... especially when one particular friend would call me while home alone, convinced a masked intruder was lurking outside her windows!

When I was old enough to be making my own choices about what I watched, I still tried to be very careful. I'm inclined to dwell on things for a long time, and even though I have no memory for day-to-day stuff (where are my keys? my phone?), things like movies and books stay with me forever.

Recently, my diligence in protecting my mind began to slip. Maybe I was overconfident in thinking all my 'maturity' would allow me to package things away to the dark recesses of my mind. Or that I'd have a better grip on the concept of fiction. But the other night I watched a movie that I was pretty sure I should have turned off after the first 10 minutes... and after two nights of nightmares and little sleep, I know that my mind is still pretty impressionable, and, 28 years old or not, I still need to guard it. Brian prayed for me and, thank you Jesus!, 5 minutes later I couldn't recall anything I had seen even if I wanted to.

Did you know the mind can potentially store 100 trillion thoughts?! That's a pretty powerful tool. The Lord can use our minds to do amazing things in fulfilling his purposes... but the devil also knows how strong the mind is and would love nothing more than to control it to his end. That's why we need to remain on guard and "take captive every thought and make it obedient to Christ" (2 Cor 10:5 NIV). I'm eternally grateful to my parents for the work they did in protecting my mind as a child. Just think of all the garbage they kept out and the space they saved for the good stuff! I want to be just as diligent in doing the same for Wesley... and after the reminder I received this week, for myself!