“I think it’s funny,” she said as she talked about a recent entertainment choice. It sounded more to me as if she were trying to justify her decision, hoping to gain my approval. It was not my place to condemn or judge, but neither could I give my acceptance or approval to what sounded like a questionable decision.
The conversation continued on other topics, but my spirit was in a state of unrest for hours afterward. I tried listening to worship music hoping my spirit would be cleansed from what felt like a mud bath. I tried to pray. I tried to reason things out and compartmentalize the conversation. After all, I had other things I needed to do. But still, an unrest persisted.
In time, an image began to form in my mind that helped me sort out a few things. I imagined myself going to various places accompanied by my best friend. We would walk and talk and bounce ideas back and forth. Days would pass and we would enter and exit the different venues of life. Then I began seeing myself choosing questionable entertainment. My best friend silently stood by, watching me move farther and farther away. I extended an invitation and even encouraged accompaniment but was met with a silent standing silhouette. As you might have gathered by now, my best Friend is Jesus.
He promises us:
…Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. Hebrews 13:5
Yet as I saw Him standing there, I realized it was not He who would leave me. Only when I choose to walk away from Him would His presence not be with me. Only then did I begin to comprehend the gravity of the many choices we make. Jesus sent His Spirit to be with us, to lead us, to guide us, to help us, to comfort us. But by our choices, we can wander from His presence.
So as we make choices in life, whether what movie we will watch, what music and audio input we will listen to, whatever entertainment, career, school, friends, or any other number of choices we might make – it comes down to this: Let us remember to ask ourselves, would Jesus go there? Would Jesus listen to that? If I go or do this, would Jesus be found going or doing that? If not, am I willing to go without Him? Do I really want to leave my best Friend behind? My best Friend said:
“As the Father has love me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15:9-15 (NIV 1984)
Recommended Resource: Light in the Darkness
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