Think. What are the things that you think of the most? What causes you to think of them? Does the media influence your mind set? How about your actions? Like one of my close friends once told me “Where your mind set is there your lifestyle will be there too.” The things you watch, read, listen to, and the people you’re around ↕ Affects what you think about and focus on ↕ What you think and focus on affects your actions
In Hebrews 12: 1 we are encouraged to throw off everything that hinders us from following God. While T.V, movies, and music may not be bad, it can affect us when we are trying to pursue Christ. Also for those of us who struggle with sexual sin it is important in our fight against temptation to filter the media we digest. That’s why we need to filter our intake of media. I know that sometimes it’s hard to give these things up, but it really does help. Don’t believe me? Try it. This certainly will not fix things, but it will help. Struggles with lust, masturbation… mostly any kind of sin, really all have one root problem – your heart. If we look at the core problem, and even figure out what feeds the problem, this can help in fighting the fight against any sexual sin. Our culture is obsessed with dieting, and making sure we don’t get fat. We don’t just sit around praying that God will take our desire for food away, no we actually get up and do something about it. We are proactive when it comes to reaching our goal, so why is it different when we struggle with porn or masturbation? What if we were to go on a “Culture Diet?” So with all that said… What did I decide to cut out? What’s my “Culture Diet”? Whether it’s a movie or a book, (I absolutely love a good romance!) Though it was sort of sad, those were the first things that needed to go. Lots of the things I used to watch portrayed ideas that I didn’t necessarily agree with originally but the more I watched them the more I began to be okay with things that I once would never dream of being okay with.
As I became okay with these viewpoints, I found myself on a path that was leading towards living them out. Slowly brain washing myself with the messages of culture and desensitizing myself to things that are disgusting to my Savior. For example, in middle school I had taken a vow of purity before marriage in front of the church I grew up in with full intent of living it out; though a few years down the road, because of the hours of media I had consumed and the influence of my friends, I began to be okay with the idea of having sex before marriage “If I REALLY loved someone”. Thankfully though my mind and heart had been changed on the matter of purity, I never had the chance to act on my new beliefs before I realized I was wrong. The culture screams messages at us of sex that it’s okay if its “protected”, that we won’t know who our spouse can be unless we are “sexually compatible,” that “porn is great!” And even that you’re a loser if you’re a virgin. Are you under the influence of some of these messages? If the majority of our time is spent on things that are giving these messages, what do you think is going to influence us the most? Why do we waste our time on these things if we are aware of their influences? Like many girls, even without an addiction we look to that fairy tale ending, the one where that prince sweeps us off our feet.
We think, talk, and dream on merely possibilities and “what ifs” focusing on when life is really going to start. Honestly, this is one of my struggles. I would like to dream with the rest of you, but I just can’t let my focus be set upon these “what ifs” because of the path it leads me down. Can anybody else relate? In the times that I have struggled the most, the problem was that I was desensitized by what I was watching and listening to. I could pray for God to change my heart, but I also had to take steps and make sacrifices to show that I truly wanted it. My heart was hardened and selfish, but I knew that I needed a change. There are periods of time that I completely cut myself off from anything; romance movies, books, and even music — to help reset what I’m focused on, so that I can be content with the unmarried state I’m in without desiring more. I want to be content and focusing on Christ and pouring into others’ lives instead of chasing and feeding my desires for an empty satisfaction of pleasure. I’ve talked to several other girls about this and they can attest that it does make a difference if they go on a culture diet. Think about it. The more porn that you watch, are you satisfied? Or do you just find yourself watching more porn? Do you need to go on a culture diet?