You say that you love the ‘beat’ of the song, the ‘moral’ of the movie, and do not pay attention to the lyrics or sex scenes, not to mention the violence and profanity. In other words, you love the external and ignore the internal. What if God did that?

What if God decided to lift Hitler up into glory because he admired his mustache? What if God decided not to lift Mother Theresa into glory because of her deformed feet, overlooking the sacrificial humility behind her having that defect?

It would not happen because this logic is the exact opposite of God’s logic. The Scriptures say “The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7). I came to the conclusion, above, that you love the external and ignore the internal, but you must acknowledge that, no-matter what you profess to admire and despise, you entertain both the good and the bad by listening to the song anyway, or watching that movie anyway. This is not justified for the worker of God because evil in and of itself is not welcomed in God’s house. You are the presence of the One True Light in this dark world. You ARE God’s house.

My thought is that God wants His workers to have hearts like His - to hate the things He hates and to love the things He loves. Consequently, NOTHING with unholy intentions should be attractive to the worker of God – that’s a high standard. The workers of God today (even ones in roles of leadership) become entertained and consumed by these things. Even if you are not in a role of leadership, even if you are a child and are understanding these words, do not overlook the absolute foolishness of that lifestyle! God does not allow anyone into His Kingdom on the opinion of physical appearance. Although, He may admire the beauty in his or her face, He will not defile His Kingdom with sin. Likewise, you ought not to entertain anything with your mind on the opinion of the external. As this also goes for impure music, you may appreciate the tune a lot, but do not defile His Temple by entertaining the whole of it. Do not find justification on the premise of the sound (outward), but justify everything according to the intention (inward) of the song laid bare before the Gospel of Christ. (This goes for many things, not just music.)

God will not let anything unholy, internally, defile His Kingdom. The external doesn’t matter, for His Kingdom is for those who “believe in the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13); His Kingdom has nothing to do with outward appearances and everything to do with the conditions of the heart – INTERNAL conditions.

Why, then, should you buckle at movies and music as if you don’t let those unholy parts bother you (which is YOUR edict). First of all, imagine how God feels when He hears you state that these things having to do with profanity, violence, and sexual immorality are no longer things that bother you. Evil and injustice should move you to anger, as it did Christ in the temple (Matt 21:12-17) – and that was only in reaction to cheating. If you are one who still continues to find ways of justifying this behavior, you need to ask yourself the question ‘why are you trying to be a worker of God?’ It seems that you will only be disappointed in the lifestyle of a Christian, anyway. If you are eager to live for the Lord in the sense that He wants you to live for Him, call on Him. You will never be satisfied with Christ until you realize the entirety of the sacrifice God requests of you and, at once, by the power of the Holy Spirit, leave it all at His throne. How the Lord weeps over your entertainment with evil. How He must grieve at your cheating on Him with the evil one! He who is good to you, He who provides for you, He who loves you faithfully, must suffer every time you choose the abusive master over Him. Imagine His hurt when the majority of your decisions are just like that!

The Lord of Hosts, Almighty God, Savior of the broken, wants to give you peace and remove your suffering and guilt. He wants to fill you with things having to do with Holiness and Righteousness and Godliness, but characteristics of God cannot dwell peaceably with the characteristics of satan. This is why “no one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24). For a long time, you have chosen television above diligence, violent movies above the peace of Christ, profane music above purity of heart, and the list goes on and on. You are so loved and held so dear by God! Know that! Surrender with tears and sobbing! In your realization of His Lordship over you, His power over your sin, and His perfect plan over your entertaining lifestyle surrender your all to Him today.

A few days ago, it was my earnest prayer to see the world as God sees it. To have understanding as He does about it. To have the love that God has! Well, tonight, me and my dad went downtown Canton to eat the Dominoes that we picked up, and to walk around the 'First Friday' fair thing going on.

My eyes and ears are not sheltered from the 'corruptness' of society, but tonight I have understood that corruptness in a different viewpoint - God's. It was not 'uncomfortable' to walk amidst the many different characters that appeared tonight, as many Christians would explain their experience to have been 'uncomfortable,' as if in the presence of evil. I do believe them, surely there is tension when evil sees Christ in us. We do fight a war not of flesh and blood, but of the Spirit.

Driving home, me and my dad spotted black smoke in the air. We decided to follow it and see what was up. At first, we thought it was just a big mechanical plant or something, I would have laughed! But there was a truck-fire at an auto repair shop. This was yet another notable moment in my life. As we slowly drove past, I could not help but see the people standing on the street observing - again, many different characters, all of which shared common threads: hopelessness, carelessness.

My heart was torn apart as we were getting on the highway and a rusty old car cut us off, nearly side-swiping the front of our blue Toyota. It missed, only because my dad put on the breaks. The car acted as if, quite literally, we were not there. When my dad pressed on the horn, there wasn't a reaction from those in the car, except the small amount of energy the passenger was willing to deal with, lifting the finger out the window.

When we were finally on I-77, I wanted nothing but to go back to where we had just left. It would do no good to wave a Bible in the faces of passerby's, screaming "TURN OR BURN!" It may even do no good to try and speak rationally about the Bible with them. But what I saw in the people tonight was far more than Godlessness. I saw the Godless, restless, friendless, fatherless, hopeless, careless, and the list is never-ending.

It was natural to think "what would Jesus be found doing, here?" I saw a man sitting on a bench alone - Jesus would have spoken to that man. I saw people dressed in knight's armor, battling each other with wooden weapons, Jesus would have asked them about it! Does not Jesus love the things we are passionate about, like "Facing the Giants" says when the coach explains how God is out on the football field with the players? Yes, Jesus would have shared the passion these people had for the fun they were having. It is just like Him to meet us where we are.

I'm beating myself up tonight. I did nothing. A conversation could have brought a friendship - which could have led hundreds of people to Christ in itself. God provided the opportunity; twenty times at least. I walked right on without thinking twice. Now, I'm feeling discouraged because I was not faithful to discerning His specific purposes for me.

Lord, do not keep Your Holy Spirit from me. Please deal with me as you have David! My I have the privilege of having a heart so like Yours, a mind so like Yours, discernment as from Your wisdom, courage as from your confidence! Give me success in just one 'part' of my life - the part that is completely surrendered to You; bringing You glory and a smile.