I’ve been trying to give the boys more responsibility lately. I might be way behind on this one, I have no idea, but at the grocery store, they’re each getting a list of things to retrieve for our cart. It’s painstaking and funny at the same time. (My apologies to any Kroger shoppers who have been mowed down by boys in flip-flops racing through the isles, it quickly becomes a race – always a race.)
Until we reach checkout.
At checkout, it’s all hands on deck. Gum, candy, water… anything and everything becomes fair game for a plea bargain. But this time, as soon as we reached the conveyor belt, they dropped their respective groceries, not for gum or candy. They were choking from laughter of a picture of Hillary’s apparent before and after, weight gain pic.
Now to them, a before and after is like before dinner and after dinner. They’re imagining something like Violet the blueberry girl from the Willy Wonka movie. (Her blue suit didn’t help.) They’re repertoire of understanding doesn’t compute that maybe an election cycle could potentially cause someone to gain weight from stress and exhaustion. But when the laughter subsided, their little minds kicked in.
“Is this true?”
We put the lovely magazine back on the rack (but not before I snapped a pic) and finished our check-out experience with a chat about not believing everything you see. We talked about how in the world you know the difference between what’s real and what’s fake. That’s a hard talk to have, because discernment comes with time, learning, lots of open conversations and discipline. But our brains are wired to crave information, right now.
Inquiring minds want to know!
Everyday of our lives we are bombarded with messages. We’re lured by pop-up ads, well-placed magazine racks, radio stations playing in public places, articles on Facebook, popular books and movies at every turn. Our world is full of information and our brains want desperately to take it all in. If we don’t choose what to allow in, we’ll naturally soak up the information presented.
It’s up to you.
Only you can control what you allow into your mind. Only you can notice and make a different choice. You can choose to be a virtual dumping ground for the information of the world. OR, you can choose to filter, direct and discipline your mind to soak in information that helps you grow, encourages your heart and makes you stronger.
All day, everyday. It’s your choice.
Your entire life will be guided by those little choices.
Choose well sister.
We’re counting on you to choose well.
to more love,
Crystal
P.S. If you need a little guidance to help with discernment, here’s a little time-tested template from the wisdom of the Bible to hold your thoughts up against.
“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, excellent or praiseworthy ~ think about these things.” ~ Phil 4:8
If it doesn’t make that cut, you should let it go.
