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This is not for non-believers. This is strictly for Christians - and not those who just call themselves Christian, but for the ones who truly desire to live what they claim. (Non-believers won't like it, but they don't really care, right? And "pick-and-choose" Christians will probably choose to ignore it.) By the way, this post is a result of talking to people I care about who choose to ignore some of the things I am discussing.
You don't have to like it, but you might want to pray about it:
- Practicing Yoga is not for the Christian. I have family members who practice it and I want to say they do it out of ignorance or being fashionable. Some have been led to believe it is okay because of bad teaching. I was stunned to realize that there is something out there called "Christian Yoga." Whatever the reason, I have warned them about it. Not sure if they appreciated my warning, but they might want to pray about it. For everyone else, here is one reference to examine and here is another. Now, go talk to God about it.
- What you listen to, watch and do does affect your life. I had a real hard struggle in giving up listening to music and comedy that had foul language and shady references to Christianity. When I started weeding out things for the language, that was almost all of it. As a Spirit-filled Christian, why would I want to be bombarded with crude references to women, sex and life? Or listen to someone brag on and glorify their material pursuits or criminal activities? Then, when I looked at the lifestyles of the people producing this "entertainment" or diversion, I had to ask why I would support or encourage them. What exactly are they diverting my attention to? My own current battle: I have a nasty tobacco smoking habit that I am struggling to quit. Not only is it bad for my physical health, but it's a weapon the Enemy can use against me when I am trying to witness to others. My doctor has started me on a new medication to help me in my quest to quit.
- Prayer is central to the Christian life. Reading and studying the Bible is central to the Christian life. I know many Christians who are first in the line going into the church on Sundays but they war against the very gospel because they don't pray or read the Bible. They believe what they want to believe or what the world tells them to believe, but when a fellow Christian tells them something, they react from their feelings. What they should do is learn to listen, then go to the Bible prayerfully to see what the Lord wants. In other words, get prayerful and seek Christ on something before you get mad. This was a hard thing for me to learn. When I had things pointed out to me - like my cursing and smoking and entertainment choices - my reaction was either to get defensive or point a finger back at the person telling me I was falling into a trap. When I learned to pray about things and really take a look at what they were telling me, most times I had to agree that they were right. Doesn't mean I changed what I was doing right away, but I was convicted by truth.
- Sin will either feel good or it will feel bad. Either way, its effects and consequences are always bad.
But instead warn (admonish, urge, and encourage) one another every day, as long as it is called Today, that none of you may be hardened [into settled rebellion] by the deceitfulness of sin [by the fraudulence, the stratagem, the trickery which the delusive glamor of his sin may play on him]. (Heb 3:13, Amplified)
You don't have to like it and I don't either. I just feel like I needed to warn you. The Bible tells us in Proverbs 9:8 that a "scorner" will hate you for it, but a wise man will love you. (And, yes, there is a difference between "judging" and rebuking, warning or correcting.)
