YOU ARE WHAT YOU EAT

Oh, the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers. But they delight in the law of the LORD, meditating on it day and night. They are like trees planted along the riverbank, bearing fruit each season. Their leaves never wither, and they prosper in all they do. But not the wicked! They are like worthless chaff, scattered by the wind. They will be condemned at the time of judgment. Sinners will have no place among the godly. For the LORD watches over the path of the godly, but the path of the wicked leads to destruction. - Psalms 1:1-6

Who and what do you surround yourself with?

This question has been on my mind for the last few months. Holy Spirit nudged me through various decisions, some as small as choosing a TV show to watch or a book to read, with the simple yet profound phrase, "You are what you eat."

In lamens terms, do you want your life to look like the main character's in the movie you're about to sit in front of for two hours?

It's stopped me dead in my tracks. I've heard the phrase my whole Christian life, "Does that edify your spirit?" but I've never fully understood what it meant if I'm being honest. And now, through Holy Spirit's gentle nudge, I think I'm starting to get it.

From TV, movies, books, music, and friendship: Is who you are aligned with the message and heart of each of these things? Because if you consume it, it will become a part of who you are.

These questions have been radiating through everything I surround myself with, but especially something I often consume too much of without a second thought: social media.

My pastor once said, "Who you watch on Instagram stories is essentially being invited into your living room." and it's stuck with me.

The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray. - Proverbs 12:26

I've followed and watched gossip channels on YouTube and influencers on social media who publically share drama in their lives for YEARS. I've essentially surrounded myself with a non-stop, negative commentary on the lives of others, for "fun." I so frequently watched these videos and read these posts that I didn't even realize how deeply they affected the essence of who I am.

Did I want to become like the people whose life drama I watched and listened to? No, but I was addicted to the escapism it provided, even though I never felt uplifted or encouraged by what I watched.

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? - 2 Corinthians 6:14

I was partnering with gossip, even though I wasn't actively talking about people in my community, or listening to gossip about people I knew. I still scrolled the comments, taking in even more gossip via the opinions of keyboard warriors about people whose lives weren't aligned with my core values.

Laura Harris Smith summarises the effects of surrounding yourself with people you don't want to become so well:

"Simply put, if we walk, stand or sit with people whose sole focus is something other than God, we will soon suffer that same fate because we are taking those friends' counsel, one life issue at a time."

From real-life friends to the social media influencers we invite onto our couches; to all forms of media: they all affect the thoughts we entertain and the very essence of who we are becoming.

This simple nudge from Holy Spirit, "You are what you eat.", has caused me to take stock of what/who I'm allowing to counsel my life. Some things have been so deeply rooted and difficult to remove, because who I believed myself to be was intertwined within them. Proving Holy Spirit's point, yet again. You become what you are surrounded by.

Who do you want to become?

Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. - Colossians 3:16

The woman I want to become possesses these traits:

• Loves the Lord over all, carries scripture in her heart
  

• Values her husband, treasures her marriage

• Knows how to steward her time well, holding space for fun and rest and work

• Has children and deeply cares for her family

• Surrounds herself with God-loving, kind, wise friends

• Stewards her finances well

• Walks in the fruits of the spirit in all she does

 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. - Galatians 5:22-23

Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. - Galatians 6:2

That is the woman I am called to be. I want to be her for my sake, and for the sake of those around me.

Now, thanks to the guidance of Holy Spirit, I'm beginning to run everything I choose to surround myself with, through the simple filter:

You are what you eat.

What will you choose to consume?

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Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. - Romans 12:2

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