What Goes In, Must Come Out

A non-believer told me something rather insightful once. Being a music lover, he said, “Good music makes you want to do something.” It’s insightful in an obvious way…but it made me think about music a little differently. What he said is so true. It’s why we listen to music. If I am in a mellow mood and want to stay that way, I may put on some Ray LaMontagne. If I’m in a mellow mood and want to perk up, I’ll play something like She & Him (or maybe even rap. Shh!). If I’m just plain ole’ pissed off (that’s not a curse word in my family), I will put on Christian music. Not because it’s necessarily what I WANT to listen to, but I know it will make a difference in my attitude for the better. As a rule, I try to leave my radio set to WDJC (the local Christian station) because I know how my day is effected by what I listen to. I am reminded of a quote I love, which reads:

“Control your own destiny by controlling what goes into your mind. The books you read, the thoughts you think, the television you watch, the conversations you participate in, the people you associate with, and the music you listen to combine to create your future. Are you sowing the seeds for the life you want five years from now?”

Wow!! How true are those words!?! We should be so cautious of everything we put into our minds because they really do affect us more than we realize. The bible says in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.” This is one of my favorite verses from the bible because it is so encouraging. A friend and mentor once asked me to describe, using one adjective, what God was to me. It took me a few minutes to give her an honest answer, but it was “Optimist”. God gives me positivity in a fallen, negative, and pessimistic world. He does this through His word, music, other people, and books...just to name a few. He can only do this if I will allow Him to, though. I have to be willing to choose good over evil, Christian over secular. God is so good, but I have to allow His goodness to come into my life. This is accomplished through small "unimportant" choices we make all day, every day. Which brings me back to the "tagline" of my blog: How we live our days is how we live our lives.