Who doesn’t love a freshly brewed cup of coffee to wake you up in the morning? Even the newest coffee drinkers amongst us know that the first cup tastes a whole lot better when the filter in your coffee machine is clean. If it’s not clean, or not in place at all, then the resulting brew can be bitter, gritty and disappointing. It literally will leave, a bad taste in your mouth! The coffee filter is designed to ensure that any impurities don’t make it into our coffee so that it is pleasant to drink. The same principle applies to our lives. Without an appropriate filter in place our life can become tainted by impurities and grit too.
A few months ago I made the switch to a ‘family friendly ’radio station, with content and ‘talk back’ that was much more appropriate for our whole family to enjoy. After a recent trip to the garage for a service however, my car came back programmed to different, more popular station. I had listened to this station in the past but was completely shocked with the amount of profanity and sexual innuendo that I heard when it started playing. I found myself asking the question ‘was this station always like this or I have I just become more sensitive?’
Have you ever seen a movie and really loved it? You have cried, wept and laughed all at the same time, convinced that it was an amazing film. A few months later it comes out on DVD or Netflix and you decide it’s time for a family movie night so that everyone else can experience this great film. Half way through the movie, or sometimes sooner, you realise there is a totally inappropriate sex scene or gratuitous violence that has you searching for the remote to try and make it stop! You ask yourself, ‘what is going on, how did I miss this?’
Do we have different filters for different occasions and environments? It seems that the answer is a resounding yes! But God’s word gives us great instruction in this regard.
Finally, brothers and sisters, 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.
Philippians 4:8 (NIV)
It’s not always easy and it requires intention and diligence we need to ensure that our filters are clean and in place.
How’s your filter?