Be Careful Little Eyes
“Be careful little eyes what you see…”
Many of us learned that phrase in Sunday School. It comes from a simple song meant to teach children that what they look at matters and can have consequences. We understand why kids need that reminder. Their minds are impressionable. What they watch, hear, and experience will eventually shape the way they think and the way they see the world. There is an entire industry built around protecting little eyes from seeing harmful things on the internet.
But as we get older, we tend to convince ourselves that we have outgrown this danger. We’re adults. We’re mature. We can handle it. We may even justify what we consume by saying, “There’s nothing really wrong with it.” But the better question isn’t simply, “Is this wrong?” We should also ask, “What is this doing to me?”
In 1 Corinthians 6:12, the Apostle Paul writes, “‘I have the right to do anything,’ you say—but not everything is beneficial. ‘I have the right to do anything’—but I will not be mastered by anything.” Not everything we watch or consume has to be blatantly sinful to negatively influence us. What we repeatedly put into our minds can slowly shape our attitudes, desires, priorities, and even the way we see other people.
In fact, we need that little children’s song more now than ever. We live in a world where almost anything we want to see is instantly available. Movies, television, social media, news, pornography, gossip, anger, violence, and endless entertainment are only a click away. We can consume more content in a single day than previous generations could have imagined.
And what we consume matters.
Proverbs 4:23 says, “Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” We often think about guarding our hearts from the big, obvious sins. But guarding our hearts also means paying attention to what we regularly allow into them.
Consume anger constantly, and don’t be surprised when you become angry. Fill your mind with sexualized content, and it will affect how you view others. Follow the endless 24 hour politically charged news cycle, and anxiety will most likely increase. Spend hours watching people chase wealth, beauty, and status, and you may find yourself increasingly dissatisfied with what God has given you.
What we continually consume eventually leaves its fingerprints on our hearts.
So don’t forget, Northside family: “Be careful little (and big) eyes what you see!”