Don’t be the frog that boiled to death.

My Spirit-filled four-year-old daughter sat opposite me this afternoon while I started to chop a large honeydew melon. Being that the melon was very ripe and juicy, my hands were already well and truly sticky. We were listening to a music radio station on the television. It was jazz, and up until this point the music had been solely instrumental, but suddenly a new piece began that included lyrics. It was pleasant sounding, but as we listened we both perceived that the words being sung were not at all appropriate for Christian ears.

My daughter, Elisabeth, immediately alerted me to this, telling me that the song had “bad words” and that I needed to change the channel. Yet, by this time I was right in the middle of chopping the melon. The chopping board was full of melon juice to the point of nearly spilling over the sides, and my hands were unpleasantly gooey. I knew I couldn’t dare try to touch the remote control, so I attempted to justify my inaction to my daughter. I should have known otherwise based on the way my husband and I had trained her from day one. Elisabeth persisted, and I continued to try to avoid the effort required to change the channel, hoping that the song would soon be over and we’d be back to listening to plain instrumental music.

Yet, because of my daughter’s unwavering spiritual resolve, I finally realized that I was making a poor and very lazy decision. I realized that by brushing off the situation and allowing the bad influence to continue to penetrate our ears and minds, I was possibly opening the door to future casualness. Not making an effort to rid the room of the wicked words this one time could easily lead to another time and then another. This could then lead to cracks appearing in other areas of our walks with the Lord – our viewing choices, our reading choices, the words from our mouths, etc. My sudden vision of our family’s spiritual stronghold slowly crumbling away was no exaggeration. I had seen it happen in other Christians’ lives, and I had purposed never to let it happen to our family. So, I swallowed my pride and kicked myself into gear right at the very moment when my daughter proclaimed emphatically, “But you could wash your hands!” Yes, she was right. I could simply make the effort to wash my hands, and then the problem would be solved.

Now this may seem a trivial situation to you, and I would be inclined to agree based upon this single situation. But I encourage you to consider the broader context. If this is an example of ignoring or justifying sinful influence due to the inconvenience of cutting it off or removing yourself from it, you can imagine the wider consequences. You might even clearly identify some (or even myriad) situations in your own walk where you do this kind of thing repeatedly. If so, have you considered the accumulative effect it has had on your relationship with God and your testimony in Jesus?

Sure, there are the odd times when we can’t do much about what we (and our children) are being exposed to, but for the most part, we can because – in most situations – we have choices. It’s just that most of these choices involve effort, change, inconvenience, or natural discomfort, so we’d rather take the route that is most pleasing to the flesh. We overlook or excuse that which is, in reality, unacceptable in God’s eyes.

Sometimes, a choice might be simple and easy (like choosing to wash your hands so you can change the radio station!), yet other situations might require a major lifestyle shift – like abstaining from socializing with certain destructively negative people or getting rid of video games in the household because they’ve become a major distraction (and even the video content you’ve been allowing to creep in lately is very questionable).

Regardless, we must consider the consequences of our inaction against a negative influence or temptation. Plus, if we’re tempted to brush off something as “inconsequential in the scheme of things,” then we need to consider the accumulative effect of allowing little evil influences in our daily lives or the overall life of our family. Years of ignoring or justifying “this and that” can lead to opening the door to a bigger “this or that,” which can soon result in a very casual walk with the Lord. His Word is no longer reflected in your life – how you speak, how you act, what you do or don’t do, etc. – and your salvation is even in question. This is a very dangerous place to be. Sadly, many Christians unwittingly end up there. It happens gradually, almost unnoticeably, to the person. It might sound incredibly corny to say, “It won’t happen overnight, but it will happen!” Yet, it’s the truth.

This is what we call “spiritual desensitization.” Little by little, slowly over time, a Christian invites more and more sinful influence into their lives. This wears away at their spiritual vision – and commitment to please God and walk righteously – as they give in to each temptation, and they later find themselves in a situation where they’re not much different from those who are without the Lord. Even if they don’t fall to this extent, they at least wax cold to the point where they are unprofitable for the Kingdom.

Initially, the person may have been very sensitive to, and passionately opposed to, sin and unrighteous influence. They may have completely cleaned up their own lives the moment they were born again and examined external influences with great caution. But then, opening the door to one bad example led to another, and eventually, their spiritual path widened to the point where they became lukewarm or even cold toward the things of God. Have you ever heard the anecdote of the frog that was placed in cold water that was then slowly heated to boiling point, and the frog was cooked to death because he didn’t perceive the danger in time? Although there are some scientific cases against the reality of this happening, it is nevertheless an excellent metaphor to demonstrate the concept of spiritual desensitization. A Christian brother also once described it as the “death of outrage” – the loss of outrage against sin and unrighteous influence.

So, the next time someone in the Lord makes a helpful suggestion to you (such as washing your hands so you can use the TV remote!), pay attention. They are caring for your spiritual health – and perhaps their own. That someone may very well be the Holy Spirit Himself. God knows what is best for us, and He knows what can potentially harm us and entice us away from His ways, so He will “speak” to us using His Spirit. He might speak to us in other ways as well, such as using our brethren (no matter how young they are!) to share a message with us. It’s up to us to listen and obey, no matter how much effort is involved and no matter what kind of inconvenience or fleshly discomfort it may cause. God has told us that the path to salvation is narrow (Matthew 7:14), and we must take that warning seriously.

P.S. Here are some areas to consider in terms of possible questionable influences:

What you and your children:

Read

Books. Magazines. Horoscopes, fortune cookies, and other soothsayer/mystical-type writings. Etc.

Listen to

Music. Radio. Podcasts. Etc.

Watch

Television. Movies. YouTube. Etc.

Browse on the Internet

Websites. Social media. Subreddits. Etc.

Play

Video games. Board games. Etc.

Have in your home

Idols/false gods and things to do with these (often subtly present e.g. in artwork and decorative pieces). Tempting foods and beverages that easily lead you to consistently indulgent or addictive behavior. Etc.

Follow

Traditions – are they of God/are they Biblical? Sports and hobbies – are they drawing you away from sufficient time with God, your family, your brethren? Etc.

Partake in

Gambling. Social activities. Events. Etc.

Do – for work, education, leisure

Does it cause you to compromise your walk as a Christian in any way? Do you have constant interaction with very worldly people, and it is bringing much heaviness and/or temptation into your life (even if you are perhaps hoping to eventually draw them to Jesus)? After all, Jesus didn’t dine with sinners every night! If so, consider other options for paying your bills, learning, or relaxing. If you’re having a hard time coming up with alternatives, then pray that God will show you a solution (and be willing to accept God’s answer when He does bring it your way!). Don’t forget to consider your children’s lives, too, in this and all of the above areas because we parents are accountable for all that we allow our children to be exposed to (for as long as they are in our care).

NOTE:

Make sure you look deeply. Many things that have a spiritual or even seemingly Christian coating are, in reality, against the ways of God. Search the Bible and compare all things with the Scripture. This is the perfect blueprint that will help you discern whether or not something is acceptable in God’s eyes. As God encourages us in Philippians 2:12, “Wherefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” Also, 2 Timothy 2:19 (NLT), “But God’s truth stands firm like a foundation stone with this inscription: ‘The Lord knows those who are his,’ and ‘all who belong to the Lord must turn away from evil.’”