As you know, I discovered about one year ago that I am allergic to gluten. Whenever I eat something with gluten in it, most food with wheat or barley in it, my muscles go crazy, twitching, jumping, and spasms. I have done well in avoiding foods with gluten this past year and, as a result, I now sleep like a baby. Patty has done great when she shops, checks labels, and buys gluten-free food. But last night, she gave me spaghetti that was not gluten-free. She has purchased gluten-free spaghetti, so I assumed this was some of that. Not too long after eating my dinner, I started to feel my muscles starting to feel funny. I said to her, “That was gluten-free, wasn’t it. Her eyes got big, and she gasped, “Oh, honey! I forgot!” Needless to say, I had a terrible night and slept little. Patty felt bad, but that didn’t stop me from getting some mileage out of it with the kids and grandkids as I harrassed her about trying to kill me. It only takes a little bit of the wrong thing in eating to make my life miserable.

Jesus made it clear that what we eat with our mouths is not nearly as damaging to us as what we take in with our eyes and ears. There is so much garbage in our world today on television, movies, social media, and especially the internet. Even a little bit of the poison in the world will damage our hearts. We need to have a holy fear of taking it in and guard ourselves from the constant barrage of evil stuff all around us. What we bring into our brains and hearts matters a lot. What we look at and listen to dictates what we think about, and what we think about influences our choices and behavior. Don’t compromise in this area of life; even a little bit will make your life miserable.