When I was little, I used to be a big fan of The Untouchables. It was one of my favorite shows; I kind of liked the way Al Capone looked. He had a better-looking suit than Elliot Ness did. The gangsters had big, nice, shiny cars. They always had pretty ladies around them and wore nice suits.

One morning I went to Sunday School and my teacher told me, “You know, the Bible says you should bless your enemies. Don’t you want to do that, Jesse?”

“No! I’ll put a contract out on ’em! Let ’em mess with me!”

“Contract? What contract?”

“Oh, nothing, Mrs. Hutchinson, nothing.”

Now, I’m not knocking the show. It was written, directed and produced really well. But the underlying current of worldly attractions was becoming a danger to me. It was weaning me from God, holiness and heaven. I was absorbing what they were showing, as demonstrated by my response to my Sunday School teacher.

It is important to watch what you put before your eyes. The world has many attractions, but those attractions can become dangerous if we become fully absorbed in them. Instead of being purged into purity by the Spirit of God, we may end up being weaned, ever so slowly, away from the Lord.

After a while, you become conditioned to hearing cursing. You become conditioned to watching adultery on television. Things that used to bother you as a believer become more common, less threatening and easier to digest.

Ever so slowly, you become conditioned to the way the world thinks. And that isn’t good for your soul, which is your mind, your will and your emotions.

It is usually done through the great god of “entertainment.” Remember that there is nothing wrong with having fun or being entertained. I’m all for that.

But watch out what you allow yourself to digest. You can be laughing and not even notice the underlying current that is in direct opposition to what you believe. You can hear a point of view so much that it seems kind of okay. Watch that.

And I’m not saying you shouldn’t watch this or that. All I’m saying is to be aware and keep your heart pure. Some people really take in what they see, while others just don’t.

Only you and God can judge what you can see and what you can’t. Only you and God can judge what you can hear and what you can’t. That is between you and God. I encourage you to just step back a bit and recognize what you’re taking into your heart.

Remember that most of the people in the entertainment world don’t know God. They’re coming from a lost and confused point of view. Many do things to deliberately shock you—to go against the grain just to grab your attention. Attention in their world means money. Understand that, and then seek to keep your own heart pure. You don’t have to allow any of their impurity to find a home in your heart.

Whatever you see or hear doesn’t have to influence you, because the greater power is in you! You can recognize any impurity and choose to avoid it.