Seek The Things That Are Above

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. -- Colossians 3:1-2 (ESV)

When I think about this verse, I can only reflect back on how much time I have wasted in my life thinking about things "on earth". So much time has been spent reading books, watching movies, listening to pop music, and sitting in front of the television. So many opportunities lost to focus on "things that are above."

Why lament the time lost?

Because I have so much to learn as an adult, and I seem to have so little time to do it. If I had spent more time earlier in my life (when I had free time) thinking about "things that are above", then I would be much farther along.

However, it really is a more complex lament than just time management. All of those things (books, music, movies, television) did more to me than just entertain. They taught me. Every one of the books I read, songs I heard, movies I watched, and television shows I followed trained my mind to view the world in a particular way. The vivid pictures, interesting plots, and repetitive choruses conditioned my mind into defining what was "normal" for our world.

When I saw a weak, bumbling father repeatedly portrayed in the media, my view of masculinity was being defined for me. When I allowed my mind to form mental allegiances with the "good guys" in the stories who when analyzed from a biblical perspective were evil, I was eroding away the foundations for absolute truth. When I let the music carry me off into a sea of emotions that was almost drug-like in its disconnectedness from reality, I was preparing myself to desire and even worship my feelings.

So now I find myself with a lifetime of learning to catch up on, but I also find that I have quite a bit of retraining to do. This is no different than gardening. I didn't plant good things, eternal things, things that are above, and now I find that my garden is full of weeds that thrive in the hard, unhealthy, fallow ground of a mind trained in earthly things.

So what am I to do? Work. Work. Work some more. Now is the time break up the fallow ground and allow the Spirit of God to illuminate and cultivate a deep understanding and desire for truth. I have too little time to waste it on what my wife calls "twaddle" or meaningless, lifeless, purposeless endeavors. It is time to fill my mind with heavenly things. There is plenty of ground to break up -- let's roll!

But wait. There's one more thing....

My vision for this activity cannot stop with me. As the family leader, I must direct my family in a way such that my experience is not repeated in my children. My children haven't lost the time that I have. They still have a chance to be so much farther along than me. So I need to take a good look at my children and figure out how to maximize their time in the things that are above. I should have a laser focus on the development of my children, asking the tough questions about what they read, watch, and do. If it doesn't have eternal value or build them a foundation of absolute truth, then it's continued existence in my family is in jeopardy.

It doesn't matter what everybody else is doing with their children. It doesn't matter how many people have said such and such is OK. I am the dad of my children. God has told me to raise them in fear and admonition of the Lord. What others are doing is irrelevant when it comes to authoritative decisions in my family.

We all need to be humble, be thorough, and seek to redeem the day.