Several years ago a teenager in England went to the doctor with symptoms of exhaustion. Some routine blood tests revealed he had low Vitamin B-12 levels and anemia, but no other obvious underlying issues. He was given vitamin shots, dietary advice, and then sent home. Over the next several years his vision began to deteriorate, and even his hearing began degrading. His vision loss continued until three years later he was considered legally blind.

What disease or disorder was causing his vision and hearing loss? It tuns out that it wasn’t due to some obscure disease, instead, it was caused by his diet. The doctors discovered that for the past seven years the teen had eaten nothing but fries, Pringles, white bread, and processed ham and sausage. This sort of diet is often linked to common problems like obesity and heart disease, but the lack of basic nutrients and the length with which he stuck to that diet had irreversible effects on his nervous system.

What We Feed On

What we eat has profound effects on our health. It’s why when we are young our parents made us eat our vegetables, even though we might have preferred to have subsisted on chicken nuggets and french fries. Our parents knew there were important nutrients in vegetables that our growing bodies needed for us to develop into healthy adults. Even when we are older, and we assume more mature, we still have to make ourselves eat healthy foods instead of piling our plates full of fried foods and dessert.

Our minds and souls are also affected by what our ears and eyes feed on. Our actions begin with thoughts, and our thoughts are affected by the information we consume. If we consume junk, our minds will suffer. If we consume good things, our minds will thrive.

We often tell ourselves, “We are adults, we can consume information and discern the true from the false and guard our minds from the unholy things we see.” But we are deceiving ourselves. Could we eat nothing but fries, white bread, Pringles, ham, and sausages and tell our bodies to be trim and healthy? No! If that is true, then why do we think we can consume information and our thinking will not be affected? Looking at a single news article or social media post will not ruin you, but a sustained diet of mental junk food will eventually and inevitably destroy your spiritual vision.

Sources of Mental Junk Food

The problem of mental junk food is not a new one. But now, in the first part of the 21st century, we are experiencing an explosion of information not seen since the invention of the printing press in the 15th century. The overwhelming amount of available information makes it ever more difficult to determine what is good or what is harmful.

The rise of smartphones has made it more convenient to access information than ever before. Smartphones are the mental equivalent of carrying some junk food around in your backpack or purse. If we feel a bit hungry we can grab some snacks to satisfy our hunger for a time. The problem is that we are often feeding on something that lacks the nutrients we need, and that might even be dangerous to our health.

The internet is like a large supermarket. There are aisles filled with fresh fruits, vegetables, and other staples, but there are also aisles packed with snacks, candy, fried foods, and alcohol. We know that if we buy too much from the unhealthy aisles that our bodies will become ill—the internet is much the same. Due to our fallen nature, we find it easier to spend time in the aisles of the internet that serve up helpings of spiritual junk food.

Types of Mental Junk Food

The world has a lot to offer our appetites. Much of the news, information, and entertainment we consume today, online or otherwise, can be detrimental to our spiritual health because it brings with it the ungodly spirits of this world.

Contention

Some of the most dangerous information is that which tells us how to think and feel about others. Matthew Ch. 5-7 tells us many truths about relating to both our brothers and sisters in Christ as well as our enemies. The common thread through all of the Sermon on the Mount is that of love to others no matter what.

The spirit of this world is one of contention, political parties driven by selfish motives, and pitting “us” against “them.” This spirit of conflict goes directly against what the Bible teaches.

“But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same?” (Matthew 5:44-46)

How will we be affected if we habitually feed on news and social media that thrives on demonizing and criticizing others? Will it cause us to love our enemies like Jesus commanded? Will it help us to reach out to them to share the love of God? Might this spirit of contention even begin seeping into our brotherhood and causing divisions in the Bride of Christ?

Focus on the Self

The spirit of this world focuses on the self. In this worldview the individual and his rights and desires are most important. The individual decides what is right or wrong, and he alone determines what is permissible for him to do. Those that think in this way ask, “What is best for me?”, not “What is best for others?” This spirit of individualism resists personal sacrifice, accountability, and submission to God-ordained leaders.

The New Testament teaches us that we are to die to ourselves and to put the needs of others before our own selfish desires. Consuming news and other information that flows from a spirit that focuses of the individual will soon cause our minds to begin thinking in the same way.

“Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it. For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:24-26)

Entertainment

We all agree that the surrounding culture is obsessed with entertainment. From movies, books, and music to sporting events and television, the pursuit of entertainment costs people enormous amounts of money and time. This compulsion to chase after entertainment has not left the church unscathed.

The word amuse has changed in its meaning over the centuries, but it first meant, “to divert the attention, beguile, and delude.” Entertainment and amusement tends to do that to us. It takes our attention away from important things and can even beguile, or ensnare, us into lives of consumption and pleasure. God does not mean for us to lead lives devoid of pleasure and good things, but a life that chases after entertainment will often lead down the broad ways trodden by many in the surrounding culture.

The consumption of entertainment strongly influences our thinking. When we are absorbed in entertainment it is easy for us to unconsciously take on the ungodly ideas and worldview that the entertainment is promoting. Ungodly entertainment normalizes or even promotes evil behavior. When we consume this spiritual junk food our sight can become blinded to immorality and violence. We might think that we can be entertained for a while and be unchanged, but the truth of Scripture does not support that belief.

“Can a man take fire in his bosom, and his clothes not be burned? Can one go upon hot coals, and his feet not be burned?” (Proverbs 6:27-28)

Instead of taking the world’s entertainment into our bosoms and thinking we won’t be harmed, we should be seeing this evil for what it is and putting it away from us.

What Should You Feed On?

The solution to an unhealthy diet is not to just stop eating junk food, but to start eating healthy food. The time that you previously spent consuming information, news, social media, and entertainment can be better spent in prayer, serving others, and reading and meditating on God’s Word.

The time we have on the earth is short. We must make the best use of the little amount of time we have.

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16)

There is much work to do, both in our local congregations and in spreading the Gospel to others. Let us not allow the things of this world to hinder us doing the will of our Father.

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” (1 John 2:15-17)