We’re all familiar, I’m sure, with the terminology “couch-potato,”
a slang term for a person “who spends little or no time exercising and a great
deal of time watching television.”[1] Along with many of my fellow Americans, I admit
that I have been guilty of being a couch potato at various points in my life,
but until recently had never given much thought to the term. I have always thought of couch-potatoes as
people who were not doing something
they should be doing. While this is true, I have given much more
thought in the last week to how a person becomes a couch potato, about what
they are doing that they should not be doing, and how this
applies to our walk with God. Allow me to explain.
While preparing for a Bible Study with a young friend in the
Midwest a couple weeks ago, I was struck by Psalm 1:1. Notice the bolded words in this verse:
“Blessed
is the man who walks not in the
counsel of the wicked, nor stands in
the way of sinners, nor sits in the
seat of scoffers.” – Psalm 1:1, ESV
Think of what the opposite of this verse would say: “Cursed
is the man who walks in the counsel of the wicked, stands in the way of
sinners, and sits in the seat of scoffers.”
Consider the progression. Walking, standing, sitting … The person is
slowing down, compromising.
You see, when a person is walking in the counsel, or
conversation, of the wicked (or anyone, for that matter) – they are actively
going somewhere. At any given point,
they are probably not hearing everything their walking companion is saying
(there are birds singing, traffic sounds, children playing, and the person’s
own thoughts are tied up in how much time they have left to arrive at their
destination without being late). They
are in a hurry, have a destination in mind, and are simply humoring the person they
are walking with – listening out of one ear, if you will.
However, when someone stands “in the way of sinners,” they
have stopped to listen to what the person has to say. They are no longer moving towards their
destination. They are entertaining other
plans. They are focusing intently on
what the other person has to say, hearing every word, considering it.
And then, the person sits down. When someone sits in the seat of scoffers,
they have reached the “couch potato” moment.
They no longer have a destination in mind. They are comfortable, sitting among the “scoffers,”
a term that means “one who scoffs; one that mocks, derides, or reproaches in the
language of contempt; a scorner.”[2] All they hear is negative. They no longer can hear the birds singing,
the children playing. They are inside,
sitting comfortably, surrounded by people of like-minded negativity.
What does this translate to in our faith walk with God? If we are the person in Psalm 1:1, what does
this mean? It means that, as Christians,
we have a destination, a goal in mind.
We want to finish the race well, hear those ever anticipated words, “Well
done, my good and faithful servant.” We
are moving, getting to know God better.
As we walk along the way, however, there will be unbelievers who attach
themselves to us, people we know from our work places or our schools, from our
neighborhoods or our families, who will try to fill our ears with doubts,
questions, and sin. They will try to
dissuade us from following Christ, tell us that our “goal” is not possible,
that we should turn back. Choose to be blessed
– keep moving, keep running towards the prize of Jesus Christ. Do not stop, do not lose momentum or
backslide in the faith. Do not
compromise or entertain the thought of sin simply because the devil chirps in
your ear that it’s not “the worst sin” or that “other people do it.” The part of this verse that frightens me the
most is the end-stage, “sitting in the way of scoffers.” It
represents walking away from God entirely, giving up on God’s plans for you,
surrounding yourself with negativity and doubters, those who make fun of God
and His people. Zephaniah 1:12, in the Living Bible, describes this stage of "couch-potato" comfort, talking about "those who sit contented in their sins, indifferent to God, thinking he will let them alone." Verse 6 of that same chapter cautions all those who have become so comfortable, stating that "those who formerly worshiped the Lord, but now no longer do, and those who never loved him and never wanted to" will be destroyed.
And how does it happen?
By compromising. By getting
comfortable. By becoming a person who
spends little time exercising one’s faith – a couch potato in the faith. It happens gradually. You slow down the pace to hear more of what
they’re saying, to be polite. Then you
stop to listen because something you heard just made sense. You’re distracted from the end goal of
pleasing God. A few seconds couldn’t
hurt, right? And before you know it, you
walk back with them. It’s all over. You’ve sat down with their friends. You see, becoming a “couch potato” is about
both not doing what you should do (continuing in your walk with God, for example)
and about doing what you shouldn’t do (about listening to things that you should not be listening to, compromising on
things you shouldn’t compromise on, etc.).
So, my question to you is, how comfortable are you? Are there things that used to make you uncomfortable that you don't even notice now? Are there sins you have slipped into without thinking about it? Please - get up! Get moving in your faith again! Please, do not compromise with sin. Keep pursuing God. Keep the goal in mind. Don’t listen to the doubts, questions, and
enticements to sin. Run ahead in your
faith. Seek God. And enjoy the results of being "fit" in Christ. Good luck, friends.
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