by Britton Taylor on January 20, 2014

Have you ever seen something that was really disturbing? Perhaps you witnessed a serious traffic accident or saw a news story with graphic images of death and mayhem? If you have, you know it’s pretty hard to go back and “unwatch” something that’s caused you emotional upset.

Psychologists who work with the military frequently have to help soldiers who suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder. These soldiers struggle—many for the rest of their lives—to forget the horror of war burned into their minds. This phenomenon should serve as a red flag to each of us that our minds can be irreparably damaged just by seeing something.

War is an extreme example of the power that disturbing images can have on our minds and the damage they can inflict. But what about a more subtle version—what we might call “image poisoning”—that can occur every day? People can spend hours absorbed in murderous video games, pornography or mindless sitcoms that portray a “not so subtle” message that a perverse lifestyle is perfectly normal.

“Image poisoning” can shift outlooks, bend perceptions of reality and do serious damage within. How many mass murderers have been found to have played innumerable hours of video games filled with endless debauchery and carnage? The images so darkened their spirit that it became easy to pull the trigger and destroy lives.

Our Creator warned us about image poisoning in His instruction book—what we call the Bible. In this guide to life He clearly shows that the eye is the “lamp of the body.” What we see can illuminate the spirit with good and right images of peace and kindness—or it can darken the soul with perversion, death and destruction.

The interesting part is that God has left it up to us—to you and me—to choose. “Choose life,” God says, “that both you and your descendants may live.” That it may go well with you, that you will have a tranquil and productive life that produces happiness and true joy.

But what can you do if you are already haunted by images that have poisoned your mind?

First ( and most important): Stop watching things that are affecting you in a negative way.

Next: Ask God to heal you of image poisoning and begin to repair the damage you have done. The more you have abused your mind, the more God will have to heal and repair.

Please realize that you must take that first important step. You must choose to stop any future damage by refusing to look at what is offensive to your mind. If you’re serious, you must begin this process today.

The next important step to recovery is to fill your mind with positive images and godly thoughts. Please use the Life, Hope & Truth website and your Bible to begin to displace evil with good. You will find a wealth of truth that will help you begin the process of pushing out evil with good. It is similar to how air is displaced when you fill a glass with water. As the water rushes in, the air is forced out. You can do this with your mind and force the wrong and evil out by putting in the good.

Finally, work to establish a relationship with God. He is concerned about the welfare and the contentment of every son and daughter on this earth. He is so concerned that He allowed His Son to pay the penalty for “image poisoning” for all mankind. His gift to us will mend an estranged relationship caused by wrong and abusive conduct on our part.

But remember, it is up to us to take that very first step on the road to recovery.

For Life, Hope & Truth, I’m Britton Taylor.