What impresses you? Sticks with you? Leaves it’s mark on you? Stays to influence you after it’s gone? Something that you can’t help talking about with others later? When we were little it was probably a magic trick or a sports feat or a movie special effect. But what is it now? I think if I’m honest I would have to say sometimes it’s bad news – bad news for my city, country, work, family, etc.

Truth:  We give power to what we’re impressed by.

The Israelites were constantly impressed by the success and growth of the idol worshipping nations around them; which caused them to begin to fear, then worship their gods; which caused them to lose influence with God, who no longer protected them; and they were oppressed by those nations.

What if we weren’t impressed by evil anymore? What if hopelessness simply wasn’t exciting to us? How would our meditations change? How would our words change?

We don’t have to be impressed by the enemy. We can be impressed by God’s thoughts about us (Ps 139:17-18), by God’s plan for our world (Jn 3:16, Rom 8:19, etc), by God’s love, grace and mercy (Ex 34:6, Ps 103:8, etc), by God’s majestic personality (Heb 1:3-4, Ps 93:1, etc), by His majesty in the people around us (Prov 25:11, 1 Pet 2:9-10, etc). When those are the things that stick with us, leave their mark on us, influence us, and we can’t help talking about them – we are poised to give God’s plans power in our life.