O, Be Careful...

As I was laying in bed recently, the lyrics to a song from my early childhood popped into my brain. I haven't thought about this song since my own kids were little and I was teaching it to them. My first thought was that I need to teach this to my grandchildren. As the song repeated in my mind, I started thinking about the words as they relate to my own life.

O, be careful little eyes what you see
O, be careful little eyes what you see
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So, be careful little eyes what you see

As I have mentioned before, I am addicted to politics, current events, the news in general. The things my "little eyes" see by watching so much news each day is astounding. And horrible. And heartbreaking-ly sad. Have you ever stopped to think what our eyes take in each and every day? Whether you're watching the news, or prime time TV, or cable reality TV, or going to a movie, or even through reading a book; our eyes are subject to thousands of images that we do not need to be seeing. Psalm 119:37 says "Turn my eyes away from what is worthless! Revive me with your word!" (NET) I need to take this verse to heart and be careful what my eyes are seeing.

O, be careful little ears what you hear
O be careful little ears what you hear
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So, be careful little ears what you hear

In my every day life, this one is somewhat aligned with what my eyes are seeing. Although I watch the news with  the sound muted 50% of the time. For me, being careful of what I hear is more specific to popular songs, and the rough language that is prevalent in today's conversation. I think it's easier to guard what our eyes are seeing than what our ears are hearing. We can always close our eyes. Our ears remain open even while we're sleeping. I have to work deliberately at guarding what comes into my mind through my ears. "Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to the words of knowledge." Proverbs 23:12

O, be careful little hands what you do
O, be careful little hands what you do
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So, be careful little hands what you do

One of the bloggers I read wrote a post about what she does in a typical day. It was entertaining, and I could certainly relate to the busy-ness of her day! It also got me to thinking about what I do with my hands in a typical day. Am I choosing activities that are constructive, or am I wasting my time on activities that have no worth? I'll be honest here: how much time am I wasting on the computer? Anything that has a screen is a mighty temptation. And in today's world EVERYTHING seems to have a screen! Proverbs 31:31 "Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate."

O, be careful little feet where you go
O, be careful little feet where you go
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So, be careful little feet where you go

Where do my feet go? This one is easy for me as far as avoiding temptation by going places I shouldn't. But I fail miserably in using my feet when it comes to good health. I need to move my feet (and entire body) more in exercise. I feel mighty convicted by this little verse of the song! "Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path." Psalm 119:105

O, be careful little mouth what you say
O, be careful little mouth what you say
For the Father up above is looking down in love
So, be careful little mouth what you say

I guess the lyricist saved the hardest verse for last. It is so difficult to tame my tongue! How many times have I said something hurtful, or cruel, or tactless, or mean, or untruthful, or thoughtless? How many times have I wanted to immediately take back the words that I've just uttered? How many opportunities have I missed to praise, or encourage, or support, or speak lovingly? Our words are so powerful, yet we use them with little thought to the consequences of their impact. Psalm 19:14 "May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer."

Next week as I begin to teach this little song to my grandkids, my prayer is that I will apply it to my life. That I will remember to guard what my eyes see, what my ears hear, what my hands do, where my feet go, and most importantly, what my mouth says.