Beware of Acclimation!
“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”1
“The Boiling Frog is a fable describing a frog being slowly boiled alive. The premise is that if a frog is put suddenly into boiling water, it will jump out, but if the frog is put in tepid water which is then brought to a boil slowly, it will not perceive the danger and will be cooked to death.”2 Regardless of the behavior of real frogs in this situation, the boiling frog serves a great metaphor for the Christian today.
In our world today we are constantly being approached by different beliefs, opinions, convictions, etc. Whether we are talking about lying, stealing, drunkenness, abortion or homosexuality (amongst several other topics), the Bible is very clear about what God says. At times we may be put into situations where we know immediately that it is a sin and we need to get out of there. But other times, we may allow ourselves to be influenced on certain topics by our friends, family and acquaintances.
When we are constantly hearing people’s attitude of acceptance of what we know are sins, it is sometimes easy to start acclimating to their way of thinking. Although we know what the Bible says, we start making exceptions depending on the environment we are in. Our way of thinking will affect the way we act and live. That is why today’s verse tells us, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.”
Just because we live in this world,
let us not forget that we are not of this world. Our hearts and eyes need to
stay focused on things above and allowing God to fulfill his plan and purpose
in and through us. Let us not become so acclimated to our surroundings that we fail
to see the danger and suffer a spiritual death. Instead, let us continually be
transformed by allowing God to change the way we think to be more like Him.
Suggested Prayer: “Dear God, I thank you for your Word which is our daily guide to living. Please keep me from acclimating to the fallen world we live in, but instead help me be a light that will shine bright in the midst of so much darkness. May the way I think and act reflect your heart. Help me always speak the truth in love regardless of how difficult it may be. Transform me day by day and use my life to be a living testimony for you. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. In Jesus’ name. Amen."
1. Romans 12:2 (NLT).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiling_frog.
All articles on this website are written by
Richard (Dick) Innes unless otherwise stated.