This is the start of my newest article for Risen Motherhood.

After getting the kids to bed, it’s not uncommon for my husband and I to look at each other and ask: “Is there anything we want to watch?”

During a year when most of us have been at home more than ever before—and our opportunities for other activities have shrunk down to nothing—it’s been an easy choice to turn to the screen.

But how do we choose what to watch? What we let into our hearts through our eyes matters. Some believers will say they have freedom to watch whatever they want; some will say they can’t watch anything. The reality is that all of us must prayerfully determine our own convictions about what we can watch, read, and listen to, and then seek to graciously interact with others when our convictions differ from theirs.

If we want to live rightly before the Lord with our media choices, it will not happen passively. We must move forward with intention and honesty—and with knowledge about what pleases the Lord.

With that in mind, here are three questions to consider when approaching media:

1. Is this something that gratifies my flesh, or is it something that edifies my spirit?

The Scripture is clear: we cannot please the Spirit of God while at the same time indulging our sinful flesh. It’s one or the other: “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do” (Gal. 5:16–17).

This is why we can’t determine what to watch or read by how we feel.[2] What we can do, instead, is turn to Scripture to help us determine whether what we want to watch, read, or listen to is going to feed our flesh or our spirit. Galatians 5:19–23 is a helpful list to use when we think about what to watch. Paul gives examples of “the works of the flesh” such as sexual immorality and idolatry and contrasts those with “the fruit of the Spirit,” such as love, joy, and peace. Considering what we’re going to watch, listen to, or read against this biblical list can help us assess the impact of media on our hearts and minds.

But while we’re called to avoid media that will indulge our flesh, we can also rightfully enjoy media that helps us think about “whatever is true, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, [and] whatever is admirable” (Phil. 4:8). When media is created with excellence and truth, it has the opportunity to reflect the beauty of God—and help us worship him!

Here’s a litmus test I often use when approaching media: Would I feel comfortable watching this movie if Jesus was sitting next to me, in the flesh? If not, then this may be something that is praising sin and worldliness, and I need to reconsider.

Read the rest of the article here, at Risen Motherhood!