Romans 6:17-18

  I am a slave to righteousness.
  "But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness." NKJV
  "Thank God! Once you were slaves of sin, but now you wholeheartedly obey this teaching we have given you. Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves of righteousness." JCB

  I sit here feeling convicted by these beautiful words. I feel convicted because there are a number of areas where I have allowed myself to get lost. TV is the greatest time vampire. Far too many hours are disappearing from the day. It's a pacifier, a false soother, that helps me avoid the many decisions on my plate and the many chores that keep piling up. I am overwhelmed by them all. But doing nothing doesn't make that go away. It makes it worse. So the TV has been turned on sooner and left on later each night to disconnect my brain from common sense.
  Oh, I can use the excuse that I've been struggling with some health issues, a bug that doesn't seem to be doing much of anything but leave me tired. Yet, being a couch potato means any sort of physical exercise is tiring because a body unused is a body weakened. Yup, TV is a vampire that sucks the life out of me.

  Righteousness: being right with God.
  I need to make a list, to set down everything that is waiting to be done. Perhaps there are some areas I could even ask for help in accomplishing. Wow. Is that out of character!
  Maybe I need to pull the plug on the box, too. For a while anyways. Until the cycle is broken. Until the weight I gained back over the winter is lost. Until my fitness level improves. Until I get some of the big projects off my plate.

  There are three tree stumps in my front yard. Two that are rotten and one that could be burned down to below the ground. The TV is like that. A habit left behind from an old life that was severed the moment I believed Jesus was Lord.
  It's time to buy a new axe handle.
  First things first.
  Lord, forgive me for allowing worldly entertainments to keep me apart from You. In You, I can overcome this addiction. In You, I can accomplish many things...far more than I could ever do alone. Lord, there's loneliness here, too, that the box has served to soothe. Lead me into friendships whose foundation is You. These things I pray in Jesus' name. Amen.