Good or Garbage?

Have you ever heard a term or saying that you yourself now own and repeat whenever the opportunity arises? Well, the older I get the more I realize I do this. My Life Group met for a social at the beginning of July and they were ribbing me because I used a saying I learned from my grandfather as a kid. He would look out at his corn crop usually at the end of June and say “I just hope the corn will be knee-high by the fourth of July.” I laugh now when I say silly things like that because it makes me think about my grandfather and all of his funny sayings.

But then again, there are those sayings that sound funny or odd when you first hear them until you look at the real meaning behind them. One of those for me was “garbage in-garbage out” or “GIGO.” The first time I heard this was in a counseling class I took in college. The idea was that people are affected by all that they absorb. From the music we listen to; to the media we watch; or the books, blogs, or printed material we read; it all has an influence on us. I was reminded of this a few months ago as I talked with a friend who was struggling. As we talked, he shared how he felt unbalanced and rudderless. Not only was he facing some health problems, but he had lost his passion for his work and dreaded going into the office every day. I prayed for him and let him go with the best encouragement I could muster.

A few weeks later I called to check in on him, fearful of what I might hear as he answered the phone. To my surprise, he was upbeat and happy. I asked him what caused such a big change in him in such a short period of time. He said, “I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. So I made a change.” He went on to tell me how he changed his diet, started taking walks with his wife and kids, and reduced his screen time drastically, as well as started journaling and spending more quiet time with God, reading the Word and praying. He then asked me if I had ever heard the term “GIGO” to which I chuckled and said, “Yes.” He said, “Man, it works,” and that is how he was once again the high-energy fun guy I had always known.

So what about you? Are you struggling like my friend? Check out what you are taking in. Is it good or garbage? Let us know if this has been a help to you. Another resource I found, as I did some research, is a post from Desiring God back in 2010. It is a long read but worth the time. It specifically addresses the idea of “GIGO” in section two of the article.