I haven't listened to secular music in probably 15+ years. Yes, I will sometimes scan through the radio stations, or hear music at the store, but I almost never listen to non-Christian music of my own accord. As a teenager there was this cool music station that I liked to listen to (probably more than my parents knew :) ), and I'd hear a lot at Carvel where I worked (one of my favorites was Power Windows - great song). But, since college/getting married, it's been at a minimum.
Anyways, there has been an amazing by-product of not listening to secular music...I don't have any worthless/unhealthy/wrongly focused lyrics running through my head. Instead, the songs that pop into my head are Christian songs, frequently hymns. I do like to sing a bit during my day, and it's great to have words that are edifying just jump to my brain and out my mouth. Frequently songs will come unexpected into my mind, and I love that, on the whole, they are God honoring. Another great thing is that my kids don't know many non-Christian songs. Hannah is a great whistler, and she's pretty much whistling hymns when she does. (I guess there are a few kid songs they know that will get whistled as well). We sing hymns each school morning for bible time and pretty frequently at church so the kids know quite a few.
Of course, I don't think it's terrible to listen to secular music sometimes, but I do think we don't quite realize the effect that music has on us. It is quite sobering to stop and actually listen to many of the lyrics to popular songs. Choosing good music to listen to is an easy way to "set your minds on things above, not on earthly things."
This set of pictures is a tutorial on "How to Crack a Coconut"
1. Have a strong, young man hack at it with a knife for a good amount of time
2. Whack it hard on a sharp object till cracked through
3. Pour coconut juice into waiting mouths
4. Repeat step 2 till are able to break in half, then enjoy!
