The Dangers of Dissipation & Distraction

I had a dream.

I was in this large hotel room, like a suite, and the TV was on. It was one of those huge, heavy, old TVs that sit on the floor. The kind that was so deep, if it had a large enough hole and was completely hollow, it would make a great hiding spot.

The TV was on and there was a podcast playing with some guys talking. The longer I watched it, I realized it was making me both drowsy and inebriated. I recognized my peril, so I began to search for the OFF switch, but I could not find it. So many switches, but none would shut it down. 

The podcast itself seemed innocuous enough until this strange winged creature with crooked legs joined them. It appeared as a young guy, but it looked grey. Its story was that it was one of the fallen angels that had decided to turn over a new leaf. So, it wasn’t bad, just misunderstood. It could never land, because its legs were too crooked and weak to hold it up, so it would just float in the midst of the guys and participate in the conversation.

Then, I started to move the TV around (which I did surprisingly easily), trying to find the power cord so I could pull it out. However, what I discovered besides some old spider webs, were two buzz saws that were hidden in the TV apparatus. One large and one small, both covered with tiny, sharp teeth. They weren’t running, but they were still dangerous.

I was both frustrated and getting more and more stoned in my frantic search to shut off the TV. I remember feeling this unholy desire to just to give in and re-engage with the TV. Why fight it?

Finally, with the weakest yelp, I cried out to God for help. 

Suddenly, I found myself in this office with a few people. I was slowly coming back to my senses, but it wasn’t immediate. I knew they had been dulled. I guess you could say I was sobering up.

While sitting there, I remember watching a young teenage girl receive a prophetic word that seemed more like a curse than “edification, exhortation, or comfort” (1 Cor. 14:3). Someone had prophesied that her name meant “bi-polar.” I watched her agree with that description. I knew the word was false, but my senses were still so dull, all I could muster was, “Hey, let’s talk about that later.” I couldn’t minister to her right then because I was still “under the influence” of that TV.       

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“But be on your guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day close down upon you suddenly like a trap. For it will overtake all who live on the face of the whole earth. But stay alert at all times, praying that you may have strength to escape all these things that must happen, and to stand before the Son of Man.” Luke 21:34

I believe what the Lord is making clear is that dissipation, drunkenness, and the anxieties of life can weigh us down and dull our spirits to the point that we can miss what God is doing, whether that’s missing His timing, being unable to hear His voice right now, or ultimately allowing our souls to dissipate to the point that Jesus’s 2nd coming feels like a trap and not a celebration. Does this mean that believers who have succumbed to a lifestyle in which they are weighed down by dissipation, drunkenness, and the anxieties of life forfeit the gift of eternal life? I wouldn’t say that; salvation is a gift based on Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross. Period. We can debate once saved / always saved at another juncture.

What I am saying is that scripture is clear that dissipation, drunkenness, and sexual perversion are signs of the last days. In addition, what my dream seems to be conveying, is that too much of the wrong kind of entertainment can also dissipate our souls and dull our spiritual senses. In my dream, the Lord highlighted podcasts because that’s mostly what I listen to and watch. However, if my normal diet consisted of some hyper-sexualized and/or exceedingly violent streaming shows, perhaps He would have made that the dream’s focus.

As far as podcasts or news shows go, let me say this: being angry all of the time is not healthy for our souls. I know how good it feels when some respected media personality exposes the stupidity of others, or exults in how “our side” has the moral superiority about an issue. That feeling is alluring, seductive, strangely empowering, and yet ultimately soul-dissipating.

This is not the only dream the Lord has given me on the subject of what I allow into my “eye gate.” His Spirit has corrected me multiple times before when I was consistently watching stuff that was lowering my moral threshold for foul language/humor, perversion, or gossip. That’s what the Helper does - He watches over our souls. 

Does this discussion make me a prude and old fashioned? 

Maybe.  

I don’t mind the labels. There are worse things in this life than being called a prude (such as dreading our Lord’s 2nd coming rather than looking forward to it). 

Plus, I never want my spiritual senses so dull that I could no longer help a young person find their identity in Christ. Ugh. May that never be.

As far as self-descriptors go, the label I prefer is “Holy.”

Holy doesn’t mean that I think I’m somehow better than others or that I am perfect. If you follow this blog at all, you can attest that I  regularly share about my flaws and sin. And the stuff I don’t share publicly, my husband and a few close friends serve as my accountability.

Holy means God set me apart for His purpose, like a crystal goblet designed for the King’s feast versus a cheap disposable cup used for old school keg parties or playing in the mud.

Holiness is also a choice. I choose to be set apart.

Holiness means that His Holy Spirit inside of me is ordering my steps, empowering me to do His will.

Holiness means He speaks and I obey.

When talking about humans, “holy” doesn’t mean never making mistakes. Holiness is not perfection, it’s submission to Jesus’ Lordship, which, ultimately, sets us apart.

Holy is who I am because of who He is who dwells inside of me. 

Holy is my identity. 

“Be holy as I am holy.” 1 Peter 1:16

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The Sunday morning I had this dream (12/7/25), my pastor talked about the distractions in this holiday season that sap our peace, that hinder our ability to hear God’s voice. So much of what my pastor said felt like the Lord confirming the message from this dream. Watch Pastor Lenny Barber's message here.

For the Glory of His Name and for the sake of the world that our Savior loves so much, (such as the young teenager who is searching for her God-given identity) - 

Let us be holy as God is holy.

Amen.