How to Improve Your Soul Quality

Make wise choices to stay safe in the sinful haze of this world

An outbreak of wildfires in Canada blanketed much of the eastern United States in a haze of smoke the week of June 4, sparking frequent warnings for people to stay inside as much as possible. All of a sudden the air quality index was big news.

People learned how air quality is measured, how wildfire smoke poses a threat to it, who is at the biggest risk and what health symptoms may indicate trouble. The educational messages demonstrated the dangers of being caught in a bad environment and shared tips for how to keep breathing freely in the haze.

Photo by Anthony Quintano (via Flickr, Attribution 2.0 Generic)

As Christians, we need to pay attention to our surroundings, too. Looking to the Bible as our soul quality index, we can avoid the particulate matter that Satan spews into this carnal world (I John 2:15-17). Here are some environmental factors to consider in order to limit your exposure to spiritual pollution:

Location, location, location. A trip to Russia in 2004 opened my eyes to one of the many blessings of being American. One couple we met wanted to relocate to St. Petersburg but couldn’t get the government’s permission to make the move. Here in United States, we can live wherever we want and move as often as we want.

Not all locations in this country are equal in terms of church availability and general spirituality, so to the extent possible, you should use that freedom to live where your faith is most likely to grow. Moses is a good biblical role model. As an adult, he chose to live among the people of God rather than enjoy the treasures of Egypt as an adopted grandson of Pharoah (Hebrews 11:24-26). When picking your physical home, think about the spiritual home you hope to occupy someday.