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​Did you watch the series Vikings?

I can’t say I really did, although I painfully sat through a few episodes. You know how being the last born means you never truly control the TV remote, especially when you have older brothers. That is how I endured the insufferable torture of watching Vikings, Dominion, The Originals, Vampire Diaries, Naruto and the rest, when all I wanted was to watch Barbie.

Still, one memory from Vikings stayed with me. My sister and I were talking about it this evening, and it became even more interesting as we reflected on it. It’s the story of how Athelstan, a devoted priest, slowly shifted into a glorified pagan simply because he began living among pagans.

He was captured, yes, but he wasn’t mistreated. Ragnar, a pagan lord who genuinely loved him, wanted to learn his ways, to understand his God, even hoping Athelstan would convert him. But instead of Athelstan converting Ragnar, Athelstan himself became the changed one. And what makes it more fascinating is that he wasn’t forced. He had full freedom to choose, yet his convictions still shifted.

This is where environmental conditioning comes in. Imagine taking a fish out of water and placing it on sand. It clearly cannot swim. But unlike animals, we humans like to believe we should know who we are regardless of where we are placed. Yet many times, when pulled from our comfort zone, we lose touch with our identity and what we claim to believe. Maybe that means we never truly understood it in the first place. Maybe the faith or conviction was only a façade.

There’s even a study that suggests that a huge percentage of Christians today would not have been Christians if they weren’t born into Christian homes.

Dearest reader, here is the real trick: if something can easily shake your conviction, maybe you weren’t rooted in it. Association plays a major role. Spending long periods with people whose lifestyles or beliefs differ from yours can be tempting. But when you truly understand your cause, not out of blind religious devotion but after questioning, seeking, and being convinced beyond doubt, then no doctrine, trend, or influence can sway you.

My boss used to say: if someone tells you that you have a big head, and you already own a mirror and know what your head looks like, their comment cannot shake you. Conviction comes from clarity.

Be convinced before you step out.

Association and environment are powerful forces.

@favvy_Okwans🖤.