So... today I was impressed with the knowledge that there is something greatly lacking in my life. Something that is so fulfilling and coveted in life that as it has been without immediate access for some time now many have nearly died of starvation. Honestly, to hear of its return and the response of the general public around me would make me think this thing were absolutely essential to life as we know it! Does anyone know what I'm talking about? I'll give you a hint- it's not Jesus or His Word. It's television...
*Gasp!*
Honestly, I can't believe how many people today I either talked with personally or understood through secondary means of communication (IE- Facebook statuses, friends of friends, class banter, etc.) had planned their evening around their television program airing tonight. Indeed my life must be empty, for I know not the joy of "The Office," or of any other television production. I suppose I should apologize to my friends whose enthusiasm I cannot share and whose conversations I will not be able to take part for the next week as reflections of so and so's new role/greatest line of the night create unity where nothing else can.
Okay... all cynicism aside. Is this really the case? Do we define our community and our lives by a television show? I asked five people if they were willing to do differing things this evening and the response of all five was, "I can't, the Office premier is on," in one aspect or another. Maybe this is coming down a little hard on something that seems so trivial in your minds, but I guess I'm more than just a little offended. Perhaps I see something that's not there, but that thing terrifies me nonetheless. What has happened to the Word of God? What has happened to His work in our lives?! Why is it that we need television to give us topics of conversation/ways to fill our time? What thing is this entering our mind? Is it TRUTH? Is it good, noble, pure, or lovely? When was the last time we talked about JESUS and everything that He did? I don't get it, perhaps I'm simply fanatical and obsessed with my Lord and what He's done... I don't hear talk of healing in television, I don't hear talks of miracles and extraordinary events and the fact that they can't be explained beyond saying, "GOD IS SO GOOD," as I watch most shows, in fact, as I watch ANY shows. I don't see anything other than what is common, and the common is precisely what we have been called to recognize and keep in an appropriate place!
What am I getting at? You tell me. I doubt I'll get a response to this, probably I'll just get more dirty looks. But I'd REALLY LOVE TO KNOW what you call your priorities and more than that I'd love to know if your actions reflect what you say!
Action reflects belief.
........................
Philippians 4
2 Timothy 2-3
Titus
Colossians
1 Peter
Ezekiel 44
Isaiah 6
Galatians 5
Ephesians 4
1 comment:
I wonder if this post is really a comment on the place the "arts" have (I realize that connecting television and the "arts" may be a considerable stretch to some) in the life of the Christian. Personally, I don't have the particular problem of not being able to hang out with friends because of a TV show (wife and kid at home make that pleasantly obsolete), but that really isn't the point here. It is "What thing is this entering our mind? Is it TRUTH? Is it good, noble, pure, or lovely? When was the last time we talked about JESUS and everything that He did?"
America, for better or for worse, is a media driven society. Any variety of media types can step in our way of putting Christ first. Concurrently, those same media types can be used to share the Gospel and God's love. The media in itself is only a tool. It cannot inherently be "good" or "bad".
So maybe the question we should ask ourselves is "What types of media do I plan my live around (going to a concert, planning a movie night, reading a book?), and what is the message conveyed by them?
Also, "What types of media am I using to share the Love of Christ (this blog)?"
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