Year: 2018

Categories
Christian Living

Movie-watching Impacts our Thoughts and our Feelings

Paige and I love movies. Based on the amount of money made by movies each year, you probably do too. But movie-watching can be problematic, because what we put into our eyes and minds impacts our thoughts and feelings. Here are a couple of reminders of this truth:

Ravi Zacharias, points out that “A massive global assault has been launched upon us, and it is the arts more than any other single force that predominate as an influential agent, molding our character, our values, and our beliefs. This invasion bypasses our reason and captures our imagination.”

Andrew Fletcher’s original quote from the 1600’s has been reimagined slightly and is now stated as: “Let me make the songs of a nation, and I care not who makes its laws.” Which is pointing out that the arts (such as music and movies) can change people more rapidly than laws.

His original quote was actually: “I said I knew a very wise man…that he believed if a man were permitted to make all the ballads he need not care who should make the laws of a nation, and we find that most of the ancient legislators thought that they could not well reform the manners of any city without the help of a lyric, and sometimes of a dramatic poet.”

But if it is true that the arts have such vast power in shaping our understanding of life, then we need to be careful what we take in (and what we allow our children to take in).

Kevin DeYoung wrote two articles on this a while back. The first was I Don’t Understand Christians Watching Game Of Thrones

Two weeks after posting it, the article had 71,000 views & 354 Comments on the original blog (and that doesn’t include the number of views and comments from Facebook or other social media sites). The fact that many of the comments were highly critical of his take on the issue prompted Kevin to write a second article: One More Time On ‘Game Of Thrones’

Both of these articles brought out the point that there are some things we just need to avoid allowing our eyes to see and our minds to receive.

In connection with those two articles, John Piper provides a helpful article about our entertainment choices. (It was also related to Game of Thrones, but we need to ask the same questions about all of our Entertainment and Movie-watching choices.)

God tells us:
Brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable — if there is any moral excellence and if there is anything praiseworthy — dwell on these things. (Philippians 4:8, CSB)

What we put in our minds makes a difference. Make sure you are dwelling on the right things.

Of course, this does not mean we have to eliminate all movie-watching or the intake of other entertainment, but I do think it means we have to be critical thinkers when making our viewing choices.

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Categories
Christian Living

What are you watching? And should you be watching that?

Like everyone else, Paige & I enjoy watching Television and Movies. But we all need to ask ourselves: Should I watch this?

Below I want to provide you with six questions for you to consider regarding movie watching. These questions were drawn from two articles:
3 Questions to Ask Before Watching A Movie, and
5 Questions to Ask when Watching Movies.

If you want more than just the brief summary below, I recommend you read both of those articles in their entirety – They are helpful.

1. Should I really watch this movie?
This is a good starting question.
Why are you wanting to see this movie?
What are other people saying about it?
Read some reviews such as pluggedin.com, commonsensemedia.org, and the parent’s guides for the movie at imdb.com.
There are some movies that you do not need to see. Some that you know will trip you up. Some that you know have material in them that isn’t healthy for your mind, your language, and your purity.

2. Where are the true and false depictions of reality?
Because movies are made for our entertainment, every movie has some true depictions of reality and some false ones. Let’s make sure that we can identify these. Often the morality that is presented by Hollywood is problematic. And they like to sneak stuff in on us. For example, because the ending of the movie The Notebook was so sweet and touching, we easily forget that the relationship started by a girl cheating on her fiancé. Are we willing for the person who makes a commitment to marry us to go enjoy sex with someone else to find out if that person is their “soulmate”? Of course not.

So we must be careful that Hollywood’s depictions don’t lead us down paths that have us holding to false beliefs about life or romance.
What themes or ideas within the movie are God-honoring, and which ones are unbiblical? What qualities in the characters imitate God and vice-versa?

3. What kind of hero does this movie really need?
Every movie has a hero. But the hero won’t be Jesus. The question is how can we use the hero in the movie to think more clearly about Jesus? In what ways is the hero flawed? In what ways is he like our great Hero?

4. How is this movie trying to teach me something?
There’s no such thing as a movie without a message. So what is the main point of the movie?
Similar to question 2 above, this question is about trying to determine what the main message of the movie is and whether or not you agree with it. To help determine the main message, Listen for key lines & Determine the main character’s goal.

5. How is this movie affecting me spiritually?
Usually the most important aspect of the movie is not the rating, but the message of the movie and how it will affect me spiritually.
Movies can and will affect your walk with Jesus. If, after checking the reviews, you think a movie will likely hurt your walk with Christ, then it’s probably wise to remove it from your “to see” list.

6. How can I use this movie to talk to my friends about Jesus?
Not everyone is a critical thinker when it comes to movies. But almost everyone watches movies. Therefore conversations about movies will take place all around you. So be willing to talk about movies and use them to change the conversations toward spiritual ideas that arise from the movies you see.

“Many non-believers won’t accept an invitation to come to church, but they will talk about a movie they’ve seen recently, so we want to turn that conversation into an eternally significant discussion.”

Part of disciplemaking is helping each other process information using a God-focused worldview instead of a secular worldview. Discuss movies and other media (TV, music, books, even commercials) with your family, children, grandchildren. Use every opportunity available as a disciplemaking moment. Ask your children some engaging questions after watching a movie or TV show together, such as:

  • What is it trying to teach us?
  • What was the main point?
  • Was there anything in it that reminds us of God – His character, word, or commands?
  • Was there anything in it that directly goes against God’s character or His word or His commands?
  • How can we use this film to talk to others about Jesus?

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    Categories
    Church

    Unchangeable People. Is There Any Hope?

    People are unchangeable.
    People just can’t change.
    Have you ever felt that way? Have you ever said it? Something along the lines of: “Don’t even try. He’ll never change.”

    This is one statement that the leadership at our church knows not to say around me. It’s a statement that gets me riled up pretty quickly. My statement to the person who says it is usually along the lines of:

    “The reason I know your statement is not true is that God changed me and God changed you, and everyone knows how rotten we both were. So if God could change you and me, then He can change anyone!”

    an alarm clock with the words "time for change" to symbolize the idea of something being unchangeable
    Centuries ago, Moses told God, “The people, among whom I am, are 600,000 on foot; yet You have said, ‘I will give them meat, so that they may eat for a whole month.’ Should flocks and herds be slaughtered for them, to be sufficient for them? Or should all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them, to be sufficient for them?”

    When this immense group of people asked for meat to eat, God said he would supply it to them for a whole month until they all were sick of meat. Moses told God it was an impossible task. And God said to Moses: “Is the Lord’s power limited?”

    I figure that God has has a better understanding of the situation than Moses. And the Bible indicates He did. “Now there went forth a wind from the LORD and it brought quail from the sea, and let them fall beside the camp.” The people then gathered enough quail to fill up ten 50-gallon tubs per person.

    Back to today:
    I hear people implying that, “Our nation cannot change for the better.”
    I hear people indicating that, “Our community cannot change for the better.”
    And I hear people state, “That person cannot change for the better.”

    All of these are false. God says that people, communities, and nations can change. If we say that they can’t, then we are saying to God that He isn’t big enough. Something Moses learned was not true.

    My God is big enough to change the people I know. My God is big enough to change my community, my state, and our nation. I know this is true, because He was big enough to change me and He was big enough to change so many of the people in my church.

    If we will act on God’s word with faith – living out what He has called us to do – then He can dramatically change us, our church, and our community. None of these are unchangeable. So is there a responsibility of a church family to attempt to make a change in the community in which they worship?
    What is the role of your church to make a change in your community?
    What could individual church members do to begin making some of these changes?
         Develop a friendship with a person different from me?
         Engage with the local school?
         Participate in Mentoring / Big Brother programs?
         Pray with people different from me?
         This is just a short list to begin with. What else?

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    Categories
    Parenting

    How to Stand in the Home – A Post for Parents

    Last post I shared an excerpt from one of Josh McDowell’s books. The focus was on spouses listening to one another. Today I want to share some ideas from McDowell on Parenting. During the 2013 GridIron Men’s Conference, he shared a message to men and fathers titled: “How to Stand in the Home.”

    Here are some of excerpts that I thought were helpful:

    The Greatest security for your child… is for your child to know that you love your spouse and that you will never divorce him/her.

    The 4 simple steps to help your children/family:

    1. Availability
    Children spell love T-I-M-E.
    It doesn’t matter what else you do if you are not available.

    2. Affirmation
    This means affirming their emotions. When a problem arises, don’t try to fix, don’t blame, don’t dismiss, don’t quote scripture. Instead, obey scripture… Rejoice when they rejoice and weep when they are weeping. Affirm, affirm, affirm.

    Instead of fixing the problem, or teaching on the issue, first provide affirmation.
    You can fix and teach later, but first affirm.

    3. Appreciation
    Receiving appreciation provides your children with a sense of significance.
    Don’t work to catch them doing something wrong in order to discipline them.
    Instead work to catch them doing something right and express appreciation to them.

    4. Affection
    Our affection allows our children to be able to say and believe: “I am lovable.”
    If they don’t get affection from their father, they will get it from someone else.
    (Which is one of the prime reasons for high teen pregnancy rates.)

    Your family should not be put before your business or ministry…
    Because your family should be your first business and first ministry!

    Godly parents are so important to the health of their children. Stand for God in your home!

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    Categories
    Ramblings

    Communication in Marriage is a Key to Marital Success

    My last two posts have been about loving our spouses – using the five love languages and remembering that we must be selfless as we choose to love. Another key aspect of having a healthy marriage is having healthy communication.
    a sculpture of a man listening, reminding us the communication is important in relationships

    Regarding communication in marriage, I have appreciated this insight from The Secret of Loving, by Josh McDowell, for many years:

    Most people think of talking as communication–with the goal of getting their point-of-view across. Meaningful communication, however, is two-fold…both talking and listening. The facet most neglected by couples today is listening. From the fact that God gave us two ears and one mouth, the Irish have drawn the thoughtful conclusion that we should listen twice as much as we talk.

    James wrote, ”Be quick to hear, slow to speak” (James 1:19). The phrase ”quick to hear” means to be ”a ready listener.” But most people are a lot more comfortable in communication when they are doing the talking. They feel greater security in asserting their positions, feelings, opinions, and ideas than in listening to those of another. Listening is the most difficult aspect of communication for most people. Listening never comes naturally.

    Hearing is basically to gain content or information for your own purposes. Listening is caring for and being empathetic toward the person who is talking. Hearing means that you are concerned about what is going on inside you during the conversation. Listening means that you are trying to understand the feelings of the other person and are listening for his/her sake.

    It is imperative that we recognize that we always communicate in one way or another. In other words, even silence is communication. So, the key to communication is to do it effectively, in a way that creates a climate of greater intimacy and vulnerability.

    The best commentary I’ve heard on Jesus’ commandment to ”love your neighbor as yourself” is by David Augsburger: ”To love you as I love myself is to seek to hear you as I want to be heard and understand you as I long to be understood.”

    …When you and I listen to another person we are conveying the thought that ”I’m interested in you as a person, and I think that what you feel is important. I respect your thoughts, even if I don’t agree with them. I know that they are valid for you. I feel sure that you have a contribution to make. I’m not trying to change you or evaluate you. I just want to understand you. I think you’re worth listening to, and I want you to know that I’m the kind of person that you can talk to.”

    So, how good of a listener are you for your spouse on a scale of 1 to 10?

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