Tag: movies

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
    Christian Living

    Assaulted on Two Sides

    We saw a horrific physical assault during the Boston Marathon leaving tragic consequences for individuals, families, the community, and even the nation. It is frightening to think that without warning, any of us could be under a similar physical attack. We live in a sin-filled world, and it is terrible that some have embraced sin to such an extent that they cannot see how evil their actions are. Our security forces are trying to guard us against this evil by finding the perpetrators and remove them so that they cannot do this again.

    At the same time that physical assaults have been leveled at some of our nation, we find a different disturbing situation that has to potential to affect all of us today – a constant spiritual assault trying to destroy our lives. But in this area, it is left up to each person or family to be their own guardian to root out evil and remove it.

    close up of a remote control to represent the spiritual assault of the arts, e.g. tv“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” (Ravi Zacharias).

    If this is true, then I best be careful what I fill my mind with in regard to music and literature and movies and tv. And parents need to be very careful what they let their children pour into their developing minds.

    God tells us to think on the things that are good, noble, and praiseworthy. But I’ve listened to and watched plenty that do not fall into these categories. And in doing so I find that my language gets fouler, my ideas become skewed, and my attitude grows toxic in short order.

    I remember talking to parents who would tell me that their children who normally were respectful and kind could become defiant and mean just based upon the shows they were watching. When they cut that channel or show out of the child’s life, the attitude of kindness returned.

    As an adult, if I am being honest, I find the same thing true in my life. My internal attitude depends greatly on what I am filling my mind with. So I aim to be more careful with what I put into it. I aim to be more discerning about what I am watching and listening to. And if it is not good, noble, excellent, & praiseworthy, then I pray that God will give me the strength to cut it out of my life.

    Have you found this to be true in your own life, or the life of your children?

    — brian rushing