|
Thoughts On the Need
for Entertainment
by Mary E. Stephens
Dec. 20, 2020
Just some rambling thoughts this time.
I was talking to a friend recently
and I mentioned something that stuck with me, namely that I
think one of the problems we're having with people going a bit
crazy over COVID is that so many people in the U.S. (and other
countries, I'm sure) are addicted to entertainment. It is
actually "the drug of choice" for many people. I admit that I
have to examine myself when I say this because I enjoy a good
read and some videos myself at times. These are things that are
available at home as much as anywhere. But there are many people
who feel compelled to go out somewhere to do something to be
entertained. Whether it's eating out, going to a movie,
participating in sports, shopping, going to a specific place to
be seen, or whatever else, there are many ways people seek
entertainment outside their homes.
When my grandpa was a boy their
neighbors would sometimes sneak up to their back door, open it,
and push a large tub of pop corn through. Then they would walk
around to the front door and knock. When someone answered the
door they would say they had come over to play games. They knew
my grandpa's family was poor (his father was dead) and so they
thoughtfully made sure to provide the "refreshments" for the
evening. My grandpa remembered those times with genuine
fondness. I wonder how many people sit down with neighbors to
play games now - not their own specific friends, but their
neighbors. A few, I'm sure. But, the need for something more
exciting is there for a lot of people. This would be far too
tame and "boring."
We were raised in my home to learn to
find ways to entertain ourselves. One way my parents encouraged
this was by severely limiting our exposure to television in our
own home. We only had one television set, occasionally. We were encouraged in
crafts and hobbies that kept our hands and/or minds busy. We
were also encouraged to interact with people of all ages, in a
social way, in our home and church.
I played this song recently and
some of the words fell into place with these thoughts.
There's a line that is drawn by
rejecting our Lord,
Where the call of His Spirit is lost,
And you hurry along with the pleasure-mad throng -
Have you counted, have you counted the cost?
You may barter your hope of
eternity's morn,
For a moment of joy at the most,
For the glitter of sin and the things it will win -
Have you counted, have you counted the cost?
One thing that bothers me is to realize
how many Christians, people who really have counted the cost and
believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, are still "hurrying along
with the pleasure-mad throng" and are caught up in the "glitter
of sin." It has become so much a part of our culture and custom
that some find it hard to think of living any other way. Being
forced to stay home, to limit activities, to find one's own
entertainment has made many people extremely frustrated and
angry, even people who claim Christ. It really shouldn't be that
way.
A lot of people don't know how to
entertain themselves without an outside source. Sitting and
looking at the stars or taking a nature walk or reading or
drawing are too "boring" for some people or require too much
of their own input without immediate personal satisfaction or approval
from others. I'm inclined to think that for too many this is an
indication of an unhealthy relationship with entertainment.
As I mentioned, books and movies can be
enjoyed at home. But, there are definitely things there that
should not be enjoyed. Novels that are sexually suggestive, dark,
or sensual can draw us in and captivate our imaginations in an
evil way. Movies and television and online videos even more so
as they enter through the eye and ear gates simultaneously. It's
more than a little disturbing to think about how people would
react if their movies and T.V. were all removed at the same time
as they were told to stay home. I expect we would see even worse
tension and anger than has erupted in recent times. People
wouldn't know what to do with themselves, and I think
a lot of them would resort to bad measures.
Where am I going with this?
Well, I think we need to ponder how we
entertain ourselves. Are we so dependent upon specific outside
activities that are strictly vanity in nature, that we can't
live without them?
Do you go shopping when you are sad or
need to be cheered up? What an empty pursuit - unless you're
shopping for an orphanage or some poor people you know. But most
women who shop for entertainment do so for themselves, not
for charity. Shopping isn't evil in and of itself, but when it's
used for comfort or to release stress it is being used for a
wrong purpose. Why? Because our comfort and help is in Jesus
Christ, not spending money or finding a great deal on another
piece of clothing or shoes we don't need.
Shopping isn't my thing, so I'll mention
something that hits closer to home for me.
Do you bury yourself in a make-believe
world of fiction when you are sad or struggling? Whether it is
books or movies or games or even theater, this can draw us into
wasteful and pointless pursuits. Again, these
things can have their place, but when we use them to satisfy a
need that Jesus wants to meet for us we are using them in a
wrong way.
Can we find useful ways to spend our
time doing creative things that have a good purpose in the end?
I'm not talking about a cool DIY project to add another piece of
useless decor to your house so that you have one more thing to
spend time dusting. Ouch. I mean, what can we find to do that
has some lasting benefit to us or someone else to the glory of
God?
Titus 3:14 And let ours also learn to
maintain good works for necessary uses, that they be not
unfruitful.
1 Chronicles 29:18 O LORD God of
Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever
in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people,
and prepare their heart unto thee:
This was part of the prayer of David as
he prepared to die. He was leaving his son, Solomon, as king and
put him in charge of
building a temple for God. He wanted the people of Israel to
have their imaginations stirred forever by this house of worship
that they were to build. He wanted their hearts to be towards God.
 Does that book or movie or activity that
stimulates your imagination actually help you think more
Christ-centered thoughts? Does it make you stronger in your walk
with God? Does it leave you refreshed and encouraged to keep
pressing forward? Does it make you more ambitious to do useful
things? Those are tough questions, I will admit. I
don't feel entirely comfortable with them myself. Except I know
this: I have read books and seen things and done things that
left me feeling refreshed in spirit and lifted up in mind and
heart toward the Lord and I know how inspiring that is. It makes
me wonder why I would waste my time on lesser things. What about
you?
Mark 6:31 And he said unto them, Come ye
yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for
there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so
much as to eat.
Let me just say, rest is not spending a
lot of money to spin around in circles and be dazzled by light
shows and people in grotesque or gorgeous costumes. I've been there and done
that before it was even as crazy as it is now, and it was not
restful.
Do you know what rest and relaxation
will look like during the Kingdom reign of Jesus Christ on this
earth?
Micah 4:4 But
they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree;
and none shall make them
afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken
it.
That doesn't sound much like Disney
World or a packed tour vacation to a foreign country. In fact,
it sounds a lot like what people are complaining about in the
lock downs this year. Funny that. "You mean people are actually
going to stay home a lot and like it? You mean they are going to
be content without all the various types of media to keep them
stirred up and in fear?" That's pretty much what that is saying,
isn't it?
Is it bad to go visit another country as
a tourist? Not necessarily, depending on your reasons for going
and how you spend your time. But, don't fool yourself into
thinking that is rest. It isn't. It is usually more
entertainment. If you choose wisely, it may even edify you in
some way. But, most of the time people come home exhausted and
sometimes actually sick, and generally it is all about filling
the eyes and ears with some new thing. Don't make the mistake of
thinking that chasing experiences for experiences' sake is a
better way to live. At the bottom line, it is still vanity and
vexation of spirit.
1 Corinthians
7:29-31 But this I say, brethren, the time
is
short: it remaineth, that both they that have wives be as though
they had none; And they that weep, as though they wept not; and
they that rejoice, as though they rejoiced not; and they that
buy, as though they possessed not; And they that use this world,
as not abusing it:
for the fashion of this world passeth away.
The fashion (form, state, shape) of this
world is meant to pass away. That is what God intends should
happen! It's weird to hear so many Christians lamenting and
complaining about that happening on a small scale as it has this
year. (It's even stranger to hear them talking like somehow the
solution to the problems will come from the government, but that
is another topic for another time.)
Our satisfaction shouldn't be in things
of this passing world. We may use this world, but we should not
be abusing it. According to Webster's 1828 dictionary the first
definition of "abuse" is "To use ill; to maltreat; to misuse; to
use with bad motives or to wrong purposes; as, to abuse rights
or privileges." Guess what the example is that was given? 1
Corinthians 7:31. Using entertainment as a source of solace and
comfort or as an addiction to escape reality is abusing the
things of this world.
There are many areas where Christians go
to the world looking for answers or help or comfort that we are
meant to find in Jesus Christ or the blessings of God's
creation. Not every bit of what is called entertainment is evil,
but we need to very cautious about what we allow into our lives
in that area. I say that to myself as much as anyone. I know it
can be an easy distraction. Finding a better way won't look the
same in every life or situation, but we should desire better
things.
And, last, but not least, we Christians
shouldn't be complaining and thrashing against life and the
government when our entertainments and luxuries are taken away,
even temporarily. Ultimately, those complaints aren't against
the situation or those we imagine are responsible to "fix it."
If we trust that God is sovereign and in control of all things,
then our complaints are ultimately against Him. That should give
us pause to consider. (If you need more examples in that line,
see the book of Job.)
Are we rushing along with the pleasure
mad throng? How dependent are we on our external sources of
entertainment anyway? How dependent are we on our entertainment
sources in our own homes?
Colossians
3:15-17 And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the
which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let
the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching
and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And
whatsoever ye do in word or deed,
do
all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the
Father by him.
|
