If it has become something you cannot control, then you need to turn it off!
It was a Family Movie Night
We were 15 minutes into a borrowed DVD when my husband and I looked at each other and said, “Uh, Nope. Gotta go!”
We didn’t just want to shut it off we wanted it out of the house! So, that’s exactly what we did!
We opened the back door and set it on the porch step!
Have you ever thought about what your Screen time viewing says about your spirituality?
I think about it a lot!
How can I sit and watch a DVD (I don’t care what the ratings are,and I don’t care who in Hollywood made it ) if it goes against something I feel morally wrong – why am I watching it?
If our boys get reprimanded for using bad language then I don’t want to sit in front of a DVD that is riddled with it!
If I don’t want them to fornicate when they hit the teenage years, then why would I watch a movie with it splattered all through the plot?
If I want them to get married and stay married when they grow up then why would I let them watch a show that is plastered with fornication and adultery?
If I don’t want them to be curious about evil spirits, spells and magic then why let them watch animations that encourage it and make it appear fun and safe?
I think it’s fair to say that our Screen time viewing has a lot to say about us and more importantly about our spirituality!
How many hours a day do we sit in front of a screen? How many negative messages are we giving ear to?
How many priorities, especially spiritual ones, do we have to chuck in order to plop in front of it for a few hours? It stealing our time and it is demoralizing and desensitizing us to wrong and right.
Studies prove TV hurts children psychologically and gives them a false ideal of the real world.
Sitcoms are laden with satanic innuendos subliminal messages about spirits and degrades those in authority over us.
It robs our God given affections. Studies are now out: “that too much Screen time is hurting love and romance in many marriages.
(I can tell you as a Counselor, I hear MANY complaints about this subject! One or both spouses are addicted to screen time; be it TV, tablet, computer or phone! And it is destroying their relationships!)
Why?
Because you watch Mr Right with Miss Absolutely drop dead Gorgeous play out Hollywood Romance in little or no clothing and in all kinds of sensual settings and then gauge your marriage and love life according to it.
Men are losing natural affection to their wives… Wives gripe and complain about husbands who don’t measure up to Mr. Right.
Most TV programs today go against the very nature of laws and yet we can’t wait to watch the “Next Season!”
Every night we fight to get our viewing time in!? The television is on for 7 hours and 40 minutes each day in the typical American home.
Fifty percent of all American households has three or more televisions
American parents on average spend less than 40 minutes each week in meaningful conversations with their children
56% of American children between 8 and 16 have a television in their bedroom.
A Surgeon General’s report last year concluded that 61% of all TV programming contains violence. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), a child who watches three to four hours a day of noneducational TV will see about 8,000 small-screen murders by the time he or she completes grade school.
Here’s how the AAP puts it: “Watching a lot of violence on television can lead to hostility, fear, anxiety, depression, nightmares, sleep disturbances, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Every hour of screen time shaves 22 minutes off your life!
And yet there are those that argue that TV time is quality family time!?
And if it’s not the TV, then its social media sucking our time and attention!
Social media is addictive.
It gives a false sense of connection.
It decreases productivity.
Encourages people to be public about their private lives.
It makes us compare our lives with others.
Creates feelings of inadequacy.
Distracts us from real life.
Creates social phobias.
It makes us restless.
It becomes a popularity contest.
It gives rise to cyber-bullying.
It glamorizes drug and alcohol use.
It makes us unhappy.
It can lead to fear of missing out.
Interrupts sleep.
Eliminates verbal communication.
Makes us unable to be alone.
Exacerbates unhappiness.
It gives an avenue for secrecy.
63% of Facebook users log on to the site daily, 40% of those log on multiple times a day! Some use Facebook for distraction and boredom relief. Some use it for venting. Some use it to spy on friend updates. Some use it to have secret affairs. But the truth is it has become compulsively addictive!
Half of all marriage partners admit to going to bed with their phones in hand every night! Many admit its the first thing they reach for every morning after waking up! And many more admit to viewing unwholesome sites.
A recent BFAS (Bergen Facebook Addiction Survey) project found that people who are anxious and/or socially insecure use and are addicted to Facebook more than others. It also appears that many use the site as a way of gaining attention and boosting their self-esteem. Hence why the highs and lows of “likes” and “follows” are addictive.
In this survey 53% of Facebook users agree that it has changed their behavior, and 51% of those say it has changed it negatively.
If it has become something YOU cannot control….there is one simple solution to this addiction: Turn it OFF!
Reconnect with your family! Reconnect with God!
Instead of Screen time: Do something physical, like exercise. Do something educational, like read a good book. Do something spiritual like pray or study. Do something fun, like play games with the kids. Do something meaningful like, visit with friends. Do something nice, like take your family out to dinner. Do something constructive, like paint or remodel. Do something new, like start a family night or a new hobby.
No child will ever look back on their best memories and say; I remember how we always sat around and watched T.V. -that was so fun!
We’ve got to wake up! We’ve got to get responsible with this!
Scripture tells us to do all things in moderation. (Phil 4:5) and to “Set no evil thing before our eyes!” (Psalm 101:3)
“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16)
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