Media

2012 – The end of the world?

/ The Pastor / 8 Comments

If you spend any amount of time watching TV you have probably seen an advertisement or two about a new movie coming out called 2012.  It ‘s a movie about the end of the world that the Mayan calendar predicts.  These 2012; end of the world beliefs are starting to become very widespread in our culture and as Christians we need to be informed about what this is all about and how, as Christians, we are to respond to this.  Recently I listened to a podcast about this topic at a website called Breaking Unbelief at:  http://www.breakingunbelief.org.  The podcast is called What is the hype about 2012 and the end of the world.  I found it very informative and interesting.  It is about 30 minutes long.  One of the guys asking the questions in this podcast is Tim Chaffey (a college friend of my wife’s).  He spoke at Salem this past Sunday about God and suffering.  It was a great talk.  He is also a writer/contributor for the website Midwest Apologetics.  I haven’t thoroughly gone through this site yet, but I know Tim to be a very passionate and intelligent person.  I think he is worth a look.

The reason I am mentioning all of this is that the Gospel text for this Sunday from Mark 13:1-8 got me thinking.  I am not exactly sure how or if I will incorporate any of this on Sunday…but it still has me thinking.  Whether I include this 2012 stuff in the sermon or not I plan to do some more research so I can be better informed about this; so I can address this issue when it comes up with people.

Personally, as a Christian, the end of the world is not a scary thing.  Whether it happens on Dec. 21, 2012 or not should not be an issue.  But the more important thing to consider is that the Bible does not support such a belief (meaning an exact date…see Mark 13:32-37).  Maybe the Mayans were good with calendars and time, but predicting the future?  The Bible has about 500 some prophesies that have come true, but the most important future predictions that the Bible makes is that: (1) Jesus will come again, (2) there will be a resurrection, and (3) a final judgment.  The Bible talks about this and Jesus says “Stay Awake!”  As Christians we have an amazing opportunity here, but we need to be prepared and informed.

So with that…what resources, websites, etc have you found helpful in speaking about this 2012; end of the world belief that is out there?

I am going to continue my reading and will share insights as they come.

Praise be to God!

-edh-

Monday morning check in (on Wednesday)

/ The Pastor / 3 Comments

I can’t believe I made it to Wednesday before realizing I did not post my "Monday morning check in".  I guess I am not quite back into my routine yet.  Oh well…here it is anyway…

On Monday evening, Connie and I went to a presentation titled "Are we creating a culture of disrespect".  The speaker (I can’t remember his name off hand right now) was from The National Institute on Media and the Family (Please check out their website – www.mediawise.org – They have tons of great resources for parents and anyone who works and cares for children). Our speaker talked about media’s influence on our children; positive and negative (but mostly the negative).  Even though I was aware of the media’s negative impact on children I was still blown away by some of the facts.  He said that on average children spend about 1/2 hour per week with their fathers; 2 1/2 hours a week with their mothers and (now get this) 40+ hours per week on TV, non-school computer use and video games (that’s a full time job).  It really made Connie and me sad.  Then he showed a video of an experiment that was done 10 years ago and then again recently.  They video taped a group of daycare children watching an episode of Barney.  The children were calm and responsive to the show and afterward played peacefully together.  Then they watched an episode of Power Rangers.  The children got a lot more loud and active.  Afterward they got a little more violent with each as they played; mimicking the actions of their favorite Power Ranger.  Even some fights broke out.  Once again…very sad.  Now imagine what violent video games can do.

One of the driving reasons for media’s increased impact and influence is that we live in a culture where the question "Does it make money?" is asked.  It is no longer, "Is this safe for our children".  Obviously something needs to be done and it has to start in the home.  Parents who watched their children in the daycare experience were shocked and disappointed that their children would act that way after watching Power Rangers (or any show like that).  They simply had no clue.  Media makes a great babysitter so I would guess that makes it easier to turn the other way (I know this is easy for me to say…not being a parent and all).

There is a lot more to this presentation but I will let you get some more information yourself by visiting www.mediawise.org.  As a pastor I am considering how I can be a positive influence and what the Church can and should be doing to help parents and familes.  I think the Church needs to research this more and consider how it can get this message out to our families.  Children are at a critical stage of mental development and we can’t let media influence that development.  We need to take a stand.  And what is even more scary is the rate of technology growth and advancement.  Staying ahead is not going to be easy.

Anyway…that is my rant for now.  What do you think about media and our children?  What should we be doing as a Church or what are you currently doing?

Thanks for "listening" and have a very blessed day.  Take care.
-edh-