My Love Affair with TV - Part 3

Belief in the unconscious is pretty much accepted by most, if not all, psychologists. All that we see and hear is retained somewhere in our brains, even if we are not aware of it. Furthermore, this background material has an effect upon our moods, our attitudes, and our behavior. You are probably familiar with the computer term GIGO (“garbage in, garbage out”). If we flood our minds with ungodly stuff, it will drag us down. On the flip side, if we look at and listen to things that display God’s beauty, holiness, and truth, we will be affected in a positive way. This is not to say that we lose our ability to choose, like the lawyers who argue that the boy who killed his parents was driven to it by listening to heavy metal music. We remain ultimately responsible for our actions. However, our actions and motivations will certainly be influenced by our environment.

We are right to be wary of pornography and godless programming. And there is good to be found in shows like NCIS: the strong leadership values of Gibbs; the joy and enthusiasm of Abby; the positive display of teamwork in the pursuit of truth and justice. But, this show (and pretty much all the rest of what TV has to offer) is not about seeking after God and serving Him. I would not wish to model my life after any of the characters. It’s exciting, it’s unusual, it’s intellectually stimulating – but is it good for me?

If the Christian’s goal is to be conformed to the image of Christ (see Eph. 4:13), then what we do with our leisure time is important. I would do better by turning off the TV and reading a devotional or spending time doing Scripture memorization (something I’ve gotten back to after many years of neglect). Or attending a course on “Love Languages” that is being offered at my church tonight and for the next seven consecutive Tuesdays (what my wife and I will actually be doing). We won’t even be home when NCIS airs. However, there’s the matter of the VCR……..