Fall Television

The word is out. . .there will be lots of new “shows” on TV this Fall. Sponsors seem abundant regardless of the mindless, imbecilic, foolishness which is pushed to the TV public. Some are launching in August, trying to get ahead in the game of capturing the attention of people who have nothing more to do than spend hours in front of the TV.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not opposed to TV. But I am opposed to the damage it often does in our life. In their article on “Fall TV,” TIME online opined,”Once you’ve binged those dramas, there’s plenty to keep you occupied through the holidays.”

I was pleased that they (TIME) did, after releasing their list of 24 new shows this Fall, make some sense with the following statement:  “That’s all to say that there are a lot of television shows on this list because there is, arguably, too much TV.”

And that is the issue which concerns me most – too much TV. I don’t think there is any doubt that TV is often a distraction from the more/most important items in life. Interaction between family members is often lost due to “too much” TV. Time for conversation, discussion, education, and development of life skills often fall  prey to “too much TV. It is also true that for Believers time for Bible study and prayer, sharing the Gospel with neighbors and others, and involvement in the life of the Body of Christ (the Church) is removed from the equation, and TV becomes the focus of our “free” time.

I won’t say it is time for TV to go (there are some good, even great, things one can gain from TV watching), but it is time to turn the “thing” off more often, and for longer periods of time. When is the last time you sat down with your family for a board game, a conversation about life and the requirements of living day to day in this “crazy” World, or to discuss the relevant issues of reaching out to hurting folks inside and outside your own family?

The best button to push may be the one that reads “OFF.”