It is risky business being a preacher. Sometimes you convict yourself.

I’ve just done a purging of movies, music, and tv shows that, frankly, I never should have purchased to begin with. iTunes and a digital age makes media too easy to obtain. Most of these shows and movies would be considered fairly mild by many but just how much worldliness should a Christian tolerate in his entertainment? Everything in moderation, one might respond. But how does one decide how much worldliness is acceptable? There is so much accepted sin in media these days, very few things passed my test.

A few things prompted my purging:

1. Listening to Andrew Peterson’s The Good Confession always makes me more sensitive to my thoughts and behavior. The particular line is: “Well you know my dad’s a preacher man / I walked the aisle and took his hand.” Every father is a preacher to his kids. Being a preacher by vocation made it sink in all the more. This should make us think about what sort of preachers we are to our kids. What example do I set? Not just when I’m around them but after they’re in bed. Would my thoughts edify them, help them grow? How about the thoughts I’m putting in my head through movies and shows? It’s a terrible burden, being a parent – it requires that we actually live out the things we claim to believe if we are going to set a good example for our kids. You want an accountability partner? Have kids.
2. Preparing for a sermon on prayer reminds me just how little I pray. I have the following line in my notes: “This sermon does not contain advice. It contains words for your sanctification and holiness. If you are not a person of prayer, you are living in sin.” I am not a person of prayer. Not even close. God forgive me, I’m too busy watching trash or surfing blogs or playing computer games (that purging will come soon). Getting rid of all of this will not make me a person of prayer, but it will go a long way to removing my destructive distractions.
3. Thinking about the Puritans reminded me that they had no televisions. I sometimes think, “I need this show! I watch it whenever I just want to relax.” My justification for keeping the show is that I (sometimes) work hard and need down time and movies and tv shows help me relax. But the Puritans had no television and they managed just fine.
4. If the invited speaker fails to show I will be speaking to our men’s group tomorrow. Following the lead of the guys at The Resurgence I plan to talk about manhood from the perspective of the men in the Bible who did very hard, very masculine things. It struck me how little of a man I am if I can’t even make myself give up things that are bad for me. (The next application for this one: food.)
5. This one is after the fact, but this post at Desiring God pointed me to Romans 8:32 and the reminder that God, not man, provides what I need. Do not seek the body’s needs through the world’s means. What I need to relax and recharge at the end of the day comes from the Lord, not Hollywood.

The end result is quite a bit more free space on my computer and some more empty space on my shelves. It also means more money since, God enabling, I will continue this conviction and will avoid those things that, in the name of entertainment, invite worldliness. Brothers, pray for me.