Television and Your Children

The most precious possession that a youngster has is his mind. The
mind (sometimes designated as the "heart" in biblical jargon) is that
element of the human being out of which "choices" emanate, and thus
that which controls the direction of one's life. Little wonder, then,
that Solomon cautioned, "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out
of it are the issues of life" (Prov. 4:23). Christ himself warned that
the vilest of evils begin in the mind (Mk. 7:20-23).

There is another proverb — not in the Bible, but nonetheless true —
"as the twig is bent, so grows the tree." "Twigs" should be "bent" in
the right direction, or, as Solomon said elsewhere:

"Train up a child in the way he should go" (Prov. 22:6).
Training children is not an easy task. It requires patience,
discipline, and perseverance. At times there will be a clash of wills.
Domestic skirmishes may ensue, but godly parents must "hang tough."
Ideally, they should know what is best for their children, far better
than do the children themselves.

Television is a wonderful medium of communication, valuable in many
respects. It affords a wide range of educational opportunities — many
of which one otherwise would never be able to access. But this
"highway of information" is not necessarily a "highway of holiness"
(Isa. 35:8). It also is one of the most dangerous venues of
intellectual contamination.

The following are some of the guidelines that have been recommended by
various professionals who are interested in the care and training of
your youngsters.

• It is recommended that children not watch TV more than one or two
hours, at the most, each day.

• Do not permit children to have a personal TV in their room; you
cannot monitor what they watch when they are isolated from your
supervision.

• Do not allow children to watch TV at meal times. Parents and
youngsters should engage in meaningful conversation at these times.

• Do not allow your children to watch TV if they have failed to do
their homework (either their school lessons or their preparation for
Bible classes). * Do not permit your youngster to spend hours playing
video games. These will take their toll on their reasoning skills.

• Do not allow your children to watch TV without monitoring their
programming. TV these days overflows with graphic lewdness and
undisguised propaganda, the design of which is to break down moral
barriers. The Bravo channel has an aggressive pro-homosexual agenda.
Remember, the crop "harvested" will be the results of the "seed" that
is sown, and your child's mind is the "field. "

With a scholastically sound, yet easy-to-understand version, initiate
for them a reading program of short segments from God's Word each day.
Help them secure a small library of tools that will enable them to
better comprehend the Scriptures.

Train these precious little minds in the right way while they are
under your management. If you don't educate them, someone else will.
The day will shortly arrive when they will be on their own. If parents
have not taken seriously their tutoring responsibility, serious
consequences could occur, and years of regret will be your companion.

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES
Proverbs 4:23; Mark 7:20-23; Proverbs 22:6; Isaiah 35:8