Heart for Home blogged recently about the television. She wanted to know how other homeschool families deal with the television. I had been meaning to respond to her on this but I was delayed a few days, then last night we had an incident with the tv and I figured it was time to address it.

Let me start by saying that we do own a tv. It is in our bedroom and we have a vcr/dvd player hooked up to it. We live in the country so we have no television signal. The only things we can watch are movies or videos. We also have a dvd player installed in our suburban. I resisted this idea for a while, but when traveling 800 miles with 6 kids it is nice to have them entertained for a while. And even though at some point in my life I had visions of singing songs, license plate bingo, and other fun games, the reality is that tv makes traveling a lot easier.

That being said, I still make poor, uninformed choices about the movies my kids watch. My husband has said, "maybe we should just say that we don't watch movies." to which I replied, "we don't?" He then asked me what good comes from the kids watching Hollywood movies, and I said, "well pretty much nothing." And then I thought about all the bad and it seemed pretty bad.

So, is the tv inherently evil, I don't really think so. But is what is on tv evil, yes, I would say, most of the time there is very little of redeming value on television.

If you think of some of the movies that have been produced in the last several years.

Little Mermaid - disobey your father and you will find true love and acceptance

Mulan- disobey your father and you will find true love and save your country

The Incredibles- if this movie wasn't animated it would be rated PG 13 for violence and sexual overtones.

Ice Age- Evolution, evolution, evolution.....

I could go on and on,

Besides all of the poor values, violence, and potty humor conveyed in current media there is a deeper issue.

When kids sit in front of the tv on a regular basis they develop an appetite for entertainment. They become less creative, less willing to serve, less able to work together. Watching tv together as a family doesn't promote family togetherness. There is no interaction, there are no conflicts to resolve, they are just being entertained.

There are so many more worthwhile activities that our children could be doing, why would we want to fill their lives with something that has so little worth.

My goal for my children is that they become followers of Christ, leaders, disciples for Him. I want them to find joy in serving others not in serving themselves. In my opinion, a constant dose of tv and movies is not compatible with the life I would like my children to lead.

I would encourage those of you who are struggling with this issue, go through your movies. Do they promote the same ideas that you believe are right for your family? If so great, if not throw them away. Don't send mixed messages to your kids, what is okay for them to watch is not okay for them to mimic. If our message to our children is clear, it will be easier for them to follow, if it is cloudy they can easily become lost.

I would challenge you to find someone who grew up without tv or movies and ask them if they have any regrets? Then find someone who grew up with a tv in every room and full cable and ask them the same question.

This post is not meant to insult or criticize anyone, just to get you thinking.....