This was a decision my husband and I made the first year of our marriage. That year didn't bear much good fruit, but this decision is actually one we will stick with for the entirety of our lifetime together. That period of our life seems like a lifetime ago already. It was the beginning of our walk as Christians. Since then, we've made a lot of mistakes and learned a great deal. I do not like thinking about myself back then - arrogant, combative, worrywart, emotionally impulsive, easily enraged - but thanks be to God who continually works on my heart - teaching, changing, humbling, and encouraging me through this decade with my husband! And I know it had nothing to do (and quite a bit to do) with the amount of television we watched...
1. Too much television bears little fruit for Christ. If all I do in my day is sit my butt down in front of a television show, what am I doing for the advancement of the gospel? How am I being the hands and feet of Christ? I am not saying that watching television occasionally is a bad thing, I'm not even saying that a restful day in front of the television is terrible, but if that is all I do day in and day out, it is wasteful.
2. I find that the more time I spend watching TV I see the woman I once was. Our world encourages arrogance, concealing it as self-love. Our world cheers on the combative (just watch shows like The View or Judge Judy). Our world worries about anything and everything (just watch the news); we are an anxious people! Our world let's their emotions control them rather than being in control of their emotions; we immediately react rather than patiently thinking about it first (just watch dramatic sitcoms). Our world is easily enraged (you can easily see that in reality television or political debates). The television is a place that encourages behavior that once held me captive.
"Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind..." Romans 12:2The more I know about an abundance of television, the less likely your mind is renewed in Christ and the more likely it will become conformed to this world. Which leads perfectly into the next point...
3. It is a mindless activity. Watching television requires little to no imagination and we definitely do not want to encourage our children to spend hours doing something mindless, that is one major reason why they will not have one in their room. JAMA Psychiatry published research that proved that young adults who watch too much television had lower cognitive function than those who did not watch too much television. It was a 25 year study where researchers monitored 3,000+ people between 18 and 30 years of age. Their research concluded that an early couch potato lifestyle actually impairs brain activity. High television activity resulted in poor performance on three different cognitive tests! (source)
Be mindful of Jesus.
4. It is not an active pastime. When you watch, you sit on your tush with minimal physical change - you expend very little energy. Our bodies were made for movement, exercise, imagination, dancing, climbing, learning, exploring. How much of that can you accomplish on a recliner while staring at the TV? USA Today published an article with a claim that watching too much television is directly related to an increase in diabetes and heart disease. Researchers studied more than 13,000 individuals over an 8 year time span to determine whether there was a correlation between sedentary lifestyles and death. Turns out that individuals who spent three or more hours a day in front of the television had a higher risk of early death than those who watched less. Why? A cardiologist said that television watching is a passive lifestyle. Those who spend more time watching spend less time paying attention to diet and exercise. This study proved that diabetes and heart disease were associated with a sedentary lifestyle (too much television was the major culprit). (source)
5. It's too easy to turn on and get sucked in without even realizing it. When it's in one location (ours is in the basement family room) then it's less likely to be turned on and left on. Most importantly, it's less likely to become an addiction.
7. BUT when it is on, that's where everyone is located, so making it a rarity does encourage interaction. What I mean by this is that we are purposeful in what we watch. My husband likes the survival shows and we watch them occasionally. We also watch football and we hysterically giggle over Parks and Rec. What we do watch (which is less than 5 hours a week) helps us relax, laugh over something together, chat about something new... And when football season or March Madness is on, it's then we have friends and family gathered around eating lots of good food, cheering, and enjoying each other. There are some great memories gathered around the TV when you're purposeful about what you watch and when you watch and who you watch it with and why.
8. Television is not the place to go to fulfill our job as parents. Our biblical job is quite clear: raise up children in the knowledge of the Lord. To resort to television as a source of upbringing is disobedient to this calling. That doesn't mean I haven't learned anything about parenting by watching Daniel the Tiger with my children (seriously) but watching this show (no matter how valuable) will not teach my children about Jesus.
9. Television is not a necessity to living and I do not want to give our children any other impression. It is a luxury. Sunday night is our family movie and pizza night. The girls love it. I do believe that it was left on all the time it would become less of a luxury, which is just what it is. It is a treat, a frill, a symbol of high living and wealth. If you have one with the means to afford movies, football, Netflix, &etc. consider yourself blessed.
10. We do not want it to be the center of our home. We do not arrange our main living room around the television. Our main living room is conducive to conversation, games, reading, comfort, and play.
The center of our home is Jesus Christ and if the television is on all the time, I do believe it will take away from Him. Anything that does that, must go.
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