Before I jump into this topic too far, let me say that I enjoy down time and leisure just as much as the next person. I remember, as a child, playing Super Mario Bros. on the original Nintendo Entertainment System, spending hours playing football and baseball with my cousins, and “killing time” with other activities that provide little to no benefit to me today other than simply having enjoyed my life as a kid. Even today, Christy and I have determined that we’re going to take advantage of the opportunities that we have to enjoy life with each other and with our kids. We love to attend Braves games, go swimming and play video games as a family. We simply love to have fun but, unlike some in our society, we were raised to understand that fun has it’s proper place and time.

In today’s technological world, we are afforded the great enjoyment of entertaining ourselves with endless apps and devices. We have Playstations, XBOXs, Wiis, Smart Phones, tablets and handheld video game systems. We embrace the excitement that comes with time-killers from Madden NFL video games to interactive online competitions. Now, with the launch of social media, the world has been taken by storm with games such as FarmVille (a little older) and the new sensation called Candy Crush. There is absolutely nothing wrong with entertainment as long as it doesn’t infringe on the moral principles laid out for us in the Word of God. Movies, music, the Internet, social media, games, and apps are undeniably a huge part of our lives. But where does it cross the line?

A number of years ago, the Lord impressed something very interesting on my heart regarding the time that we spend entertaining ourselves. As simple as it may seem to others, this thought from the Lord really got my attention: how many people focus a great majority of their time growing a virtual garden, playing a make believe video game sports season, or using colors and patterns to crush inedible, digital candy? Could it be, because we tend to focus solely on our own entertainment, that we are candy crushing the kingdom of God?

Please keep in mind that I’m in no way anti-entertainment. I love movies and video games just as much as the next person. But it seems to me that some of the biggest complainers, fault-finders, and problem-creators in the kingdom are also those who don’t have an active role in fulfilling the mission of God in the local church. It’s very easy to blame the Pastor because attendance is down. It’s not hard at all to blame the Worship Leader when we don’t “feel the anointing” in a service. But could the problems that are present within the kingdom be that we have all become so distracted by our “entertain-me-now” attitude that we’d rather blame the few who put forth an effort rather than take responsibility for our share of the load?

Don’t be confused by the intent of this blog entry. I’m not angry. I’m just curious as to how some within the flock could possibly have the audacity to blame the issues present within the church on those that are working and giving their best efforts to build and advance the kingdom. Simply put, how can we blame poor attendance on the Pastor who’s doing his best to visit, study, pray, and prepare when we haven’t invited anyone to church in six months? How can we ridicule the Worship Leader for their “lack of anointing” when we haven’t worshipped God at all on our own time? How can we fault the Sunday School teacher who teaches the truth that we don’t see as truth because we never open the Book for ourselves? Could it be that we’ve spent too much time up in the mountains, down by the ocean, and at the local ball field to realize that it’s the congregation’s responsibility to compel the lost to come in to the house of God? Could it be that, because we’ve spent so little time in the presence of the Spirit that we don’t know how to recognize His anointing that we take the easy road and blame the Worship Leader for lack of talent or passion? Could it be that we’ve allowed ourselves to sink to such a depth of spiritual ignorance when it comes to the Word of God that we automatically rail against the leaders of our church when they speak the truth simply because we don’t know the truth ourselves?

Once again, I’m not against killing time or having fun. As a matter of fact, I still love playing Super Mario Bros., Playstation, and enjoying activities that ultimately offer no spiritual productivity. It’s part of human nature to need a time of relaxation and unwind. But, until we maintain the proper spiritual perspective in every part of our lives, we must not ridicule those that are following God to the best of their ability. This article is not meant to offend anyone but it’s intended purpose is to challenge those that spend most of their time entertaining themselves to reach a little higher when it comes to their life’s purpose. Until you actually participate in building the kingdom, don’t blame the issues that are present on those that care enough about the kingdom to shut off the video game console and sign out of Facebook for at least an hour. Instead of complaining about the job that’s being done in the kingdom while you build your electronic garden, why not try to, in the famous words of Jack Nicholson, “Pick up a weapon and stand a post”? “You may have the most plentiful digital garden in all of FarmVille but when was the last time that you planted a real spiritual seed into someone’s life and believed God for an eternal harvest of souls? You might be trolling Facebook for added help from your friends to make your digital endeavors a success but when was the last time you asked someone to join you for worship instead of asking for help clearing Level 10? It’s time for the church to wake up and realize that time is short. How sad it will be when we stand before our Father to give an account of our time and effort on earth and find out that we were crushing someone and something much more valuable than candy.

Pastor Jeremy