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He who works his land will have abundant food,
    but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment. Proverbs 12:11

But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. Romans 14:23

Electronic gaming is another one of those activities that is not mentioned by name in the Bible. Such  activities often cause problems for parents and children. We tend to want to find a verse somewhere that gives a thumbs up or down to our activities. We think it would be nice if Proverbs 35:10 said: It is okay to do gaming, but no more than 30 minutes a week, else you will be in great danger of losing your mind.  But God, in his infinite wisdom, did not provide a book with a list of rules for every possible situation. What he did provide is a book that teaches his people how to love him by applying principles. Yes, there are commandments, but these are meant to help us form principles for all of life as we obey them. So, for example, the Holy Spirit directs the apostle Paul to use the concerns of his day about eating meat offered to idols to form a principle that not only answered the immediate concern of his day, but applies to all of life for all time – whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. In one master stroke of wisdom, God provided a timeless principle relevant to all cultures, including ours. Just as we have seen in the Facebook series, God has much to say about an issue that is not mentioned by name in Scripture.

I believe there are at least two defining principles that have specific application to electronic gaming:

     1.  Gaming must not detract from a biblically productive life.

     2.  Gaming, if it is to be done, must proceed from faith.

We will make practical application of these principles in upcoming posts. But first I want to provide a little history about the gaming phenomena. In 1993 David Sheff wrote Game Over: How Nintendo zapped an American industry, captured your dollars, and enslaved your children (Random House).  As you can tell from the subtitle, the author had a problem with Nintendo. Sheff did not write from a Christian perspective, but from the perspective of an analyst of American business and culture.  He was angered and alarmed by the success of Nintendo and its impact on American culture. Shortly after the book was published, Nintendo lost its leadership role in the gaming industry, as Sony and Microsoft became serious rivals. Sheff chronicles the rise of how a Japanese company that began in the late 1800’s as a manufacturer of elaborate playing cards for leisure use in Japan became a gaming giant in America. As the family-run company grew, it tried its hand at various avenues to tap into the Japanese market for leisure dollars. The company moved beyond playing cards and dabbled in ventures such as instant rice, running a taxi cab company, and even prostitution. But they returned to the company’s initial vision of amusement in leisure time. The focus shifted from playing cards to toys. Nintendo had built a huge distribution network in Japan and they made full use of it. Eventually one of their employees began to explore toys that incorporated electronic devices, such as remote controlled cars. That led to using technology to place simple games on a TV-like screen. In 1981 Nintendo had it’s first major hit game – Donkey Kong. The rest is history. By 1990 their character Super Mario was more recognized by American children than Mickey Mouse.

Sheff draws this telling conclusion:

In the last part of the twentieth century, leaps in technology ushered in a new era in which children and a substantial part of the culture as a whole would be more influenced by interactive electronic media – in their simplest form, video games – than by television, which had defined the previous generation.

This insight is key to understanding the impact of gaming on our culture and your children. Interactive electronic media is a more precise term to help understand the gaming influence. This term also helps to illustrate the strong attraction of Facebook and other forms of social networking.

In all of this, living for the glory of God must be understood on a practical level. Because the church was not particularly concerned with video versions of tennis or a plump Italian plumber named Mario, we were unprepared for what would come. Bouncing white balls on a screen and a harmless looking plumber gave way to captivation by games like Doom and Grand Theft Auto. Parents and church leaders finally became alarmed, but it was too late—electronic gaming is here to stay.

Principles were ignored because the initial presentation didn’t seem so bad. Now, interactive electronic media is riding a wave of powerful technology that has the power to enslave and encourage rage, lust, and revenge in ways few thought possible. The Wii offers an even broader arena for interaction. If biblical principles are not carefully applied, the temptations that Wii type systems provide far outweigh previous forms of gaming.

The biblical response is to bring the power of the glory of God to bear on these pursuits, which for many are no longer merely a leisure pursuit. The seductive allure of interactive electronic media offers to define life itself for the avid gamer, at least temporarily. Nothing but the majesty and glory of God can turn your children from the attractions of a dazzling, compelling electronic world.

In the next post we will look at the danger of chasing fantasies.

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ. —Colossians 2:8

Above all else, guard your heart,
       for it is the wellspring of life. — Proverbs 4:23

A Guide to Entertainment

You and your children are targets of a subtle but vicious enemy. The enemy is a master of deception and stealth. He knows that if he attacks openly he will be recognized for who he is. So this enemy plans his attacks when they are least expected. He has no sense of fair play. He looks for the times when you and your family are the most vulnerable. His desire is to create as much destruction and mayhem in your lives as he can. Am I talking about Osama bin Laden? No, actually, this enemy is more dangerous and cunning than bin Laden. The apostle Paul warns against being taken captive by this enemy, and Solomon says to guard your heart. Both are speaking about the world as influenced by Satan (I John 2:15-17; Ephesians 2:1-3).