Television and Me

This article originally appeared as the editorial in the parish magazine for Spring 2009. Subsequent to publication, readers may be relieved to note that we now have purchased a television and a TV Licence.

Have you ever tried living without a television? It's interesting that since I got married in January, Laura and I have been living without a television in our flat. Before that, at home, we have televisions in the kitchen, the living room and I had one in my bedroom as well. I have to admit I haven't gone completely "cold turkey" as we do watch some TV using the BBC's iPlayer on the internet (and by the way, no you don't need a TV licence to watch programmes using iPlayer - we checked!).

We are planning to get a television (and licence!) in a few weeks, but this time without a TV helped me realise how much more time there is for other things when the "goggle box" isn't there, dominating our time. There's time for talking to each other, listening to music, reading books, playing games, writing, cooking, doing things around the house that need done, chatting to friends, and of course praying and reading the Bible.

I'm not against the television. I think it is a wonderful invention that we take for granted. There are so many different sights and experiences most of us simply would not have in life if it weren't for TV. A lot of what I've learned in terms of general knowledge and things has come to me through watching TV. It is a great educational and entertainment tool when used well. But we need to make sure the TV is only that - a tool - a servant and not our master.

When things on the TV come before more important things - like friends and family, our spiritual and physical health and wellbeing, not to mention God and our life as Christians, then we need to rethink our priorities, don't we?

Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:15-16: "Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil."

We are to life careful lives - by which Paul doesn't mean cautious lives, but lives that aren't careless. We are to live deliberately, making the most of every opportunity. It means we should think about what we are doing, about how we are living and about what we spend our time doing. We have to use our time wisely, because Christ is Lord of all our lives and that includes how we spend or waste our time.

Again, Paul encourages us, this time in Philippians 4:8 – “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things.”

I’ve always thought it a good idea to watch the programmes you want and then turn the TV off rather than “channel hopping” as it’s called – which basically means switching from one channel to another until you find one that has something on it you are prepared to watch. I wonder, if you didn’t know something was on and you come across it by accident, how much do you really want to watch it?

Everyone will have their own views on this subject of course and there are no right and wrong answers. I just wonder if it might do some good if we watched the telly a little bit less and did something else – almost anything else! – a little bit more?