When is entertainment ok?

1. I feel like I should be taking care of responsibilities, spending time with family, or doing christian study or fellowship.

2. There are things I like to do like watch sports, read novels, play video games, goof off...etc.

The problem is if I do anything that is not in line one I feel guilty like I am sinning. I have also read that any form of entertainment was highly discouraged in Protestant Geneva and Puritain England and America. So, when is entertainment ok?

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David
PCA
Richardson, Texas

Saving faith is an immediate relation to Christ, accepting, receiving, resting upon Him alone, for justification, sanctification, and eternal life by virtue of God's grace.
--C.H. Spurgeon

I'll tell you when it's not okay--when it makes your conscience tingle. If you feel like you're doing something wrong, you are. Read Romans 14.

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Jonathan
Audio Engineer
Reformed Anabaptist
Ohio

Moroni's magical glasses of proper interpretation:

Well, that would mean that it's never ok in my case. So all entertainment is a sin?

I can't give YOU an exact answer but I know I was greatly helped by the Sovereign Grace series:

Sanctifying the Ordinary

1. A Biblical Understanding of Sleep (C.J. Mahaney)
2. A Biblical Understanding of Work (John Loftness)
3. A Biblical Understanding of Eating (Robin Boisvert)
4. A Biblical Understanding of Leisure (Jeff Purswell)

I think the last sermon on there will help.

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jason d.
deacon @ Sovereign Joy Community Church
reformed baptist (LBC.1689)
fort worth (haltom city), texas

Yes.

I'm pretty close to that. The entertainments I allow myself: reading the PB, reading the news, reading a book for entertainment perhaps once every 3 or 4 months, watching an entertainment DVD about once every month. More than that and I feel guilty about wasting precious time. "Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." - Eph 5:15-16.

Rest, recuperation and regaining energy are all critical to our effectiveness, and if an entertainment is one of those then I think it can be OK, so long as we're not regularly choosing it over something better like prayer or fellowship etc. We live in an age where there is huge pressure to be entertained so they can a) sell you things b) conform you to the world. This pressure needs to be resisted. You've been told that entertainment is one of your human rights, but it's not. I don't want to look back from my death bed and regret having spent 5000 hours playing computer games and imagine what would have happened if I'd spent 5000 hours praying and meditating on the word instead.

My rule of thumb is, if I can do something for the glory of God then it's good. Of course I fail to follow that rule of thumb, but one can but try.

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Paul
No denomination, affiliated with FIEC
"Deliver me from worldly dispositions, for I am born from above and destined for glory" - Valley of Vision
"They think it strange that you do not plunge with them into the same flood of dissipation" - Peter

This is a tough one. We are to enjoy God's world, so I would tend to view as legalistic anyone who sits there looking at his watch while I'm having fun. At the same time, I doubt seriously if the Westminster Divines had in mind sitting around watching soap operas.

I guess the general guidance I use is to consider how closely the activity conforms to what we're told to do in scripture -- caring for the earth, fellowship with one another, enjoying and appreciating the creation -- and spending the greatest part of our recreation time in those pursuits. Movies and reading fiction are occasional treats, and everything else falls out in the middle somewhere.

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JWithnell
Member Bethel OPC
Virginia
http://learningyesican.blogspot.com/

Surely recreation must be good so long as it's innocent and not over-indulged, but another important aspect is what we class as recreation. I don't think reading/TV/movies are exactly on a par with taking a walk or playing sport.
A great deal of the media, cinema and modern literature is very far from innocent. Maybe even most of it.

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JennyG
Church of Scotland (Presbyterian)
Fife, Scotland

I agree with you. I think 'recreation' is quite different to 'entertainment'. My alarm bells go off with the latter.

I don't like movies/tv too much junk to sort through, however, there are many other enjoyable activities that are given to us to enjoy. I think there's a fine line between not doing something bc it's sinful and not doing something bc we've made a man-made law against it thus making a law we can "live up to". God demands that we live up to His law and have Christian freedom in the areas He has not restricted.

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sarah
WI
OPC
My Pastor's Sermons: Mark Jenkins...he's awesome!!!

Mine too. I didn't notice at first, you're making a distinction which the OP maybe doesn't, but which really needs to be made.
I don't know how much truth is in the stereotype of the puritans cancelling Christmas and trying to stamp out fun, but I'm quite sure that a lot of what passes now for "fun" and even "Christmas" would definitely be on the wrong side of Sarah's fine line.

maybe getting off subject, but for what's it's worth, I have thrown out Christmas. I can assure you it had nothing to do with wanting to stamp out fun though.
As for the struggle against when it's okay to indulge in "entertainment" for me personally, entertainment is a problem when it a) takes away from something else specific I need to be doing (surfing net, when I got on to do homework) 2) when it takes away from priorities (loving football game on TV so much I would rather watch than spend time with my wife)
3) when it is explicitly sinful (shows nudity, etc)

Aside from those I see no reason to take a break and enjoy entertainment now and then. I have no problem taking my wife out on a date to dinner and a movie on Friday night after we have worked hard all week. Of course, we make specific times for prayer, bible study, etc during the week also.

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Andrew S.
Covenant Presbyterian Church (OPC)
Abilene,TX

In moderation, I think entertainment is acceptable. For example, this is entertaining:

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Andrew Thornquist My Photo Album
Calvinistic Baptist
Ukiah, California
To follow Christ was the best decision God made for me!

Andrew:
I bet it is, but i shall never know, because my elderly imac declines to show me it.
That may be why I sound so humourless in replying, it totally depends on what it is that entertains! "Entertainment" is not a word with a value content which remains constant whenever and by whomever it is used.

Yeah, that's funny.