So, what's your tolerance with entertainment?

[Tronora]

On 7/24/2024 at 1:22 AM, BLEmom said:

 

https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2018446

 

I love the image that starts the chapter. I don't have at TV. I only use streaming services. If something I watch contains something objectionable, I fast forward. I don't throw away the whole "apple", IF, and only IF, removing the "brown" will do.

 

Reading online about series/films BEFORE I put them on, has saved me from unpleasant surprises.

 

[justenoire]

Entertainment has always been a thorny area for me. Yes, we make these decisions for ourselves but at the same time we need to be shrewd, foreseeing and avoiding danger, not running right into it and figuring we can get ourselves out of trouble. But for me that's way easier said than done when it comes to entertainment, because I find myself interested in a great many things. Due to disability I'm limited in how "busy" I can really be in things outside the home so entertainment is a part of my life. Since you're newer in the truth, here are two things that have helped me a lot when it comes to making better choices (the kind of choices that help me draw closer to Jehovah):

 

1. If you're worried you'll get bored or run out of things to watch/read/listen to if you cut things out, don't. There are many thousands of books, shows, songs, and so on. I've found plenty while avoiding much. And don't discriminate against older properties due to their age. 

 

2. Making the decision to discontinue something because it's tugging at your conscience is easier the sooner you do it, and it is always rewarding. It feels good to do something like that for Jehovah, to just cut it off. The longer you stick with it, there's the feeling of "I might as well finish" or, in the case of music, "I just love this song too much". Ironically, these feelings "taint" the experience so it's not as enjoyable anyway. But even so, it's still good to cut something out even if you've held onto it for a long time. Since I'm really into music, I once did a personal study project analyzing some of my favorite songs and looked at what each underlying message was and it was really illuminating.

 

I still struggle with entertainment and at the same time I'm still entertained. I like the struggle because I don't want to go with the flow of this world and I like that I've become more attuned to things that are harmful to me, even if they might not seem that way on the surface. 

[Ostria]

7 hours ago, justenoire said:

Since I'm really into music, I once did a personal study project analyzing some of my favorite songs and looked at what each underlying message was and it was really illuminating.

 

 

Oh gosh, Joe Diffie's "Third rock from the sun" taught me that songs have stories if you pay attention, and that doomed me and made me see some of the songs in a different light

 

8 hours ago, justenoire said:

like that I've become more attuned to things that are harmful to me, even if they might not seem that way on the surface. 

 

Ngl i like and hate it at the same time. Before last yeqr i could walk into a spirit halloween no problem, i went in one a few weeks ago (yes some have been open for a bit down here in sc (good ol 'bible belt')) because my son (3) wanted me to go in with him and his father, and im just looking around like "ew..."

[justenoire]

9 hours ago, Ostria said:

Ngl i like and hate it at the same time. Before last yeqr i could walk into a spirit halloween no problem, i went in one a few weeks ago (yes some have been open for a bit down here in sc (good ol 'bible belt')) because my son (3) wanted me to go in with him and his father, and im just looking around like "ew..."

 

I used to feel that way. "Ignorance is bliss" says the world, but Jesus says "The truth will set you free" because we are slaves to sin no matter how ignorant. And slavery always takes a toll. He also says that he is the truth, and his load is light. Opening our eyes and following in Christ's footsteps is not to make our lives more difficult, but more genuinely peaceful, joyful, and loving. It's a matter of really putting faith that the things Jesus said (that he got from his Father) are true for us. It takes faith but even faith the size of a mustard seed can move mountains. Entertainment will be a trial until the end of this system of things, then under God's Kingdom we will be able to experience pleasure with no painful consequences attached. But even this trial is one that, through endurance, we can gain Jehovah's approval. 

[fix it shop]

I enjoy early comedy ( golden age of television ) Sid Caesar ,Fractured Flickers, some Jonny Carson - music , from Symphonies -  Annen Polka, Beach Boys , Bebop ,Jazz , Dixieland, Hazel Scott , Nat King Cole , Judy Garland , Petula Clark , Folk Music - The Seekers , Kingston Trio , Harmony Music , Production Background Music , Hollywood Spectaculars - Ben Hur ,early Rock - 50s ,70s music - the Association , The Doors , The Animals , some 80s music , less we not forget our Kingdom Music from the Pink Song Book and Lp's to cassette , CDs , and what we have today . A little bit what I listen and more - but one can never go wrong  with kingdom music or our videos - some early 16mm film "Herritage" and some others .