Question: I am a Believer. How do I relax/enjoy in a world-dominated entertainment culture?

Hello Friends, I hope you are doing well. First of all, I want to thank you for taking time to visit this blog, sharing with others and for submitting great questions, comments and inquiries even about my mentoring resources. I am glad to receive your questions because this is the essence of wholesome living, meaningful discourse and spirit-led dialogue.

Your questions are important to me. Consequently, I will dedicate the next couple of blog posts to thoroughly respond to them to the extent that I am able to. It is my hope that these responses will bring clarity and understanding to these burning yet often unasked questions.

Here is the question I received: 

• Question 1:
  “What do christians do in their downtime to relax/ enjoy entertainment? The media and entertainment industry is dominated by the world. I feel their form of entertainmentand social relaxation are directed at the mind to keep us in bondage.”

• My Response

“… and may your whole Spirit AND Soul AND Body be preserved blameless…” ( 1 Thes. 5:23)

First, I am glad you asked this question.  I am going to answer you in two parts: First, I will set the precedent and then second, i will list the things believers do to relax/enjoy.

Many do not even see the essence of relaxation/healthy entertainment. Yet, we are tripartite human beings, meaning we are not only Spirit but also Soul and Body.

• The Spirit is the life of the person; the breath that was breathed into dust to make man. This often connotes the personhood of the triune God in the form of the holy spirit which we receive once we accept Jesus. (See Ecc.12:7, Gen 2:7, Romans 10:9 )
• The Soul is the seat of our emotions, mind, intellect and aversions. (See 3 John 1:2, Matt 22:37)
• The Body is the physical vessel that we live in while on earth. ( See Ecc 12:7, 2 Cor. 5:6-8)

Christians are very much so human beings too. And the honest ones will admit that they also have feelings, emotions and needs. In fact, it is important that these needs be healthily met; not exploitatively, abusively( abnormal use) or fleshly lest we be “swayed/led along by all kinds of desires” ( 2 Tim 3:6). The only difference with the believer is that, by accepting, believing and confessing the Lordship of Jesus Christ, he/she is now a new creation in Christ and is led by the holy spirit; that believer’s decisions– though fundamentally of their own choice– are spirit-driven, love-motivated and geared towards glorifying the father. In so being, we effortlessly bear testimony to who Christ is while advancing the purpose for which he came: to rescue mankind from the darkness and sin and lead men to light and eternal life.

So, having set this important precedent about the body/soul/spirit trichotomy in the context of your question, I will list the activities/things believers do in their down time to relax/enjoy entertainment tomorrow. The reason why I want to first set this precedent about spirit/soul and body is because my responses will be within the context of this relationship of body-soul-spirit.

I have 4 things I have prayerfully written about the things believers do for relaxation and entrainment and I can’t wait to release it on Thursday 🙂

Blessings,

R.