Taking Things For Granted

Hebrew 13: 16 - Make sure you don't take things for granted and go slack in working for the common good; share what you have with others. God takes particular pleasure in acts of worship

My wife and I have decided that we might be allowing the TV to take too much time in our lives. As a matter of fact, while I type this, the TV is on. No one is watching, but it just seems to be the habit in our house. We come home and the TV immediately gets turned on. The more we thought about this, the more we thought we should take some steps to illuminate the control the TV has on our lives. We’re not anti-TV in anyway, we just want our family to find some more creative time and space to spend together. Our answer…NO TV DAYS. This is actually no electronics of any kind. We don’t turn on the TV, radio, no WII, no DS and even no computer until I go to work. It’s certainly an adjustment.

Our No TV Days are Mondays and Thursdays. On Mondays I watch my boys in the morning while my wife takes an early shift at her job. So, when Sunday nights roll around and I’m finished with my responsibilities, I begin to settle in and worry about Monday morning. I’m always concerned with what in the world I’m gonna do with my 5 and 1 1/2 year olds. How am I gonna make it without the TV? The funny thing is, these moments are quickly becoming my favorite time in my week. My boys get up and ask to turn on the TV (is that a problem?). But, I remind them it’s a No TV Day and they immediately head to their rooms for a different adventure. Just this last Monday they both came back with books. So, we sat and read a few books together. Next I was drug by the hand back to the room where we jumped into a heated lightsaber battle. It was a beautiful day, so we got dressed and went to the library. Then we took a stroll downtown where my boys went to the bakery for the first time. We ended up at a nearby park to play on the playground after we finished our wonderful cookies from the bakery. The morning flew by and I felt I was getting the short end of the stick as my wife came home and I headed off to work. Holy Cow! What had I been missing? What had I been taking for granted?

Every No TV Day has turned into precious time with my sons. Time I otherwise was freely giving away to something that returns no love back to them. Ephesians 5:16 says, “Make good use of every opportunity you have, because these are evil days.” (KJV) I don’t think the TV in and of itself is evil. But I do believe that anything that takes time away from those we love and from the relationships we can build might be something we should, at least, be weary of. I had let my dependence on our TV to control me relationship with my boys, to the point that I didn’t feel I could make it through a few hours in the morning without it. How foolish of me! This new time was, and is a gift from God! I was taking it for granted and dreading it. James 1:17 says, ““Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.” (NIV) This is my new understanding of this time. These are moments I’m truly thankful for. They’re moments that I’ll never get back, and that I’ll never forget! Praise be to God.



What are you taking for granted today?