I have sorely neglected this site and all of my other blogs for some time. I have no excuse, only a confession. Over the past few years, I have become addicted to computer games. Games of all sorts: on-line games, games that are free, games that you pay for, some that are harmless and some that are not. It doesn’t matter what kind of games they are, the truth is they have consumed far too much of my time. I have eased off of them several times, only to return. Just as with a recovering alcoholic, I know that if I pick up even the most innocent of games, such as Sudoku, I will soon be back to where the bulk of my day is spent on the computer.
This has not been good for my mind, my health, or my spirit, so several weeks ago, I stopped. Cold turkey! I would say that I have missed them, but that is not the truth. Occasionally though, I find myself wondering what it would be like to open just one, for a few minutes, when I know I cannot. I have not really missed them because suddenly my life has become so much fuller. I am accomplishing things around the house that have been on hold for years. I am writing. I am reading. And, any day now, I am going to start cooking real meals! Well, that might be going too far. but the point is, I am surviving without that addiction.
Philippians 4:8 exhorts us “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” We know that’s what we’re supposed to do, but it is not always easy. The world would try to tell us that everything it has to offer is better than what God has for us, but it is a lie. God is all of the things mentioned in this verse. He is true, he is honest, he is just, he is pure, he is lovely. All of our virtue comes from his and all of the praise is due him. By comparison, all of the things of this world, especially computer games, pale in comparison.