Examining the role that media plays in our Christian lives.

1. A cHRISTIAN
today’s world
WITNESS in
Tactics + sTRATEGIES
Relativism
The Bible
Pluralism
Islam
Sexual Revolution
Media
Training and Equipping Believers
to Live Out a Confident Faith

2. A cHRISTIAN
today’s world
WITNESS in
Tactics + sTRATEGIES
Relativism
The Bible
iSLAM
Sexual Revolution
Training and Equipping Believers
to Live Out a Confident Faith
Pluralism
Media

3. tACTICS
Skills for effective discussions
Columbo, Taking the Roof Off, etc.

4. The Challenge of:
Authority
Relativism The Bible

5. The Challenge of:
Worldviews
Pluralism Islam

6. Culture
“We can live however we want”
The Challenge Of:

7. Culture
Sexual Revolution
The Challenge Of:
Media

8. Tonight

9. media?
What is important for Christians in how we use

10. Media
The Challenge of:
“Media Doesn’t Affect Me”

15. Discussion time

16. Benefits
Challenges
THAT media presents for Christians today?
and
What aRE THE BIGGEST

17. 4 aREAS

18. Ideas
Stimulus
Relationships
What views are being promoted?
How are are we personally affected?
How do they affect how we view
and relate to others?
DELIVERY What ways do these ideas come to us?

19. Ideas
Challenge #1:
What views are being promoted?

20. Ideas
Have
Consequences

21. “True for You, But Not For Me”
“The Bible is just a book written by men”
“All Roads Lead to God”
“There is no God but Allah”
“My body is mine and I can use it
however I wish”
“Media Doesn’t Affect Me”

22. My people are destroyed for lack of
knowledge.
Hosea 4:6

23. For the weapons of our warfare are
not carnal but mighty in God for
pulling down strongholds…
2 Corinthians 10:4

24. casting down arguments and
every high thing that exalts itself
against the knowledge of God…
2 Corinthians 10:5

25. bringing every thought into
captivity to the obedience of Christ.
2 Corinthians 10:5

26. And do not be conformed to this
world, but be transformed by the
renewing of your mind, that you
may prove what is that good and
acceptable and perfect will of God.
Romans 12:2

27. MatterIdeas:

28. Shape familiesIdeas:

29. Shape CulturesIdeas:

30. Shape churchesIdeas:

31. Shape soulsIdeas:

32. Shape EterniesIdeas:

33. Shape usIdeas:

34. MatterIdeas: Greatly!

35. Ideas
Have
Consequences

36. Ideas
contains
All media

37. Application for Christians:
We must keep
our brains on
when we consume media

39. How do we keep
our brains on
when we consume media?

41. ask questions!

42. What is good, according to this?
What does this show / song / meme or
ad want me to believe or accept?
What ideas are simply assumed?

45. “The most dangerous
ideas in a society are not
the ones being argued,
but the ones that are
assumed” - C.S. Lewis

46. Ideas matter
and they are in all media

47. Delivery
Challenge #2:
What ways do these ideas come to us?

48. “It is not politics or
economics, but
entertainment that is
arguably the most
pervasive, powerful…

49. force of our time, a force
so overwhelming that it
has finally metastasized
into life itself.”

50. Media does not just exist to
entertain
but also to
persuade

51. “I think Will and Grace
did more to educate the
American public than
anything anybody’s done
so far”
- Joe Biden (on homosexuality)

52. “Entertainment fools us
into caring about things
that are not important, and
distracted from caring
about things that are”
- John Stonestreet

53. “Great art takes you deeper
into life, it doesn’t distract
you from life. Sadly,
entertainment for many of
us is a form of escape.”
- John Stonestreet

54. Application for Christians:
What channels of
entertainment
do we allow into our lives?

55. Application for Christians:
Are we aware of what
worldview
is being promoted?

56. Application for Christians:
Does our favorite
entertainment
draw us deeper or more shallow?

57. Stimulus
Challenge #3:
How are are we personally affected?

59. “If we weren’t already called Generation-Y,
we’d be called Generation Notification. We
love it, that pesky little orange or blue
(1) that appears at the top of our computers
and iPhones

60. iPhones and tells us that somebody
wants to interact with us: to leave us
a comment, to like one of our photos,
to retweet us, to write on our walls.

61. Notifications heighten our self-
worth, are how we know someone is
listening to us and caring about
what we have to say.

62. Notifications heighten our self-
worth, are how we know someone is
listening to us and caring about
what we have to say.

65. “The key to social media addiction
is dopamine. You’ve probably heard
of dopamine as the pleasure
hormone.

66. This isn’t strictly true. What
dopamine actually does is
encourage us to look for stuff.

67. Twitter and Facebook are veritable
goldmines of new stuff. Your brain
on Twitter is like Scrooge McDuck
diving into his money vault.
Everywhere you turn, your brain
thinks happy days!

69. There’s one more trick that social
media has up its sleeve, which makes
it even more powerful:
unpredictability.

70. Sometimes you’ll go on Twitter and
Facebook, and your mind is blown.
Boom! Sometimes you’ll have a ton
of notifications. Again, this sends a
flood of dopamine to your brain.

71. Other times, it’s a slow day (or a
slow five minutes). Nothing much
interesting. No notifications. This
unpredictability stimulates
dopamine.

72. And there’s one more thing…
dopamine loves chasing down rabbit
holes. If you have incomplete
information you won’t feel satisfied.

73. You’ll need more. So you’ll
keep looking. Hence, you stay
on social media for hours.

76. Application for Christians:
Why do we use
social media
(if we do at all?)

77. Application for Christians:
What have you
noticed
about its affects on you?

78. Application for Christians:
How do you feel when you are
disconnected
offline, or when you are quiet?

79. Application for Christians:
Why do people become
addicted
to noise, stimulus and connection?

80. Relationships
Challenge #4:
How do these views affect how we view and relate to others?

81. Entertainment can be
substitute
for real relationships

82. “Americans have
become increasingly
isolated and alone. As a
result, kids are more
and more connected,
but less and less really
connected.”

83. “An addiction is something that is
used to fill the void that a
relationship is meant to fill…
- Paul Warren, psychiatrist

84. One of the reasons pornography
has such a stronghold over many in
this generation is because few
young people today feel truly
known and loved.
- Paul Warren, psychiatrist

86. Application for Christians:
We must be
diligent TO PROTECT
our lives and relationships

87. Application for Christians:
This culture wants to
steal
God’s design out of our lives

88. My Final Thoughts
Next Week:

89. Your feedback
Next Week:

90. oUR PRAYERS
Next Week:

91. ceLEBRATION MUNCHIES!!
Next Week: