With the release of “50 Shades of Grey" this past weekend
they has been a lot of discussion of whether Christians should see it, whether
it should be canceled, and what might be a good alterative for Christians. It got me thinking. Do we really need an Alternative? Allow me to explain.
One of the most frequent topics peppering my Facebook news feed in the past week is
the contrast of “50 Shades of Gray” with the new release of Old Fashioned. I understand their reasoning, and I think their
intentions were good. After all the world hates God and every standard the Bible puts forth, but I don’t like it as a marketing campaign.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m looking forward to seeing it, but if it’s as good
as people are saying, (since my friend Kevin is not easily impressed and he was,
it should be) it should be able to stand on its own. I think that we should produce content because
we love our work, not merely as a reaction to what the world does. In some ways, I think that even the idea that
“50 Shades” needs an alternative is a wrong line of thinking.
One of my biggest pet peeves is when we “Christianize”
everything. Here are a couple of examples:
1) Bible Man
Even when it first came out, I thought it was unnecessary
and (when I recently looked back) I agreed with a friend that it was borderline
sacrilegious. There so many real life
heroes in the Bible that we don’t need a “Christian” fictional construct. I like Batman and Captain America and there
is nothing wrong with this as long as we are cautious about worldview.
2) Games
Apples to Apples is a great game but the Christian version
is unnecessary and not as fun. There is
nothing wrong with taking a few cards out and enjoying the real thing. Scatigories
Bible Edition and Bible Tri-Bond are two other games that while not all bad are
basically redundant imitations of solid games.
We need to be creative and seek to come up with unique ways to engage
the culture instead of simply copying the world. We need to go on the offensive.
Along those lines, we also need to be committed to
quality. I remember several years ago we
bought a Bible Trivia game. My sister
who was seven at the time was able to answer the Expert level questions quite
easily. I am grateful that my parents
have taught us diligently from the Bible over the years, but to me this was
indicative of a rush by the company to get a game on the shelves.
In closing, I like Podcasts and Podcasting. I listen to many different Podcasts done by
many different people on many different topics. I like learning new things and
Podcasts are a great way to do this. I also host the Speaking4Him Podcast every
Friday. I do this not to offer an
alternative to other shows, but because I have a passion for radio and have an
opportunity to hone my skills and prepare for a job in live radio (Lord willing) and to share
the message God has given me.
I am committed to producing quality, informative, and
encouraging content every week. Do I hit
the mark every time? No. But my goal in every show is to heed the
words of the Apostle Paul “And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all
in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.” (Colossians
3:17) What is God calling you to do?
Speaking4Him,
Andrew Gommesen
