No TV at the Hope House

Okay, maybe not exactly “No TV” but reduced television.  Alison texted me last week ago with this question, “I really wanna take the tv out of the playroom.  We can keep it but I just want to encourage them to play, read and write rather than watch tv.  I just really feel like it’s something we should try.”

At first I was  little resistant but agreed with her it was the right thing to do.  Since that initial conversation we have removed the TV from the playroom, disconnect the TV in our bedroom and canceled DISH network.  This also means that we lose our beloved high definition DVR.  On the positive side we did hook up the 6 foot antenna on our roof and still get all the local channels in crystal clear HD on the living room TV.

I’m proud of my wife for acting on her beliefs.  She has always had a passion to do what is right for our children.  Not only was this good for our children, she was willing to be an example to them by removing the TV from our bedroom and canceling our satellite service.   (On a side note canceling satellite service saves us $60 a month or $720 per year!)  The Christian faith is not merely about having beliefs but acting upon them and that’s what Alison did (James 2:14).

The question for today is this, what changes would you like to make in your house?  Do you need to evaluate your family’s TV habits?  Or is there something else you would like to eliminate to make more time for family?  How can you make those changes by leading by example?

For more information on some of the negative effects of TV on children view this article.

Where Does The Time Go?

Recently things in my life have been pretty busy. It seems like the harder I work to get caught up, the more work seems to pile up. I’m not saying this as a complaint but just one of those facts of life. I think I see the light at the end of the tunnel but I’m sure something new will pop up that will steal some time away from the things I need to get done.
As I mentioned in another post, balancing time between family, work, personal fitness, etc. is always a challenge. I always wonder what Jesus’ approach to all was. I know his priorities were love God, and love others. But what about the little things of life. I wonder what are some of the things or people Jesus said “no” to, knowing that he had to complete a larger mission.

I say this today because I physically cannot do everything I feel like I need to do. Just finding the time to make this post is extremely hard. I’m writing this while sitting in car pool line to pickup my daughter. So one the questions for today is how do you manage time to keep you life in balance? What principles do you implement that keep everything in check. What are things that you’ve said “no” to, and feel content that you’ve made the right decision?