About a year ago, maybe longer, we discovered that America’s Funniest Home videos comes on at 7pm on Sunday nights.  We usually would get home from church about 7:30 and the kids would have a snack while they watched the last few videos.  Now, let me just say here that, typically, we don’t turn the TV on in our house after 4pm, until the kids go to bed and then Chris and I can turn it back on and watch “grown-up” shows.  We do have family movie night from time to time. 

ANYWAY, it seems like it has been a few months, since we have watched AFV at all.  Well, last night it was cooler outside, we cleaned up early and came inside.  Chris left yesterday on a military trip and it was easy for me to say “OK” when they asked to watch.  But as I sat down and listened to the commentary and the video clips, I became more and more convicted of what they were watching and listening. A few examples are the host making fun of a lady’s size, intoxicated people falling down while dancing, cursing (with the words put on the screen so you could read them), young girls dressed inappropriately dancing and singing, etc. etc.

Then there were the commercials.  And that’s what set my alarm bells ringing big time.  Since we watch either PBS kids or movies all the time, they just don’t usually see many commercials.  But after a Mary Kay make-up commercial with a close-up of a young woman changing her “look” several times – it repeated at least 3 times during the show.  Foster (age 7) said to me, “I guess that’s how girls attract boys, huh?”

I was speechless.  I am usually quick on my feet with the things to say, but all I could manage was “Why do you say that? What if a girl is just really sweet?” His response was “well, yeah that too.” 

Our conversation fizzled quickly but my heart hurt!  I am sure many people would say I am over reacting but I feel like we have to work so hard to protect our children from becoming drown in the standards of the world.  I don’t want my kids to live in a bubble, but I want them to have the chance to see that God’s standards are the way to go, His ways are the ones to follow.  At such young ages, we can’t let them listen to whatever, watch whatever and read whatever and think that it isn’t going to effect their value system.

The thing is I was desensitized my whole life and then had to work really hard to undo what the first 25 years of my life taught me was “OK.”  God’s way is THE way, but I pray I will be able to set my kids on that path in the very beginning, so that they don’t have such a long way to travel back when they come to that U-turn in their spiritual lives. Better yet, if they don’t ever have to come to the U-turn because they stay headed in the right direction!

What about in your family?  How do/have you protected your children?