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My children absolutely LOVE the "25 Days til' Christmas" movies on the family channel starting December 1. The whole month of November they speak of building a fire, pulling out the blankets and snuggling up on the couch together. As our family has grown, the couch snuggling has spread to the floor with masses of pillows and blankets...we LOVE it!
Last weekend (the entire weekend) the movies were the Harry Potter series. NOW, I know that this is a VERY controversial subject, but since this is MY blog, I am going to share my heart about this issue. I have heard ALL of the reviews about this series in the literary world. I know that all of the experts and critics believe that this series of books/movies are extraordinary. The issue that I have, not only with Harry Potter but also sex filled movies, is that AS BELIEVERS we HAVE to be aware of the war that is going on in the spiritual realm all around us.
There have been times through out my life where I have come face to face with demonic oppression. IT IS REAL. The spells that are cast, the lives that satan has taken over and ruined is REAL. The things that you see on Harry Potter (while we think of it as entertainment and "imaginary"...IT HAPPENS!) If you do not believe me, ask a few people who live in third world countries that deal with witch doctors and I guarantee you that they don't watch it for entertainment. People are ALIVE on this earth, casting spells, sacrificing children, killing people on a daily basis to bring satan glory and we are watching or reading the same type of "witchcraft" here in the US as entertainment. If you have had a spell cast on your or your children and you had to rely on our sweet Savior to heal your body and free your children from the bondage that accompanies it....you would NEVER desire to read about it or watch it as entertainment. If you are a believer you believe that satan is real OR NOT. If you believe he is real...then why subject yourself to his lies? Now, I know that Harry Potter is not sacrificing children but what YOU need to know is that what goes on in the Harry Potter series is the SAME witch craft that leads to all of the other. That they would show witchcraft during the season of Christ birth angers me to no end. Just another little jab from satan...easing his way in on such a precious season to celebrate our Savior.
My friend Katie is surrounded by children who have pierced their ears, pulled permanent teeth, or have marked their skin permanently so that they will not be used as child sacrifice. IT IS real....it is SAD....and as believers we HAVE to educate ourselves on this matter. The real question is...."is it worth it for us to just ignore it for our entertainment?"
The same holds true with movies that open our minds and hearts to sexual lust. When we sit and watch a couple having sex on a big screen, (and I KNOW that they do not show EVERYTHING just enough to leave the brain to wonder...which is actually worse at times) we are opening our minds and hearts to the source of 70% of broken marriages today. SEVENTY PERCENT..... All for the sake of entertainment...don't you wonder if God wonders if we even have a brain in our heads? Why on earth would we subject our minds and hearts to the very thing that is breaking up our God ordained relationship?????
47% percent of families said pornography is a problem in their home
Pornography a significant factor in 2 out of 3 divorces
9 out of 10 children aged between the ages of 8 and 16 have viewed pornography on the Internet, in most cases unintentionally
Average age of first Internet exposure to pornography: 11 years old
Largest consumer of Internet pornography: 12 - 17 year-old age group
| Every second - $3,075.64 is being spent on pornography |
| Every second - 28,258 Internet users are viewing pornography |
| Every second - 372 Internet users are typing adult search terms into search engines |
| Every 39 minutes: a new pornographic video is being created in the United States |
The bible is full of scripture speaking of the heavenly hosts raging war against the evil one. There is a war going on DAILY. Events may seem to occur randomly, with little or NO meaning. People who view the world this way have overlooked one basic fact: the limitations of human understanding. If we only knew how our Savior's heavenly army is fighting on our behalf each and every day. We would never doubt how much He cares for us. This is why we must walk by faith and not by sight. Trusting in HIM moment by moment.
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About Me
- suzanne
- I am a lover of Jesus. I have the most fabulous husband that anyone woman could ask for. The Lord has blessed us with 7 beautiful children. I started this blog so that friends and family could follow our trip to Uganda to visit Katie Davis. I have decided to keep blogging to help bring orphan awareness to the world around me.
27 comments:
Thanks, Suzanne, for your comments about the whole Harry Potter thing (and the other stuff too). I so do not understand why I hear so many people at church loving this series and letting their kids read/watch it. I've even seen a child of about 9 reading it during the preaching service!? I completely agree with you, but you have a first-hand experience with these people groups in other countries who know this is not something just for entertainment. Even without all of the controversy, though, what does Harry Potter have to do with the Christmas season so that it was included in the line-up? I understand a Santa Claus program that doesn't mention that Jesus is the real reason or even an innocent romantic comedy that simply takes place during the Christmas season. But Harry Potter? I don't recall any commercials for the movie looking like it was set during the Season.
Love your blog. I keep thinking that if you can maintain your sanity with 7 kids, surely I can handle four when we adopt our 2 girls. You have a beautiful family.
I have never met you, but you challenge and inspire me to live a life that is modeled after our Savior. Thank you for choosing to share your journey.
AMEN SISTER!!! AMEN!!
Suzanne - I will never understand how the body is OK with promoting the very thing destorying itself. God warns us of this very thing - the body will be lulled to sleep and will desire to have their ears tickled (entertained) and will walk away from living a life that will glorify His name. Too many make excuses for the choices they make daily and yet don't want to be held accountable for the aftermath that their choices have on so many lives around them.
Praying for hearts to turn back towards God and to truly grab hold of His love and truth - NO ONE CAN SERVE TWO MASTERS AND ANYONE WHO LOVES THE WORLD DOES NOT KNOW ME!
Those two things keep me looking up to Him and never desiring a TV set or to see a movie that speaks of anything that will remain in my mind long enough to give the enemy any play time with me - we all struggle enough without feeding His lies into our hearts!
Praying for all of us to fight the good fight for our marriages and the body of Christ to remain strong in HIM!
Hugs and love,
Jill
Suzanne,
i am so thankful for you guys! I'm catching up on your posts, and I am always so encouraged and challenged by your heart!
What a blessing to read this. I would like to give a hearty AMEN! I often wonder if we are the only ones who are so "strict" when it comes to witchcraft and sexual content on TV...we also abstain from halloween for the same reasons and often have to deal with questions from those who think our kids are missing out. But missing out on what? Demonic activity? Exposure to satanic themes? The enemy getting his claws in their heads and hearts? No thank you. I am happy to curl up on the couch with a cup of hot chocolate and cuddle while watching something pure and fun...
Thanks for being so open on what is definitely a controversial subject. I pray eyes and hearts are opened as a result for the sake of those who do suffer from the effects of witchcraft on a daily basis.
Amen! Thanks for taking the time to write that!
Preach it sister!!! Amen and amen! What goes down in the well will ALWAYS come up in the bucket! Love you!
All I can say is AMEN! Satan appears good and innocent (wolf in sheep's clothing) and will get his claws in you & your children by any means necessary.
we are a non-HP family too, and we have a policy of not watching R rated movies. we don't want to tell our son he can't do something that we do.
i witnessed the effects of demonic oppression 20+ years ago on a missions trip, and was also beyond blessed to see the young woman delivered. it IS real.
i stand with you.
wow, suzanne. this is so so good. my husband and i are so careful about what we watch and let our children watch. it is often very difficult to find a decent movie to watch on date night! Thank you so much for this...I had wondered about the Harry Potter books & movies. We've never seen them just to be on the safe side..... I hadn't really researched them. thank you for this.
blessings,
sara
Great job! My sis does much intercessory deliverance ministering. She has had many say the chants in the movies are the exact same as the book of witchcraft. Why on earth would you pay for that to spoken over your children. It is real sister. A chapter in the book maybe?
I so agree with you! We reap what we sow. We cannot let Satan entertain our children and then wonder why they aren't interested in the Bible anymore. Thank you for posting this!
suzanne..thanks for this! i never thought about the harry potter series in that way until you wrote it just now...thank you! I agree with you about the movies and I even need to continue to reevaluate my heart and ask God to continue to help me to know which movies to watch and not watch!
Amen sister. I totally agree. Our ministry, SixtyFeet, sees children in UG touched by witchcraft everyday. It is real and it's from the Enemy. May all brothers and sisters in Christ stand firm on this one!
I'm not sure if I've ever commented on your blog, but I've been reading it for quite a while, and your story has really inspired me. What you said about Harry Potter has really got me thinking. I am going to admit that I am a huge fan of Harry Potter. The books are beautifully written and the character development is great. I read them when I was in 4th grade (I'm a teen, to clear up confusion ;]) and have read them many times since. But what you say really did get me thinking.
I don't know exactly what's involved in real life witchcraft, but I know that it's horrible and that it does happen. I completely agree. But having read them many times and seen the (disappointing) movies, I don't see a perfect parallel by any means. I see the type of "magic" in HP as manipulating energies, like a type of science, even though I do COMPLETELY think that it is all made up. They magical people in HP don't do strange rituals or draw on Sat*n's power. Although the evil characters could easily reflect a Sat*nic cult.
I am in no way at all meaning to criticize you or anyone, I just wanted to put my side out there for you to consider. I am a Christian, who certainly has a long way to grow in her faith and relationship with Christ, but I don't feel that HP and Sat*nic witchcraft are related.
Thank you for hearing me out, and I really am glad to read your argument, as it's the first decent anti-HP one that I've ever heard.
<3 Savi
I have worked in Uganda and experienced the witchcraft there first hand. I am a strong Christian and believe in satan and witchcraft. I also am a Harry Potter fan. I don't think it is fair to accuse me of making witchcraft entertainment, for several reasons. First Harry Potter is fantasy and presented as such, secondly witchcraft is showcased as evil. JK Rowling makes it very clear that the dark side in the Harry Potter world can and does trap people and is something that is dangerous and something you must watch out for. Thirdly the Harry Potter series has pointed me to God several times through the strong Christian theme throughout the series (love conquering death, sacrifice leading to freedom, courage, loyalty, good conquering evil). I find Harry Potter to have a lot more Christian theme then Lord of the Rings and have really enjoyed the series. Here's a good article on this http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=3507
Of course this is your blog and you have every right to state your opinions and choose what you do and don't allow your children to watch. I just thought I'd put a good word in for the books so that both side are represented :)
Suzanne, I was so disappointed to see the Harry Potter movies on last weekend. My kids have seen Harry Potter and I have to really think alot more about where I stand on it, but I don't think it has anything to do with Christmas and I'm just over the whole hype anyway. There are so many things wrong I can't even go there. But speaking of sex in movies. Have you seen a movie called The American with George Clooney? It's truly porn. It's rated R and really should have had an x rating. It made me totally sick after I watched it and I just wonder how far Hollywood is going to push us. Thanks for your post.
well said, I am going to pass it on. Thanks
Suzanne,
Thanks for your bold comments. My husband and I have been more and more aware of these issues with our children, and frankly, with each other. There is so much pressure in our culture to dismiss so many things as entertainment, as though it is a place where our moral and spiritual compass need not apply. As a result, many adults put their families and marriages at risk, over-estimating their ability to stand in the face of such temptations. I applaud you for taking a stand and being willing to face the inevitable criticism.
I read a great book recently that you might enjoy called: A Landscape of Dragons: The Battle for You Child's Imagination. Probably the best book I have ever read on parenting in general, but specifically in the area of being discerning about entertainment. It's excellent and very thoughtful.
My husband and I are waiting for a referral for our baby boy from Uganda! We're first on the list, so we expect it to be very soon. We live in the Nashville area and are friends of Robert and Jennetta Jones. (I work at New Hope Academy) Without hearing your story through them we never would have known to pursue Ugandan adoption. Thank you so much for the witness of your life.
Blessings!
Very true!!! Couldn't said it better!
Thank you for saying all of this! Could not agree more.
All I've got to say is AMEN!!!!!
Merry Christmas and may God continue to bless you all this new year!
T H A N K Y O U ! :)
Very well said.
Thank you so much for this! Sometimes I feel like a freak and I guess I am. My oldest son is in 7th grade and I feel like I send him to battle everyday at his middle school. We had a conversation this week and he was just saying how hard it can be at school sometimes because he really does take a stand for what God calls us to represent. Sometimes even among Christian friends it is hard, especially at his age, but I thank God for his faith and his willingness to stand firm. I just reminded him that we are "aliens in a foreign land. This is not our home."
It is encouraging to realize there are other moms being "uncool" too. Thanks!
Suzanne, thank you so much for this post. A few weeks before I came to the US, a church in our village started their sunday services, only to find that a little boy had been sacrificed on their altar the night before. All of our kids have pierced ears, and we are going to have to pierce even the twins' ears in order to protect them. This stuff is real and people need to know it. Thank you!
Think you are just as wise and wonderful as ever! :) Thanks Suzanne, great post!
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