The Hunger Games

Unless you are living under a rock or simply do not keep up with anything in the outside world, you cannot avoid the new craze, "The Hunger Games." I have finished the trilogy and I still cannot decide how I feel about them. I liked the books but I did not enjoy the books. The concept was interesting but it was very dark. After reading the first one, I prayed for three weeks before letting Andrew read it. I had bad dreams after reading them and slept restlessly. I caved a bit once I found out that 2 of his best friends had read it. I will admit, it was a bit against my better judgement but I thought, "What can it hurt?" He, much like me, became obsessed. Like I said, it's not that they are great books, they are captivating.

The "What can it hurt?" has come back to bite me. My sweet friend Becky brought up the verse, "Whatever is pure, whatever is..." (Philippians 4:8) and asked if the book met the standards. No, it does not. I actually read the books against my better judgment. I have not read a book that is not Christian based in about 9 years and there is a reason for that. It seeps in. I would rather the good seep in, not the bad. But I wanted to know what the big craze was about. The problem is, I am an adult. Andrew is not. He is a 12 yr. old boy already fighting so much. He read a book that rationalized lying, killing, stealing, disobedience, disrespect, and drunkenness. There is not an ounce of morality or value in these books. While I can tell myself that I read it for entertainment purposes, I am fooling myself. That's like saying you're just listening to the beat and not the words of the song. whatever.

The problem? Andrew is now begging to read the 2nd & 3rd book. I am holding him off right now. I told him this week our focus needs to be completely Christ centered. I then asked him to pray about it. What bothers me most is that he ask every day. I think it's more of an obsession than a liking. I have seen a bit of attitude behind the question of "Why?" Some people would wonder what the harm is. The harm is that my sons values and morals are at stake. Am I being extreme? I don't believe that I am. It always starts out small then grows from there. You start allowing a little bit more each time and then it (whatever the it is) is so far out of control, you wonder how you got there. Then you realize it started with something small, such a reading a book and obsessing over it.

We did take Andrew to see the movie. For some reason, the movie did not bother me near as much as the book. Maybe it's because we are used to violence on television and we have become desensitized? That's how we rationalized it. His video games are more violent...hmm....

As I write this, I am still at odds of what to do. The mom in me that wants to make my child happy wants to let him read the book and just forget about my misgivings. The mom in me that knows what is best tells me that I need to listen to God's words on this subject and follow His prompting. So please pray for me, for us, that we make the right decision and that Andrew understands the why behind the answer.

I do want to leave you with one thought..Eric and I were talking the other night and I was telling him why I had such a problem with the video games they play. Like I said above, it starts with something small. The Hunger Games is all about a gruesome reality show featuring kids killing kids.(against their own will but they must because it's the law) The people watch it for entertaining. The thought of that disgusts you. But we allow our child to play a video game in which he gets more points by killing people on the screen. Yes it's on the screen but for how long? Our grandparents are horrified by what our kids do for the sake of entertainment. What will the next generation think of?