Contemplation...

(Sorry in advance for the huge lettering at the end of this blog, I tried to change it and it didn't work.. I don't know what I did wrong.)

Well, I have been doing a lot of thinking.. In the last month, I have found it so easy to complain. Complain about being sick, about not seeing anyone, about being in bed all day long. Just complaining. This morning it struck me. Why am I am so discontent, when God is giving us this huge blessing? When Chris and I got married, we knew we wanted to have a large family. To have lots of kids running around. True, we thought it would happen when we were felt old enough, but God saw the desire of our hearts, and is fulfilling it. So, why complain?

It makes me wonder though, how many times do I act this same way, God blesses my life, and all I can think of is how it has inconvenienced me. The Bible teaches me to be content in all things. So, today I have decided to spend the rest of this time that I am sick, thanking God for the miracle that He is creating inside of me, and to be content with the upset stomach, and the change of plans. Sometimes the things that God teaches me are so elementary, and I feel like I should have mastered this long ago, but He is patient.

On a different note, I have been doing a lot of thinking about what media is going to be appropriate for our child to be exposed to. Most people have the idea that kids movies are just that, for kids. I have been watching lots of kids movies lately, and I don't know that I consider them good for our baby to watch... (first of all, the baby wont be watching TV.. I mean, why does a baby need to watch TV?) But when they get older.

I watched the classic Disney movie Aladdin the other day. And I can't say that I was real impressed. We meet Aladdin as he is running away from the authorities, because he has stolen from the marketplace. The whole time he is running away, he sings about how the world is his.. (find that one in the Bible) And the authorities are big and mean, and the idea is that they are the bad guys. So right off, in the first scene of this "wholesome" movie, we are taught that the thief is the good guy, and the authority is bad, or evil. Speaking of authority, Jasmine, the Sultan's daughter is disobedient to her father. He wants her to choose a prince and settle down. She has a very heated, "you are not going to decide my life for me" conversation with him, and sneaks out of the palace, which is how she meets our "hero" Complete disrespect for parental authority. It seems to tell kids, if you think your parents are wrong, do it your way and soon they will see you are right and come apologize to you. Jasmine also lies to Aladdin about being a princess. Not exactly what I want my kids to see. Throughout the movie we are confronted with Aladdin lying, and stealing more and more, and he does not get reprimanded for his behaviour. So that is what I don't like about the "good" guys.. The bad guys on the other hand are just that.. Bad. It is very important to teach a child the difference between good and bad. In this particular movie, the line is so blurry. The main bad guy, name Japhar, is a sorcerer. He uses magic potions, and a very obvious evil will do get what he wants. There was to much magic used for my liking, but at least it was all portrayed as bad.. Or was it? Because Aladdin also has magic, and its good. Aladdin meets a genie in a lamp that grants him 3 wishes. The genie is funny, and so is portrayed as good. Aladdin wishes that he is a prince, so the genie turns him into Prince Alli, and he heads back to go see Jasmine, where he again lies to her about who he really is. Also, the genie tells Aladdin that his biggest wish is to be free so he answers to no one. Let me ask you, does this kind of freedom exist? No, so there is this misconception that if only you didn't have authority, life would be wonderful. So, in this movie for kids we have stealing and lying is okay, if you feel like you really need to, authority is bad, there is good magic and bad magic, and, your parents probably don't know what is good for you, so you should show them. And that is just the major things. Jasmine wears a dress that if my daughter came home in, I would have her hide, and the evil parrot utters a few almost swear words. (What the hel- I mean heck) is the one that I remember Is this really what I want to teach my kids? So, if we can not even trust good ol' disney, what can we trust to teach our children godly morals? Its really frustrating.

When I was little, I was put in a lot of really hard situations, because my dad didn't allow Disney movies, for a lot of the same reasons my children won't be watching Aladdin. When I went over to friends houses, their parents always suggested a Disney movie, because they knew how sensitive my dad was to movies, and they always assumed you can't go wrong with Disney. When I would tell them I wasn't allowed to watch Disney, I always got stupid looks, and sometimes the parents even telling me that that was crazy and that I really was.. Or that I was wrong. I hated feeling like I had to defend my dad, and if I did that I would look like an idiot. I swore I would not put my kids in those uncomfortable situations. Now, I still have some of that feeling.. But on the other hand, if you can learn to stand up for what is right at that age, over something like that, its just training for when you have to do it when you are older. I don't know where we are going to draw the line. Both Chris and I decided as far as Aladdin goes, he is going to have to stay permanently banned from the Hall household.

Anyways, this got way to long,
Signing off,
Jennie