All the Best Kid Shows on RightNow Media

This is not a moment to talk about whether TV is good or bad for your child and what the benefits and problems of screens are in the everyday life of your kid.

Your kid is going to watch TV at some point in their life. And they will LOVE it.

So rather than avoiding it all together, this is a moment where you can learn about giving them options that build them up rather than zombie them out.

There are some shows I legitimately don't let my children watch for one reason or another, and I have purposely chosen shows that expose them to TV in a way that will build a healthy view of screens and build them as disciples of Jesus. But that post is for another time.

For now, I just want to give you the EASIEST way to start using TV as a discipleship tool for JESUS rather than the culture. And that's RightNow Media.

There are probably more than a few of you who don't even know what RightNow Media is. So in a nutshell, it's a Christian streaming service that provides Bible Studies, Training & Conferences, Devotionals, and Kid's Content. They refer to themselves as "Netflix." I'd say that it is more similar to "MasterClass" or the Magnolia Network Workshops that you can only watch with a Discovery + subscription so that you too can make your home look like Chip & Joanna Gaines' (insert sad face here).

But the Kid's content is a lot more like Netflix than the rest of the site (which is AWESOME, btw and you will want to check it out too!).

Like all streaming services now a days, it requires a membership to watch the different shows and videos, but Simple Church has purchased memberships for all our members, friends and families, so that you could have all the benefit of this amazing discipleship tool for your family!

... but first, a thought about TV as a discipleship tool.

We all experience "culture." I love the analogy that culture is like water that a fish swims in: it can't necessarily define it and it isn't always aware of it, but it is constantly experiencing and being affected by the changes of the water. We're like those fish. And we have the attention span to prove it.

But the majority of culture, our world, the water we swim in and experience and are affected by, isn't Christian. Or anywhere near it. God is not glorified in every moment. And the idea that He should be and in every way and with every means, is an idea that is antithetical to today's worldly culture. (For further reading, I strongly recommend this article from John Piper.)

But what about our kids? How can we raise them and equip them to know, love, follow, and experience Jesus? What does TV have to do with it?

Well first, I don't know if you know this or not, but TV programs have historically driven culture (check out this Encyclopedia article about it). Whether you think that is a good or bad thing depends on the social or political cultural point and how TV changed it. But one universally bad thing we can all agree up is that the culture of this world has been against God since the great fall in the garden of Eden in Genesis. (In fact, that's kind of one of those ideas that's necessary in order to even accept Jesus as Savior - there is a reason the world needs saving!) And TV, as a tool used by the world, promotes a world-view where God isn't.

And sadly, that includes TV shows for Kids.

But the good news is that TV is a tool that can be used by Christians too, and there are plenty who have provided entertaining, educational, and exciting shows. The trick is you just have to put it in front of your kids and use it for what it is: a discipleship tool.

So without further ado, here are my family's top favorites on RightNow Media that your kids would like too: