I encourage you to put this thread on Christian Game Developers forum too at:
www.christiandevs.com
But what comes to actual topic, this is a thing i have been thinking sometimes too, and here are some more or less random thoughts.
First of all the negative view to FPS.
In bible it says somewhere about: "Guard what your eyes see". (couldnt find that verse, since "eye" and "see" even together gave too many hits to look them all through when im not sure those words were even used on that place.
Anyway. Earthly basis to this thing we can look at one way to see how brains work.
We can say that there flows stream of energy on our brains that keeps going around and around in our conscious mind until it settles down to our memory.
Some keep repeating Mantras. Idea is to empty your mind from everything else but that mantra. Idea is that when you keep filling that flowing energy with only that mantra, then as the old stuff settles down to memory and subconscious, your conscious mind weill be full of that mantra only. So basically you emptied your mind from everything else but that mantra.
So when ever we watch a movie, it starts whirling around in our mind until it settles down to memory. And same with FPS. You can have concrete example of this by playing some FPS for three days in a row right from waking up till you go to sleep. When you close your eyes, you will still keep seeing that FPS, since its so heavily occupied your mind.
Secondly, Subconsciousness doesnt understand any difference between true happening or imaginations. If you imagine killing someone, your subconsciousness thinks that is what really happened.
And filling your subconsciousness with stuff like that, is not good. SInce subconsciousness is part of your decision making process.
Therefore taking both this brain working, as well as bible places referring to keep our eyes away from bad stuff, i would argue that in perfect Godly world, FPS-games wouldnt exist.
BUT,
We are not living in a perfect world. We are either are not perfect. While i am pretty sure that we basically should aim at getting away from FPS-games (and many other stuff too, like movies), i would also take much more relaxed approach to this all.
Actaully the whole question of What is right, what is wrong is somewhat deceitful. For in some sense it doesnt even matter what is right and wrong, what is imortant is not if we do right or wrong, but that we get closer to Jesus.
Concentrate rather getting closer to Jesus than doing right. Being closer to Jesus will automatically also make you do right. Since if all you do is aim to be with Jesus all the time, then i think you propably rather pick your bible or start praying that start playing FPS just for fun.
But as i mentioned, we are not perfect, and each has his own battles. Some play FPS, some watch movies, and i do them both (for my shame).
So if you now are spending your time watching movies or playing or whatever, while at same time trying to get closer to Jesus to get rid of them, you can also concentrate on thinking How you could use them to glorify the Kingdom.
For many will never get to the point that they would for example abandon FPSes or stop watching movies, but God knows that. Not everyone will become the holiest thing or even close to it, and God knows it.
Its not like if you are on a normal job, that that is necessarily Gods greatest plan to you, but despite that, God does many great things through people in their jobs.
Take for example Smith Wigglesworth. I Doubt it was Gods best plan in his life that he would be doing Plummering, but he did anyway. And he converted whole loads of hes clients while fixing those pipes.
We re not perfect, and God has to deal with that, so he uses our less holy things for hes plans too.
So therefore when you play those FPSes, think how you could glorify kingdom.
I hace actually been thinking this thing a lot that could it be used as effective method for preaching. For example in my own experience sometimes people might start talking of some religious topic on games chat, and thats one place where you can give some thoughts.
I remember one time one young guy was telling that he was only shortly there since he needed to go to church with his parents soon (it was sunday). So everyone else started talking in way of "What a waste time", "Sorry for you man", "Ha! man youre being fooled", etc.
And that 11 - 12 year old what ever didnt actually say it in way that he had been disappointed, but those comments, they made him think he wanted to belong to the rest of the guys and felt that church thing was not cool thing and had maybe lost even his date in the end result, but luckily he was in same Army Group (same as clan) in that game as me, and i was there. So i started defending him very strongly about going to church saying its a good thing, and couple of times after that i taught him some simple theology like if theres nothing, then theres not even the rule that something could come from nothing, and now, 5 years later, hes still believer. Maybe not one of those who arer going to reap much, if at all, but anyway at least on his way to heaven basically, or at least so it seems, and even if he wouldnt be, hes anyway having the basic faith which makes it easier for someone else to continue the job or take him to some youth group or something.
I have couple of other times tried to have some theology conversation when opponent have came and so on, but so far it would seem they have been pretty much in vain.
So far it would seem that most important have been keeping loud voice that also the cool guys follow Jesus.
What i mean by this is that theres lots of 10+ players playing this game im playing too, then there are these bit older guys like me, and all those kids look at us experienced players like cool guys and especially when they see that were already adults and having maybe even family and all. So when some usually teenagers start arguing against Godly things, its imporatnt that we older cool guys show our support so they feel its a cool thing to Believe in Jesus and theres nothing wrong with it and defend them.
I have been wishing to do some serious teaching and converting while playing, but so far i havent been succesful on that, and i have also been wondering even being the defender of the faith is important too, that is it really worth it anyway? That would i maybe achieve more if i did something else instead?
But this topic is basically interesting and I personally am interested especially the practical experiences and strategies on how to actually achieve something Godly out of these. And not only FPS but other type of games too, for i think theres huge chance for spreading the word there in the Multiplayer games that no one have discovered yet.
