Level UP

If you’ve ever stood in a doorway calling, “Dinner’s ready!” only to hear a distant “Coming… after this match!” and then watched the sun set, the food get cold, and your patience evaporate, welcome to the club. You’ve met the invisible force that can warp time itself: video games. Gamers don’t have clocks. They have quests, rounds, raids, and boss battles. A gamer can sit down “just to play for 30 minutes” and suddenly emerge three hours later like they’ve been abducted by friendly aliens who speak only in controller clicks and headset chatter. And here’s the kicker: they’re not being lazy or defiant. They’re caught in one of the most brilliantly designed time vacuums on Earth. Even more so that your Facebook feed. Video games are built to pull you in. It’s not in a manipulative, villainous way, but in a “this is incredibly fun and rewarding” kind of way. Game designers know exactly how to keep brains buzzing: Clear goals and instant rewards. Finish a quest, get loot. Score a goal, ge...

 You’ve probably asked it before: “Are you still playing that game?”  Maybe you’ve even muttered it under your breath when your child, grandchild, or even your spouse promised they’d be at dinner in “fifteen minutes” and then an hour later, you peek at them and they’re still glued to the screen. Much like the final 2 minutes of a close Super Bowl, it seems like the game will never end. Yeah, they say “2 minutes” but you’re thinking “2 minutes, my eye.” If you’ve felt ignored, frustrated, or even a little jealous of a glowing monitor, you’re not alone. Families everywhere are discovering that gaming, while fun for the player, can create tension for those who don’t fully understand the time commitment, or even the value. To someone spectating from the outside with their face pressed up against the glass, gaming can look like endless mindless button-mashing or wasted hours doing nothing of value. But to the gamer, it’s often so much more. Games bring community, teamwork, challeng...

If you’re a parent, you’ve probably asked yourself at least once: “How many hours can a human being spend on Fortnite before they turn into a couch cushion?” I hate to break it to you, but gaming isn’t going anywhere. In fact, it’s the largest entertainment industry on the planet. Your kids’ favorite worlds aren’t distractions from real life; they’re where friendships are forged, challenges are faced, and get this: even where God can show up. That’s right: video games, gaming, and esports aren’t barriers to God. They can actually be bridges. For both you and your kids. (Yeah, I saw your jaw drop.) Every parent knows the daily grind: laundry piles, homework checks, dishes after dinner, chauffeuring kids from one activity to another. Gamers know it as XP farming, loot hunting, and climbing ranked ladders. But, what if you saw your child’s grind in gaming as a way to talk about the grind of faith? Scripture calls us to a steady, daily practice with things like reading God’s Word, prayer,...