The other day I saw an advertisement that caught my eye. This ad was selling a videogame, and it said,

“Looking for a New Adventure? Start one from the comfort of your own home.”

Now first, let me say I do play video games from time to time. It isn’t typical for me, but I do understand the draw, and it can be fun. BUT I think there is something fundamentally wrong with this statement and I’m just going to say it.

If you want Adventure, you have to leave your home!

It is a lie that you can find Adventure by exploring a strange world on your PS4. It’s a desperate attempt to fulfill a core desire of men, the desire to explore. 

We all have this deep yearning. We want to know more. We need to learn how to do hard things. We have a hunger to experience new things in this world and to earn our place.

But we have seen a whole generation (or two) indoctrinated into one of the national religions of America, the church of Safety. In this new church, they obsess about how they might be cut, maimed, or injured in some way. 

Parents put excessive restrictions on their kids that keep them from experiencing hurt and discomfort. The children then develop a fear of anything that might be difficult or painful. 

Kids are in car seats until they are 17 for crying out loud! 

We wash our hands 20x a day, and we close our kids up in the house where it is safe. 

But is it safe in the house? Or are they exposed to something even more dangerous?

You CAN NOT take away men’s desire for Adventure! It is hard-wired into the soul of the male psyche. If they are not allowed to find it themselves, they will look for it in their suburban prisons. 

They explore unknown worlds through video games for countless hours. They talk trash, brag, and act tough, but they know deep inside they could never back up their words. So they stay at home and hide. Or worse, they bully helpless children online to build themselves up. 

They also look for Adventure on the computer by exploring the other unknown, SEX. These young men develop perverted attitudes about sex and how to treat women because they are learning about sex from a sexually obsessed culture that knows nothing of sacrificial love, only instant gratification.  

They should be stomping through the woods and exploring God’s wild creation. They would be better served by joining with other young men to overcome impossible odds through sporting endeavors and challenging themselves to work on a team and develop their skills and abilities. Sports are great, but many different avenues are just as healthy. Your Adventure could require hiking boots or a microscope, just explore something real. 

Learning Character and citizenship happen in community. Learning perversion, and self-absorbed behaviors happen in seclusion. Our actions can become defective because they are not done in the light and are subject to the accountability of the community.

So for you parents out there, stop worshiping at the Church of Safety, give your boy a pocket knife for his birthday, let him go hunting, play sports or push the boundaries.

God gave him this desire for Adventure, give him avenues that are healthy and Godly to fulfill these desires, or he will find unhealthy ways to find Adventure.

And you Godly fathers, put aside your responsibilities from time to time and lead your son into Adventure. You won’t regret it. Remember, Boys with scars become leaders of men.