- David Williams: [reading Mr. Odum's book] The media impacts your life in a greater way than you ever realize. I'll give you an example. Have you ever noticed the commercials on television? When the commercials come on do you stop what you're doing and shout, "Shh. Be quiet. The commercials are on. I wanna watch them." Well of course not. When the commercials come on, you relax, get something to eat, take a break, but pay very little attention to them. Yet advertisers are paying big money for these commercials. So the question you have to ask yourself is this: why would an advertiser pay a great deal of money to air a commercial on television that most people don't really watch? The answer is simple: because they know how much television influences lives and if they commercials that we supposedly do not watch influence our life, what do you think happens with the programs we do watch?
- Emeka Odum: Let's say I go to your church and preach the morning sermon. Halfway through the sermon I curse the name of Jesus, or as some would say, I use the Lord's name in vain. Will that not wake up your congregation? So then I preach a little more and then I curse His name again. How would they react to that? And then I preach a little more and I curse His name again. Would the people not be upset? Then I bring up a young couple on the platform and they start to kiss and take their clothes off, right there, in church, on a Sunday morning. How long do you think your congregation will allow this to go on? Would they not say, "This is most awful thing, to curse the name of Jesus in church? And to have them take off their clothes here in front of everyone? Would they not be appalled? Would they not yell out "Stop it! You cannot do this in this place."? But yet, I say 12 hours earlier, on Saturday night, in a movie theater, when this exact same thing occurs, it is entertainment? My friend, something is wrong. We must make up our mind. It is either entertainment Saturday night in the theater and entertainment Sunday morning in church, or it is most sinful Sunday morning in church *and* most sinful Saturday night in the theater. This is why I say the movie theater is the most powerful church in America. It's the only place where Christians go to hear the name of Jesus Christ used as a swear word, and to watch nakedness, and yet pay their money to be entertained.
- David Williams: I never thought of it like that before.
- Emeka Odum: I say this trembling, David: Most people go to church in America know not Jesus. The Bible says in the last days men have become lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God. Is this not the case in America now? Ask yourself, would I go to the movie theater to hear my name cursed? Then why go to the theater to hear His name cursed? David, would you go to the theater to see your daughter naked on the screen? So why go see someone else's daughter naked on the screen? It is great sinfulness in the eyes of God.
- Ruben: In that book, David was telling me, Mr. Odum thinks that for most people, entertainment is their god, and not Jesus, and that there's a quick test that we could take.
- Cindy: W-what type of test?
- Ruben: He said for one week don't watch any movies, or television, don't listen to the radio or any music. Don't even get on the internet or read magazines or newspapers. In other words, completely eliminate all types of media and worldly of entertainment from your life for one week.
- Cindy: Okay?
- Ruben: And then, the next week, go about using the media like you normally would, but this time you don't pray, you don't go to church, you don't read the Bible. You don't even speak about the Lord to anyone, and do that for one week.
- Cindy: Okay.
- Ruben: Now here's the test question: after those two weeks, ask yourself, and be completely honest: What did you miss more?