In this devotional‑style podcast, M.t. Clark opens with a description of an October photograph featuring a neighbor’s mangy cat, a barn, and pumpkins, using the cat as a visual metaphor for the horror‑movie archetype “General Woundwort.” He reflects on his long‑standing love of Halloween and horror media, but explains how his growing understanding of spiritual warfare, the reality of evil, and biblical truth has made him more discerning about such entertainment. Clark critiques contemporary true‑crime and horror series—particularly Netflix’s Dahmer: Monster – The Jeffrey Dahmer Story and the film My Friend Dahmer—and shares personal statistics about his own consumption of serial‑killer media before and after becoming a Christian. He cites psychological research (psychology.com) that links exposure to screen violence with increased aggression, fear, desensitization, and a heightened appetite for violence, arguing that without a biblical worldview these effects can be spiritually harmful. Drawing on biblical doctrine, Bonhoeffer’s commentary on the Beatitudes, and GotQuestions.org articles about Satan’s influence, Clark urges listeners to recognize the spiritual reality behind media violence, to prioritize discernment, and to use the Holy Spirit’s conviction as a guide. He offers practical resources (mtforchrist.org, blog links to Bonhoeffer, GotQuestions, psychology.com) and concludes with a prayer asking God for wisdom, discernment, and a deeper walk with Christ, encouraging believers to replace a desire for darkness with a pursuit of light.
Chapters
To see today's photo, go to mt4christ.org or follow me, M.t. Clark, on Facebook or Twitter. Good morning. Today's photo of my neighbor's mangy cat driveway and rustic barn with pumpkins adorning the pathway to their home comes to us from yours truly as I decided to capture a candid of my neighbor's cat as I departed my countryside home on October 2nd. Thinking this is the cat that hisses at you at the creepy place in a horror movie. Um, but seriously, okay, I did, I did think that, but my neighbor's cat, um, may look a little feral and untrustworthy. While he may look a little feral and untrustworthy, I can attest to the fact that he is quite, actually quite friendly, even though his outer appearance with his matted fur and damaged ear make him look like the feline equivalent equivalent of General Woundwort from the 1978 animated classic Watership Down, which is available to stream on HBO and, uh, and HBO Max and YouTube. Okay, the, the cat doesn't look that bad. General Woundwort still creeps me out. Who knew that bunnies could be so vicious? Anyway, I, I decided to share today's photo because I thought that The cat, the barn, and those pumpkins were a good visual representation of the month of October, autumn, and the harvest season. Autumn is my favorite season, and October is in the heart of it as the fall foliage changes and people begin to decorate their homes for Halloween. I was and am still a fan of Halloween, um, and horror movies, but I have to admit that As I have grown in my knowledge and experience of the reality of spiritual warfare, the spiritual forces of darkness, the total depravity of man, and how it all ties to together and results in suffering and the evil that men do, I am less enamored with the macabre as I used to be and have increasingly grown in my sensitivity to the spiritual discernment and no longer see these dark forms of entertainment as harmless. Ironically, as I have grown more sensitive to what I will allow to put in front of my eyes and less tolerant of the things I can stomach, the horror genre and society in general has become more desensitized to what disturbing images, subject matters, and themes can be offered up as entertainment. One of the latest evidences of this trend is the Netflix series Dahmer: Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, starring Evan Peters. And recalling the details of Dahmer's grisly crimes, I have to wonder why anyone would watch this show. But in my limited research this morning, I realized that I was a huge consumer of and reason for the successes, uh, of shows like this. There was one article online that presented a list of of the 26 best shows about serial killers. 26. I am somewhat ashamed to admit that of the 26 shows, I had watched 9 of them in the years before and after I came to Christ. I also have to— I have to admit that I did watch the 2017 film My Friend Dahmer, which was a memoir of one of Dahmer's childhood friends, graphic novelist Jack Durf Back, Backderf, uh, that presented scenes from Dahmer's life before his murders that highlighted, uh, the serial killer's inner demons, his victimization at the hands of school bullies, and the neglect by the adults in his life. The film concludes with the victim of abuse and neglect becoming a murderer. But Backderf, the author of the, uh, of the book, was clear in his comments regarding his memoir that he in no way sought to justify or excuse Dahmer for his evil actions, but was only presenting his recollections of what happened in Dahmer's life prior to his crimes to show how evil doesn't necessarily just happen, that often atrocities have a backstory rooted in abuse, and points to the cycle of the abused becoming abusers and even kill— or even killers. My education in biblical studies and Christian counseling, along with my training as a Community Freedom Ministry associate Freedom in Christ Ministries helps me to see these crimes and these macabre forms of entertainment in a new light that makes them less palatable. In the reality of serial killers, while society and our justice system should never excuse killers with a defense for demonic possession, demonization, or demonic oppression, we should consider that spiritual forces of darkness could play a role in the violence and grisly crimes we see. The Bible describes the world as being under the sway of the evil one. I am sharing a link to an article on GodQuestions.org that briefly touches on the subjects and provides the scriptures that back it up. So, but so what's my point? I guess my point is that we, as we go further into the month of October, many of us may feel like I did that we want a good scare. And while I think that we should all be free to choose to do that, I think we should be aware of the spiritual realities of the world and be highly concerned for our friends and family that don't know about the principles of spiritual warfare or don't have a covenant relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ that enjoy these dark forms of entertainment. I feel that horror movies can be entertaining and educational, but we should try to instruct others in the supremacy of God over evil and be genuinely concerned about people that don't have faith in Christ and isolate and watch violent or horrific films or TV shows. According to an article on psychology.com, in thousands of scientific studies over the last 6 decades, researchers have documented 4 basic negative effects from exposure to screen violence, which include increased aggression, increased fear, desensitization, and desensitization to real life or screen— and screen violence, and an increased appetite for violence on or and off screen. Um, none of those effects sound very good, and without a biblical basis of wisdom concerning evil, sin, the spiritual forces of darkness, and the God who stands above it our loved ones could suffer from negative mental, emotional, and spiritual consequences as our society will continue to only grow darker. So we need to know the truth that God is sovereign, he is in control, and that he provides eternal security and spiritual safety and power to those who put their faith in Christ. Jesus reconciles us to God and provides us with a share of his spiritual power and authority to confront and confound the works of the devil. As Christians, we are to shun what is evil and to think upon what is good. We also have freedom. So, as Christians, we may choose to watch a horror movie, but if we do, we should do it in the context of our identity in Christ and be discerning of what we watch and not quench the Holy Spirit in us if he convicts us to pull the plug and not persist in our unwholesome habits in the name of tradition or nostalgia. As exposure to violent media has the effect of desensitizing us and may lead to negative actions, our exposure to the word of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit will oppositely sensitize us to what is evil and increasingly draw us to do good. Even though I am still a horror fan, I guess, I am a lot more discerning about what I will watch, as the Holy Spirit increasingly draws me away from the things that do not edify my spirit. And quite frankly, as I have continued to walk in the Spirit, I have a lot less desire to watch or listen to most secular forms of entertainment, whether spooky or not, because my intense love of the Lord causes me to want to use what time I have left in this life wisely, to pursue things that will build me up rather than just occupy a few hours and leave me with a thrill or a chill but nothing more. So as we go further into October and this— and the nostalgia and pageantry that surrounds Halloween, keep walking and talking with God and follow where he leads. When you walk with him, you may begin to discover that the desire to dabble in darkness is replaced with the conviction to live in the light. Um, well, normally I share a Bible verse at this point, but it is Saturday and it took a lot of time to compose just that above post. So we're going to just continue and say that we invite you to read the Bible on your own, as I have this morning. Um, and, um Uh, as always, we invite you to go to mtforchrist.org where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. And, um, today we continue sharing from Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Discipleship, also known as The Cost of Discipleship. And today we continue in chapter 6, which is on the Sermon on the Mount. Them in Chapter 5, the Beatitudes, as we continue with the Bonhoeffer section on Blessed are the Poor in Spirit. So if you want to see what Bonhoeffer's commentary is on that particular beatitude, go to mtforchrist.org and check that out. And if you want, like I said, I did, I did share a link on the blog today for an article on psychology.com that shares that information about, "Does media violence breed real-life killing?" And also, I shared that there's a link from GotQuestions.org on Satan being the god of this world. So, if you want scripture, there is scripture to check out on the blog today. You just have to click through to that GotQuestions.org, and you'll see. The scriptural basis for the things we say about Satan being the god of this world. You know, we don't mean to speak on our own wisdom ever. We always point to the wisdom of the Word of God. And as unwise as it might be to view horror movies, I do so usually in the context of, you know, who I am in Christ at all times. And Quite frankly, sometimes I just, you know, I'll start something and sure enough that Holy Spirit conviction will come and go, what am I doing? What am I watching? Let's turn this off. You know, if it's— yeah, and that's happened more than once. And like I said, increasingly my desires are just to pursue the things of the Lord with how I entertain myself. And that's how we should, you know, try to find our circumstantial happiness. Is in pursuing the Lord because it's, you know, will foster our feelings of joy, build the Spirit, the Spirit's gift of joy in our life, that we can rejoice in our relationship with God and we don't need to find comfort in other things, you know, extreme forms of entertainment. So I don't want to sound like Marge Simpson, so, but be wise and discerning in terms of, you know, what you allow your children to watch and what you watch. And, you know, we should really be concerned, you know, as we walk out there in a secular world, we'll see people with t-shirts or, you know, things that highlight these horror films. And, um, you know, you really have to be concerned that, that someone's identifying you know, with these, these things, um, you know, instead of drawing their identity from Christ and the Word of God, they're drawing their identity from some movie that highlights violence and, uh, wickedness. And, you know, maybe I'm just getting sensitive, uh, but, uh, it just— it's— it really pains my soul to see it. Because they don't know who they are, they don't know who they've been made to be, you know, as being made in the image of God. They're not pursuing who they are. Instead, they're manufacturing an identity on their own, and they can do that, you know, the secular world offers all kinds of ways to build up our identity, you know, from sports teams to different genres of entertainment or whatever, you know, this is what I'm into, you know. Yeah, that's, that's great. What's it have to do with the Lord? What does it have to do with your eternal destiny? Um, you know, these are the big questions that people are just avoiding through these entertainments. And that's how pervasive the evil is in our society, that Satan will offer up all kinds of nice and wholesome and good things too, that lead you away from the Lord. You know, I just watch movies about puppies. Well, that's great. Um, so, so what do you love? I love puppies. I love dogs. Oh, okay. Um, you go to church? Do you know the Lord? No, I, I just go to the dog show on the weekends, and you know, I'm really into dogs. That's what it's all about. All dogs go to heaven is the only theological thing I can think of. What? So we might be concerned, you know, and that's just it. Anything that draws us away from the Lord, anything, no matter how wholesome or good or, you know, malicious and evil it might seem, you know, these things aren't good for us. So we have to be wise and discerning that every one of us is being afflicted by the enemy. Anything that would draw us away from the Lord and his purposes for us is, you know, is fine with the enemy, but we encourage people to follow Christ because of the joy and the peace that comes from a relationship with the Lord that is born out of the fact that we have eternal security and we have a relationship with our Heavenly Father who will never leave us or forsake us. So we foster that, we encourage that. That's what this blog is supposed to be about. This is what this podcast is supposed to be about, is to encourage people to follow the Lord, to know the truth, and to share it, and to live it. And, um, that's what we're doing here today. Um, I hope you forgive me for not sharing a Bible verse, uh, but, uh, yeah, as I see it's 8 o'clock, I'm like, yikes, I gotta go. I don't want to be isolated in a room when my, my wife is in the other room. And, uh, you know, we have— we can spend time together. That's another thing, you know. So anyway, let's pray. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. Lord, we just thank you for your presence in our lives that would draw us to, to pursue the good things and to edify our spirits and to build ourselves up and in the most holy faith. Lord, we pray for the people listening today to be wise and discerning, uh, into things they pursue. And Lord, if they're listening to this podcast, you know, they're— they got a heart for you, um, because it's all about following you, Lord. And we just pray for them today that you come alongside their prayer requests, Lord. Bless them with your divine grace. And Lord, as we always pray, Would you please open our eyes to the things you want us to see? Reveal the truth to us, even if it's hard and it means we might have to forsake some of the things that we've always liked. Um, show us the truth, Lord, because we'd want to be right with you, um, more than anything. And show us the things you want us to see and lead us into the things you want us to do on this Saturday in October. Um, Lord, we thank you, we praise you, and we love you. And we pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.
