Day 13 — Games

“Rejoice, O young man, while you are young, and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and in the sight of your eyes, but know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.”

— Ecclesiastes 11:9 (BSB)

Some of the best memories of being young involve playing something. Football in a dusty street until it’s too dark to see the ball. Cards or carrom or ludo with your cousins at a family gathering. A late-night match online with friends who live in three different countries, everyone shouting into their headsets.

The Bible isn’t against any of that. Today’s verse, written to the young, begins with enjoy it: “let your heart be glad in the days of your youth.” When the prophet Zechariah described the city God would one day restore, part of the picture was this: “the streets of the city will be filled with boys and girls playing there.” Play isn’t a waste of a human life. God likes it.

But the same verse finishes with a sentence that doesn’t let us switch our brains off: “know that for all these things God will bring you to judgment.” That isn’t a threat designed to spoil the fun. It’s a reminder that your time, your heart and your choices matter, even when you’re “just playing.” God cares about the whole of you, including the hours you spend with a controller or a phone in your hand.

So games are good, and you’re accountable for how you play them. Here are some honest questions to ask.

Is it taking time that belongs to something else? “One more match” is a very old trick. Notice what your gaming pushes out: homework, family, church, friends you could see in person, time with God.

What is it doing to my temper? Some of the angriest words people ever type are typed in voice chat after a lost round. If you’re cursing at teammates or smashing things, the game has stopped serving you.

Is it taking my money? Many games are free to download and designed to make you pay a little at a time, and loot boxes and spins work very much like gambling. Decide your limits before you’re in the moment, and never spend money that isn’t yours.

Who am I meeting? Online games are full of strangers, and most are just players. But if anyone asks for personal details or pictures, tries to move you to a private chat, or offers you gifts, tell a parent or trusted adult. That’s not overreacting; it’s wisdom.

Am I hiding in it? Sometimes we play not for fun but to escape something painful at home or inside us. If that’s you, games can’t fix it. Talk to someone who can help.

Paul wrote, “whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all to the glory of God.” Whatever includes playing. You can play to the glory of God: by playing fair, being kind to the new player, losing without sulking, winning without gloating, and stopping when you said you would. A game played like that isn’t time away from God. It’s one more place to walk with Him.

Think about it: Do you run your gaming, or does it run you? Which of the questions above was the hardest to answer honestly?

Try this: Before you play next, decide how long and how much (time and money) and tell someone. Then stop when you said you would, and notice how it feels.

Go deeper: Growing in Wisdom — a practical guide for students that treats time, money and talents as things God has entrusted to us, calling each day “a deposit from God” and even small pocket money “a test of stewardship”. Start with chapter 14, “Managing Money, Time, and Talents”.

Lord, thank You for fun, for games, for friends to play with and for the joy of being young. Help me enjoy these things without being ruled by them. Guard my temper, my time and my money, and keep me safe online. Let even the way I play show that I belong to You. In Jesus’ name, Amen.