The matter of recreation is never a problem to a consecrated person. Anyone who is not absolute in his consecration has a problem with recreation. After the matter of consecration is settled, we can speak about the purpose of recreation.

Recreation is not a problem at all to those who are consecrated, but there are other people in our family. We have children, and we also have brothers and sisters. We speak of the matter of recreation because we want to lead our family in the proper direction. What kind of recreation should parents permit for their children? What recreation is considered proper as far as Christians are concerned? In order to preserve our family for the Lord, we have to pay attention to the matter of recreation.

Man has a need for recreation. Many people are very busy with their schedules. If they do not have some kind of diversion, it is easy for them to become sick; their health can quickly deteriorate. The basic principle of recreation is that it should offer some diversion in our life. This is especially necessary for the young ones.

We must be clear that man has a need for diversion, but he does not have a need for indulgence. He has a need for respite, but he does not have a need for his whole life to revolve around respite. All things are lawful, but not all things are expedient. All things are lawful for us, but we will not be brought under the power of anything. If we indulge in something day and night, it means that we are enslaved by that thing. It is a great mistake to indulge in something this way.

A Christian can find recreation in four things: (1) rest, (2) a change in work, (3) hobbies, and (4) games. The best recreation for a Christian is rest. When the Lord Jesus and His disciples became tired from their work, He told the disciples, “Come by yourselves privately to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mark 6:31). Often a change in place, a solitary place in the hills or by a river, affords a person the necessary relief from his tiredness.

If a person feels tired after doing the same work for too long, he can do something else after a while. Perhaps he sits down to work most of the time. He can give himself a break by working in a standing position once in a while. Perhaps he works with his mind most of the time. He can divert himself by doing some physical work. The principle of recreation is diversion. As long as we have a change in the kind of work we do, we have the necessary break we need.

The Christian life has room for some proper hobbies. Some saints like to take photographs. Some like music; they may write some songs and play them on the piano or guitar. Some like calligraphy. Some like to collect stamps. Any recreation that affords proper diversion without putting one under its bondage is a lawful recreation. However, we are against anything that controls a person's life. It has to be something that a person can pick up and drop at will.

Parents must teach their children to have proper recreation. They must not drive their children to improper recreation by failing to provide them with the proper kind. Many parents are too strict and have ruined their children this way. Their homes are like institutions rather than homes. As a result, the children sneak away from home to engage in improper recreation. If we deprive them of their right to play, they will be bored and restless at home, and they will sneak away to do things behind our back.

There are many games, such as chess, ball games, and horse-riding, which can be considered proper activities, even though they contain the element of winning and losing. The element of winning and losing is related to skill. It is all right for children to engage in table-tennis, basketball, volleyball, riding, or chess. All these are proper activities and do not involve any sin. Parents should be generous toward these matters and should guide their children to the proper recreation.

The purpose of recreation is to enhance our work. Recreation has a purpose; it is not recreation for the sake of recreation. I do not engage in a ball game because I love ball games. I play because I want to work better. I do not sleep because I love to sleep but because I can work better after I sleep. I plant flowers not for the sake of planting flowers but so that I can work better after my gardening diversion. All these things are for the purpose of enhancing our work. They must help us to serve God better.

Sometimes a person may take a respite in a rural place, as the Lord Jesus did, or travel and tour a little. This is good. He may play games with his children at home as well. These activities are not entanglements; they are for the purpose of helping a person in his work. If an activity results in the lowering of one's performance, it is in the wrong principle. A recreation must always enhance a person's work. One should jog, garden, or play for while. We do not promote these things, but we acquiesce in them.

All recreation must involve skill. It must not involve games of chance or gambling. There are two kinds of recreation: One involves skill, and the other involves chance or gambling. A Christian must not engage in any kind of gambling. To hope that chance will be on one's side is wrong. Billiards involves skill. When money is involved, it is wrong; it becomes a kind of gambling.

We have a certain recreation because we have a certain need. We should not have any recreation without having the need for it. Many saints are so busy that they think they have no need for recreation. Others have nothing to do all day long, and they think about recreation all the time. The principle is always to live for the lord and to recognize that all our time is His.

All recreation must match one's fitness. We are here to improve our body. If a certain kind of recreation damages our body, something is wrong with that recreation. I hope we will realize that our body is the Lord's. Our diversion is for the Lord, Our not having a diversion is also for the Lord. We do not do anything for ourselves. If we engage in some kind of diversion, we must remember that it is for the Lord. Also, if we forfeit diversion, we must remember that we are doing it for the Lord.

Recreation has to do not only with physical fitness but also with one's disposition. When a person is doing what he likes to do, he tends to be more mentally relaxed and psychologically happy. Doing something that you do not enjoy doing is a labor; it is not a recreation. You must choose the kind of recreation that matches your disposition so that it will restore your physical strength. If you choose something which goes against your disposition, you will feel tired and will not want to continue with it.

We do not want to be a stumbling block to others even in the matter of recreation. We live for the Lord as well as for the saints; we do not live for ourselves. We must not care just for ourselves and neglect others. We must consider what the weak ones will think about the many things that we do. The Lord did not say that we should not be a stumbling block to the strong. In the light of this principle, we should not engage in any recreation that will stumble a brother.