What happens when our child wants to make a mistake?

We've talked extensively about how to build a hedge around your network, devices, and family. We've talked about how to assess tech health, how to decide what tech to adopt, and how to remove and replace. But now we need to go one step further, into the unthinkable: Our child is making poor choices despite our best efforts.

Now what?

Today we're going to talk about how we can lovingly step into our child's life and understand, engage, and respond to breaches of trust while keeping the focus on loving, teaching, and raising our children up in the way they should go.

Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3MapZ6v

How do I set boundaries on school devices?

I was asked this question at every talk I gave this week. You’ve got an educational device. It’s not optional. So how do you help make it safe?

Today we'll walk through how to build a hedge around your network, devices, and family, and what it looks like to apply these steps to our school devices, home school tech, and houses with older siblings.

Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3z5PONk

Do our children need social media? It might be the wrong question. There's lots of stuff we don't need but we still enjoy, and as loving parents we want to give them good gifts. So when your child asks for social media, or a smartphone (which is almost always a sideways request for social media), what do we say?

Today we'll dive into this conversation looking specifically at TikTok as our example. In our discussion we'll answer four questions about TikTok, and social media in general:

1. Do we have a hedge?
2. Is it tech safe?
3. Does it fit our family expectations?
4. Does it support my child's purpose?

What if I work in tech?

There are quite a few of you. You work at Meta, Apple, Valve, Alphabet, and Microsoft. You work in engineering and design and retail and administration. You design user interfaces and cloud computing systems and Tool Tech and Drool Tech.

Today I want to address what it means to be someone who is gifted with the time, talent and opportunity to work in the tech world. What does it mean to be a Christian in the tech space?

You’re in this space, and you’re there to be salt and light.

Show Notes:

I get asked about Roblox more than any other game right now. It makes sense. The game has 200 million monthly players and something like 75% of boys aged 9-12 in the US play this game.

I've decided to take this question and make it the ultimate opportunity to walk through what we've been talking about for the last few weeks. Today we apply the "Adopting New Tech" model and walk through the conversation as it applies to a world-leading video game.

Today we'll answer:

1. Is it safe?
2. Does it fit your family expectations (both for tech and for games)?
3. Is it a good fit for your child?

Show Notes: http://bit.ly/3yhJimj

Habits are a powerful thing. They power our little decisions effortlessly, and those little choices have major consequences. But what habits is our tech helping us build?

Today we talk with Yu-kai Chou, one of the world's foremost leaders in gamification, and discuss the benefits and potential pitfalls of behavioral design, and what it means to be a Christian in a world where some tech is designed to distract.

Video games are amazing, or at least they should be. While many video games are fun, few actually line up with the truths of the Bible. If we took Philippians 4:8 as our video games standard, very few would pass the test.

Brent Dusing wants to change that. He’s a Christian, father, and CEO of the gaming studio TruPlay Games. His goal is to create games that are fun to play and point back to truths about God.

Brent is the first to say that you don’t have to play video games, but if you do you should make sure it's something that is good for your heart and mind. TruPlay is here to help make that happen.

Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3EoeJPr

Today we're getting to the bottom of smartphones, and we're doing it quickly.

My hope for this episode, and for this podcast in general, is to give more than just "good" answers when it comes to tech. My goal is to point you as a parent toward hope.

So, does your child need a smartphone? No.

But if you stop there, you might get the right answer and miss the real point: an opportunity to parent and love your child where they are!

So listen to today's conversation, we'll talk through five reason smartphones are a net-loss for children under 16, and we'll also talk through what it looks like to prepare your child for a tech world.

Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3HJMFqG



Resources Mentioned:
That Haidt & Twenge document on social media:

• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1w-HOfseF2wF9YIpXwUUtP65-olnkPyWcgF5BiAtBEy0/edit

Porn is scary.

We’ve seen the stats: —Kids see it by age 11 on average. —It’s the most-viewed content on the internet. —It impacts long-term relational and mental health

Yet we need to help our children know more than what to avoid, we need to point them to the life and hope available in Christ.

Today we'll discuss God's clear standard, how it is delivered with incredible grace and hope, and how we can see God's victory even in areas of repeated, even intentional, personal failure.

Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3HJMFqG

Welcome back to What the Tech?!, a miniseries with Micah and Nathan! In today’s episode we talk about the three best things about video games, as well as three cautions to be aware of when it comes to gaming. You’ll notice Micah and Nathan differ a bit on these, Nathan brings his old-man energy to bear in this conversation.

About your hosts: Micah is an avid gamer fresh into the adult world of work and independent living. Nathan is a recovering gamer with a family and a passion for seeing people love God and use tech.

This series is focused on empowering parents to talk about healthy gaming with their children.