My two-year-old son loves to work with me in the garage. It’s not something I’ve taught him or encouraged, but he just likes being with his Dad and working away with tools.
 
He enjoys banging away at scrap pieces of wood with his plastic hammer or drill. Sometimes though I’ll let him use my tools with me. We’ll sand a piece of wood together or drill a hole. He loves this!
 
I would never let him use my circular saw though. Not yet! It would be parental malpractice to hand my son a circular saw and walk away. There is to much potential that he would get seriously injured. Before I would dream of putting this tool in his hands I would want to make sure he was mature enough, that he was trustworthy, and that he understood the purpose for which the tool was too be used. I would need to properly show him how to use the tool well before I’d entrust him with it because (if I can help it) I prefer my children to have all of their fingers and toes!
 
Yet, when it comes to tech devices and social media, too many parents hand their kids a tool more dangerous than a circular saw and simply walk away without ever teaching them how to use it well. They give no warning about the harm the tool can do if misused. They don’t consider the spiritual, emotional, and relational carnage created by technology used poorly.
 
A 13-year-old with a smart phone is one touch away from being exposed to sexualized images that can create enslaving habits that will trouble relationships, bury them in shame, fuel depression, and hinder their enjoyment of God.
 
The 15-year-old with a social media account can find their fears amplified as they doom-scroll Twitter. Their discontent can be fueled as they see the curated lives of their peers on Instagram and they think, “Why can’t my life be like that?”
 
As parents, we need to do better than handing our kids a circular saw or an iPhone without training. We need to become skilled in equipping our kids for technological wisdom.
 
That’s why your pastors are so excited that we have Protect Young Eyes (PYE) coming to speak about helping young people use technology wisely. PYE has dedicated themselves to understanding online trends and training adults to prepare kids to use technology in safer ways. 
 
The event will be held on Wednesday, December 9 at 7:00 PM. Chris McKenna, CEO of Protect Young Eyes, will be presenting on protecting our children online.
 
We are intending to live-stream this event for sure, and are hoping to also offer in-person attendance if government orders allow. We cannot stress enough how important it is that parents make every effort to protect and equip their children to handle technology wisely and so it’s our hope that this event will make us wiser stewards of technology and better defenders of our kids.
 
Yours in Christ,

Pastor Wayne