Technology and Media Introduction (021424)

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Message: Exposing the Dangers of Media (Part 1)

Tonight’s message is simply going to be an introduction.

Before we actually get into this particular topic, I would like to “come at it” from a slightly different direction.

Turn to and read 2 Chronicles 24:1—3; 17-22.

Upon reading this sad account, I would ask, “Who was to blame?”

Jehoiada, the priest?

Joash, the king?

The princes of Judah?

While there is plenty of blame to “go around,” I do believe that we can confidently say that King Joash was not prepared to stand upon his own two feet when the priest, Jehoiada, was no longer present in his life.

Application: While the tendency for most Christian parents may be to simply keep their children away from as much technology as possible, I don’t believe that is the answer, particularly when it comes to technology.

Why?

Technology is here to stay. Technology is a part of just about every aspect of our lives.

Technology is continuing to grow and evolve.

Like Jehoiada, one day you will no longer be present in your child’s life.

With that, I believe there are two aspects to this preparation/training (or whatever you want to call it).

Illustration: My father teaching me gun safety. The Spirit of God that directs me/holds me back from using a gun to murder or to commit a violent crime with that weapon.

Now, let’s jump into the topic: Exposing the Dangers of Technology and Media.

Turn to and read Ephesians 5:8-15.

According to 2022 research by the Pew Research Center:

95% of US teens have access to a smartphone.

90% of US teens have access to a laptop or desktop computer.

46% of US teens are “online almost constantly.” (Which is up from 24% in 2014-2015!)

Youtube is the most common online platform used by teens followed by TikTok.

54% of US teens say that it would be either somewhat or very hard to quit social media.

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology-2022/

Half of teens receive over 200 texts a day - that is equal to 6,000 a month!

“Smartphones have become an always-on, sometimes disruptive force in the lives of young people.” - Dr. Jenny Radesky

Dr. Jenny Radesky, a report co-author and co-medical director of the American Academy of Pediatrics Center of Excellence on Social Media and Youth Mental Health

https://www.deseret.com/2023/9/27/23892484/how-many-texts-does-teen-get-day-study-cell-phone

According to additional Pew Research (from 2020):

More than one-third (33%) of parents with a child under 12 say their child began interacting with a smartphone before the age of 5.

Nearly one-in-five parents of a child younger than 12 say their child has their own smartphone.

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2020/07/28/childrens-engagement-with-digital-devices-screen-time/

In today’s world, young people do need to learn functioning technological skills, but not to the detriment of learning social and basic living skills.

We’re not merely talking about being spiritually detrimental but detrimental to young people learning basic social and living skills!

The unbridled use of technology has, to a large extent, actually been more harmful to children than helpful.

The Silent Epidemic Eating Away American Minds

Billy was a bright 10-year-old boy with two Ivy-League-educated parents. He was book smart—got straight A’s in school—but lacked street smarts.

He was also a poor sport. Billy would frequently lie and cheat when playing board games or participating in team activities and have full-blown meltdowns when he lost. His friends, who had been with him since kindergarten, began losing patience. His parents recognized that something had to be done.

So Billy’s parents brought him to Dr. Victoria Dunckley, a pediatric psychiatrist specializing in screen use.

After a four-week “screen fast” prescribed by Dr. Dunckley, which eliminated all TVs, phones, and video games, Billy’s problems miraculously cleared up. His parents were so pleased that they decided to maintain the fast.

This article points out the connection between 4 major mental disorders and screen use:

Depression

Anxiety and Irritability

ADHD

Autism

Early Exposure to Screens May Alter Sensory Reactions

A new study links heavy media use starting as young as a year old with atypical sensory processing down the road. That means that how kids take in stimuli through their sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch can lead to deficits or hypersensitivities.

They hypothesize that high early screen exposure may trigger brain changes similarly seen in autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Breaking From Technology: How a 3-Week Screen Fast Can Improve Brain Health

Jake stood in the doorway to his dorm room, unrecognizable to his mother, who had just arrived on campus. He stared at her with dilated eyes, his face twitching and covered in acne, hair greasy and unkempt.

He had not attended classes for two months; instead, he had been gaming for up to 16 hours a day. The university had given him three days to vacate.

“I’d seen signs before he left for university, but he had answers for everything—so I ignored them,” Elaine Uskoski, Jake’s mother and author of “Cyber Sober,” told The Epoch Times.

Could this be why…

Steve Jobs—founder of Apple and creator of the iPhone and iPad—limited how much technology his kids used at home.

Chris Anderson, the former editor of Wired and now chief executive of 3d Robotics, a drone maker, has instituted time limits and parental controls on every device in his home.

“My kids accuse me and my wife of being fascists and overly concerned about tech, and they say that none of their friends have the same rules,” he said of his five children, 6 to 17.

“That’s because we have seen the dangers of technology firsthand. I’ve seen it in myself, I don’t want to see that happen to my kids.” - Chris Anderson

The dangers he is referring to include exposure to harmful content like pornography, bullying from other kids, and perhaps worst of all, becoming addicted to their devices, just like their parents.

Alex Constantinople, the chief executive of the OutCast Agency, a tech-focused communications and marketing firm, said her youngest son, who is 5, is never allowed to use gadgets during the week, and her older children, 10 to 13, are allowed only 30 minutes a day on school nights.

Evan Williams, a founder of Blogger, Twitter and Medium, and his wife, Sara Williams, said that in lieu of iPads, their two young boys have hundreds of books (yes, physical ones) that they can pick up and read anytime.

Question: Should it cause us pause when these tech executives restrict their own children?

When the CEOs of a given field want to protect their children from their occupation, they might be onto something.

Question: But is all technology wrong? Should we guard our children from all forms of media?

No, not all technology is wrong, at least in moderation, and there are good and healthy uses for it.

Children in today’s world are certainly not going to grow up without it.

A case can be made for the benefits of children learning to use technology and social media while under the supervision of their parents, rather than feeling it out for themselves as young adults—or worse, using it in secret disobedience as children and teenagers.

There are, however, some serious concerns of which parents should beware.

According to the Pew Research Center (2020):

Two-thirds of parents in the U.S. say parenting is harder today than it was 20 years ago, with many citing technologies – like social media or smartphones – as a reason.

Fully 71% of parents of a child under the age of 12 say they are at least somewhat concerned their child might spend too much time in front of screens, including 31% who are very concerned about this.

We’re dealing here with a media monster.

Sometimes it disguises itself as harmless, innocent, and even needful. It can be those things when it is tamed. But when it runs rampant, it can ruin the lives of our children.

How can Christian parents help their children understand and tame the media monster?

How can Christian parents—many of whom feel they are increasingly falling behind in what their kids know about media, and many of whom are addicted to technology themselves—help their children understand and tame the media monster?

Question: Will you, as a parent, ever be able to fully “keep up” with advances in technology?

So, what can rely upon?

We have the timeless Word of God.

Its principles are as applicable to technology today as they were to parchment writings and social scenes thousands of years ago.

You may not understand all the ins and outs of Facebook or the apps available on smart phones. That’s okay.

You know basic Bible principles and, as a parent, some basic life skills.

You simply need to help your children apply those principles to their daily living.

In this lesson and the next, we’ll look at principles from Ephesians 5:8–15 with applications that will help you expose and tame the media monster that wants to devour your home.

To begin with, we’ll primarily look at some of the dangers related to technology and media, and then, we’ll look at practical steps to navigate this minefield.

Also, it’s worth noting that, while we are primarily talking in this chapter about guiding young people in media, the principles apply to adults as well.

Question: Are adults immune to the Media Monster?

Too many times, adults are just as deceived by the media monster as teenagers. So listen with a heart to help you and your children.

Question: Is it just a matter of “setting rules?”

Understand as well that as children grow up surrounded by technology—televisions, smart phones, tablets, computers—it’s simply not enough to give them a set of rules.

They do need the parental boundaries established by rules, but they need more than this.

They need principles that help them make wise decisions.

3 John 4 KJV 1900

I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.

Psalm 119:105 KJV 1900

NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, And a light unto my path.

Joshua 1:8 KJV 1900

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.

Psalm 119:11 KJV 1900

Thy word have I hid in mine heart, That I might not sin against thee.

Media and technology is developing and changing so fast that probably within just a few years (if not less), the examples and statistics I give will be extremely outdated.

Meanwhile, the untamed monster will still be devouring young people whose parents’ only rules relate to programs and devices no longer in use.

Young people today have personal, immediate access to movie content on their devices that is far more ungodly than could be seen in theaters fifty years ago.

These kinds of factors make it vital that Christian parents not only set and enforce boundaries, but that they also instill Bible principles into their children’s decision-making processes.

The passage we’re looking at in Ephesians 5 begins by reminding us who we are—children of light.

Ephesians 5:8 KJV 1900

For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light:

We are “light in the Lord.”

We are “children of light.”

We must teach our children their identity: Light in the Lord.

We must teach them to behave accordingly: Walk as children of light.

In doing that, regardless of what screen may be calling for their attention, they will filter their actions based on what pleases the Lord.

But what does that look like?

First of all, Scripture tells us that we are to prove what is acceptable unto the Lord.

Ephesians 5:10 KJV 1900

Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.

Prove

That’s where we’ll pick it up next week.

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