FAITH BAPTIST YOUTH
         Watch this space for a slowly growing amount of links to articles, books, apps, and other resources to help you get out ahead of your teenager's use of the internet, smart devices, and social media.

​Below you'll find MP3s, Recommended Reads, Parental Control Helps, and tools for App Reviews.
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Below is an interesting 13 minute presentation that underscores the importance of mentoring and training when it comes to our young people's use of the digital world. There isn't always "an app for that." But there are parents.
MP3s:
Here is an interesting commentary by Eric Metaxas on American's diminishing attention spans and how little the average person reads these days. I agree with him! We must be readers.
Sermon: Social Media to the Glory of God, Part 1 by Pastor Joe (and here are the Part 1 Slides)
Sermon: Social Media to the Glory of God, Part 2 by Pastor Joe (and here are the Part 2 Slides)

Recommended Reads:
Below are a few good reads for parents on the subjects of technology in general and in some cases social media in particular. 

Article: Snapchat’s Newest Feature is Also its Biggest Privacy Threat (The Verge, June 23, 2017)
Article: Please Don’t Give Them Porn for Christmas by Tim Challies, on the dangers of putting mobile devices and computers in the hands of young people without ample controls and accountability (and be sure to also read Challies' "Porn Free Family Plan")
Article: The Common Sense Census: Plugged-In Parents of Tweens and Teens 2016

Read the entire Census at the link above. The infographic below captures some of the findings. Also, familiarize yourself with Common Sense Media in general. I have found it to be a very helpful resource. I say more about it below under the topic of App Reviews.
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Article: The Horror Stories are Real. Don't Give Your Children a Smartphone, by Jonathan Van Maren.
I don't know hardly anything about this author or his site, but I came across this article this week and shared many of his sentiments. I had already perused some of the book he refers to (American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers by Nancy Jo Sales) and was overwhelmed by the depth of the depravity that is becoming more and more common by way of the social media world. In fact, while Sales' book is eye-opening, I don't recommend it. It is simply too eye-opening. I perused it and quit after it became too much of a stumbling block. It is helpful in the way that it opens a door on the "secret" and often very dark corners of the social media world and particularly on the way young people and even kids are both exploited sexually and learning to peddle their own sexuality via social media, but the depiction is simply too pornographic to read unscathed. 

Book: The Digital Invasion: How Technology Is Shaping You and Your Relationships, Dr. Archibald D. Hart, Dr. Sylvia Hart Frejd

The Digital Invasion is a thorough look at the tech world and the way it influences all of us, especially from a parent's perspective. The authors discuss Social Media in particular but more broadly the issues that come with the hyper-connected screen-driven world in which we will.

Book: Growing Up Social: Raising Relational Kids in a Screen-Driven World, Gary Chapman, Arlene Pellicane


Growing Up Social is less technical and is a great read particularly for parents with younger kids, but would be helpful to parents of kids and teens of all ages. The book provides helpful counsel on getting out ahead of our kids' use of technology so that they use it in a balanced way and develop good character as well.

Book: From the Garden to the City: The Redeeming and Corrupting Power of Technology, John Dyer

From the Garden to the City is a more theological approach to the whole topic of technology. I haven't read it but have skimmed and familiarized myself with it. The author looks at technological advances in general from a biblical standpoint and directs the reader to consider how a Christian ought to think about technology in a world created by God yet which is also marred by sin.

Book: Unfriend Yourself: Three Days to Detox, Discern, and Decide About Social Media, Kyle Tennant

Unfriend Yourself was recommended to me as a helpful read but I have not read it myself. It is a relatively short read and looks like something helpful.

Parental Control helps:
Thankfully, there is a growing amount of helps in the realm of parental controls for internet filtering and even managing and restricting mobile devices. Kimberly and I have Apple devices, so that is the world we are more familiar with but I understand there are great tools available for Android devices and other platforms. Below are some helps I have either put together or am aware of. There are other good options out there to add to these, no doubt.

Article: PCMag article on the Best Parental Control Apps for your Phone of 2016
My own write up on Tips for Securing the Internet and iOS Devices for Teens and Kids
App: OurPact App
App: Circle device manager by Disney
Article: Circle review by PCMag
App: MMGuardian

App Reviews:
One of the challenges you are likely facing is keeping up with what apps your teens are using and what they're capable of. This is a constantly moving target, but there are resources out there that will help shed light on the apps your teen may have.

The first and most obvious step, if you believe your teen needs a smart device, is to set parental controls to restrict browsing for and downloading apps without accountability (see my article above for instructions on how to do that on Apple devices specifically), and then regularly monitoring what is on your teen's device. Beyond that, you can fairly easily get information on any particular app from the internet.

One resource I use often (not for reviewing apps but for reviewing movies) is Common Sense Media. They provide thorough reviews of a host of entertainment media from a conscientious parent's standpoint. You can find reviews of apps specifically as well.

Here is another resource, a lengthy article that reviews social media apps specifically.

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Our Youth Group exists to assist parents at Faith Baptist Church in leading their teens to embrace:
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  • Home
  • About
    • Pastor Jordan & Kim Alexander
    • Vision Trips
  • News & Info
    • Heads Up
  • Resources
    • Growth Groups >
      • Names of God
      • Love & Truth - Relationships
      • Stewardship
    • Wednesday Night >
      • Doctrine Talk
      • Not so Hot, Hot Topics
      • A Life of Gratitude
      • Airplane Mode
      • Ask the Youth Pastor
    • How to Study Your Bible
    • Recordings