The More You Know
Sir Francis Bacon said, “Knowledge is power.” I prefer “applied knowledge is power,” but regardless, the more we know, the better chance we have of guiding teens through their use of the Internet. We tend to condemn the Internet as a tool of the devil when we hear stories about online predators and identity theft, but we don’t seem to mind having 24-7 access to previous episodes of “Lost,” or real time updates on the NBA Finals.

So, how can we help steer kids through an Internet that offers them the same benefits…and liabilities?

1. Bring the 41% of you, the parent, who don’t know what their kids are doing online up to speed. Scratch that. Inform 100% of you…just to make sure! When the dark practices of kids’ Internet usage is brought to light, many parents want to blame the Internet instead of conversing with their kids about it. I encourage you to have MULTIPLE conversations with your children about their Internet usage. One “talk” is just not good enough!
   
   
2. Share with your kids your own strategies for staying pure and safe while online. No, I’m not referring to your endorsement of spam-filters; I’m talking about the intentional steps you employ as a parent to make sure you don’t fall victim to online sin. (Keeping the computer out in the open...only going online when someone else is present…restricting the amount of time you spend online…etc.) Sharing this kind of “inside look” at your life with your children will have multiple positive effects on your kids!
   
   
3. Make students aware of the consequences of ungodly actions while online. This isn’t a scare tactic! But, so many students divorce virtual life from real life, with little understanding of the connection between the two. From “seemingly” harmless activities like posting a sexy pic on their profile, or blogging inappropriately about a friend, many teens are simply naïve about the results of their actions, until they feel the pain associated with them. Like our grandmothers always said, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.”

So much of a teenager’s life hinges on you the parent. All I want to do is bring you alongside of me so we together can transform students into a lifelong disciple of Christ. I hope this has given you some insight and some encouragement as well. If there is anything that I ever can do to help or partner with you with your student, know that I am just a phone call or email away.

What Kids Are Up To Online
We’re aware of most of the dangers associated with the Internet. Like my student “Dylan,” we know that teens can stumble onto porn sites; they might also be solicited by a sexual predator. They could even be a target for the ever-increasing trend known as cyber-bullying, which made news again last week because of its potential connection to this teen’s suicide in the UK.

But, they could just be watching hour after hour of goofy streaming videos. (Nielsen says the average for 12-17 year olds is about 132 minutes per month, making them the biggest group of viewers.) Or perhaps they’re spending untold hours simply “hanging” with friends in virtual worlds or social networks. Who knows?

Not you if you don’t ask.

Fortunately for us, the Norton Report mentioned above has invested some time into studying teenagers’ Internet habits. Of the students polled in the US:

• 35% say they “make friends” online. (That percentage increases the older they get.)
  
• 76% visit social-networking sites (Facebook, MySpace, and Bebo).
  
• 35% of students claimed to be shopping while connected.
  
• 42% of them admitted receiving an online request for personal information.

More research just came out of GenDigital’s recent study of teens’ online lives.

• A whopping 93% of teens use the Internet.
  
• 55% of that group has a profile on Facebook and/or MySpace.
  
• AddictingGames.com is quickly becoming the leading “casual gaming site” for all youth.
  
• Only 16% of teens use email, compared to the prolific use of it by adults.

Stay tuned for tomorrow as we tackle the last part of this.

www.whataretheyreallydoing.com--I wish that website was real and it would be that easy to see what your kids are doing online. I want to share with you a true story and for identity purposes, "Dylan" will be the name that we use.

Most nights found “Dylan” in front of his laptop looking at online pornography when his parents thought he was asleep. We know that teens love the Internet…so why is it that 41% of parents are still clueless about their kids’ use of it?

Here’s one simple example of the glaring misunderstanding between kids and parents when it comes to kids’ use of the Internet. A new study by Norton Online Living claims that kids spend almost 20 hours online each week. Does that amount shock you? Maybe, maybe not. But it DID shock the parents of the same group of kids who thought their children only spent 2 hours online each week!

Are these 41% of parents just disconnected from their kids, or, do these kids intentionally keep mom and dad in the dark?

A Quick Test
Whether you’re a parent or a volunteer, take a moment and answer each of the following questions?

1. How much time do your kids spend online in a typical week?
   
2. Do your kids have a Facebook and/or MySpace profile? If so, are you a “friend” of theirs?
   
3. What are they actually doing when they connect to the WWW?
   
4. What are their favorite sites to visit?

Many parents do not have the “right” answers to these questions. Sadly, many more don’t have an answer at all.

Stay tuned for tomorrow as we look at "What kids are up to online."

If you follow the news and the media, you know that when you hear the words "abstinence education" or "virginity pledges" ... most likely they are followed with reports of how ineffective they are.

Last week we heard a different story.

Reuters reported about a Rand Corporation study that shows virginity pledges to actually be slightly helpful.

Taking a pledge to remain a virgin until married may help some teens and young adults in delaying the start of sexual activity, U.S. researchers reported on Tuesday.

A study by the Rand Corporation research institute found that 34 percent of youths who took such pledges as teens had had sexual intercourse within three years compared to 42 percent of similar teens who did not make virginity pledges.

The Rand team said they had taken into account differences such as religious beliefs, parenting and friendship characteristics.

If some of you are wondering why we should be excited about a pledge that is only 1/3 effective... I understand your confusion (and frustration). But realize... most reports up to this point have mocked such pledges, concluding that those that take virginity pledges are actually more likely to engage in oral sex, and are more likely to get pregnant.

But this Rand study (and a recent Alan Guttmacher study) show different.

Some researchers had speculated that teens might substitute other sexual activities such as oral sex for intercourse.

But the Rand study found that those who pledged were no more likely to engage in sexual behaviors that fall short of full intercourse than other comparable youth -- findings that fit in with a study by the non-profit Alan Guttmacher Institute in New York last month.

Again... I'm not jumping for joy. If you read what I just read, it says that these kids are "no more likely" than other comparable youth. That just means that those who take these pledges aren't MORE likely to go to third base since they pledged to not "hit a home run." Unfortunately they seem to be just as likely to engage in these activities as those who didn't take the pledges.

But it's nice to see some data that these pledges aren't "harmful." This is the first report I've seen in a while that actually showed them to be slightly helpful.

The Reuters article even went on to say...

"Waiting until you are older to have sex is good for teens from a health standpoint," Martino said in a statement. "There are lots of reasons for more kids to wait until they are older."

Wow. It's nice to hear some good new every once in a while.

(thanks to YPulse.com for the article)

Facebook is usually used to arrange parties and keep in touch with friends, but now religious leaders have ambitions to combat extremism and encourage multi-faith understanding through the social networking site.

Faithbook was launched today on the popular website by a group of British Jews and is supported by the Muslim Institute. It aims to be a place for debate about religious issues and allows members to upload photos, start discussions and add notes.

Pictures of the sacred texts of the major religions are also on display and prayers for international and interfaith “understanding” are written on the page. Discussions about the place of religion in modern society and countering extremism through websites are underway but so far the only posts are from pre-arranged commenters engaged by the organisers.
The Movement for Reform Judaism, behind Faithbook, said that it was essential to use social networking sites for good.

Rabbi Shoshana Boyd Gelfand, executive director of the movement said: “So much of what has happened with new media is that it has become a place where extremists can construct messages of hate and intolerance. We have got to combat that and create a space where people who may not meet face to face can have a constructive debate.”
Simon Cohen, spokesman for Faithbook, told Times Online that it was the only faith group on Facebook to invite all faiths to participate. It would “engage the younger generation” and inform people about religion.

The page has generated 23 fans since it launched at midnight.
Simon Barrow, from the Christian think-tank Ekklesia, criticised Faithbook as being “just another Facebook group”. Another commentator on the page urged people to “ditch your skygods and try out some rational thinking”.

Ghayasuddin Siddiqui, director of the Muslim Institute, said that the group would be a success regardless of the differences between the major faiths. He added: “Irrespective of whatever cultural baggage we carry, racial background or faith that we follow, we have to recognise that our creator is the same whatever we call him.” (source Times Online )

This is Greatmom holding Mara Lin four and a half years ago. She loved to sing hymns to her.
Here she is again holding Emily Elizabeth right at 3 years ago. I can guarantee that she was either singing or humming hymns to her when this picture was taken.
And here she is serenading Becca Sue almost two years ago, and less than a year before she passed away.

Even when she couldn't remember the babies' names or what day it was there towards the end, she never forgot one word of those old hymns.

I can just see Greatmom holding my baby right now in heaven...and I can hear 'Blessed Assurance' or 'Great is Thy Faithfulness'.

Give my baby a kiss for me Greatmom.