The Tech-Wise Family: Everyday Steps for Putting Technology in Its Proper Place

by Andy Crouch

His sons know that he can, and will, look over their shoulder at any moment, and that he can, and will, and does, pick up their phone without needing to ask and browse through their messages and apps and history. To many parents, and to nearly every American teenager, this will seem like an impossible invasion of “privacy.” But Matt’s sons have plenty of privacy. He doesn’t barge into their bedrooms, and he can’t, and wouldn’t want to, police their secret thoughts or their conversations with friends at school. He makes a great deal of room for his sons to come to their own conclusions about their convictions and to develop, or not, their inner spiritual and emotional lives. What Matt understands, though, is that if mature adults struggle to handle the pipeline of temptation, titillation, and distraction that comes with 24/7 access to the internet, there is no way still-developing teenagers can handle it. His oversight is strictest where the technology is most powerful and potentially out of control.