Occasionally I watch The One Show on the BBC just to show how culturally aware I have become!
Tonight they posed the question to their viewers: ‘Should a seven-year-old own their own tablet?
Apparently four million of these handheld internet browsing devices will be sold between now and Christmas. As one who still uses a Filofax for his diary and address book perhaps I am not worth listening to on this subject. I use a computer a great deal and could probably not operate without it nowadays. But many students today spend many hours on their machines and can access some very radical views.
Helping discernment
Our young people are well versed in all the refinements of social media and it is clearly here to stay. Of course it has given us a greater ability to communicate with each other and to research information.
But do we just accept that it’s here or do we help our young people discern what is good and bad in what they read or say. Are all the functions of our computers neutral in terms of their effects on the user? James has wise words on this. As teachers we will be more harshly judged because we are told that ‘the tongue is a small member yet it boasts of great things’ (3.5). So, just as we are told we must be careful what we say, so we must encourage our young people to develop speech that is honouring and gracious. Not easy in a day of assertive opinions.
I think the communication and information functions worry me less than the growing number of Christians who express opinions in cyberspace. A cynic once said that ‘blogging was equivalent to expressing an opinion on a subject you know nothing about’. Blogging is on the increase in the Christian world and young people have easy access to what is being said. There are many opinions around about many issues and it is for young people to sort out who is speaking truth. If blogging is simply contributing to a debate about an important issue then it should be taken seriously — but if it is simply saying something for the sake of saying something then it must be ignored.
Biblical standard of truth
Our young people are bombarded with opinions. Our education system sees an important function for the sifting of opinions. There are blogs which place doubts about the historical basis for the Christian faith. They may well have to be read in student’s research for a piece of work. It is therefore incumbent upon us to express our opinions carefully well rooted in Scripture and to encourage them to test what they have read against a biblical standard of truth. It is awfully possible to see young people drift away from their faith as they read stuff which undermines what they believe. At some point they will have that experience but, in their formative years, it is vital that we help them judge what they are reading in a biblical way.
In the same way it is incumbent upon us, as leaders, to express our views in a biblical way so that we help young people in their discipleship. Please let us not write things for the sake of it. If we have a helpful opinion let’s express it in a gracious way and learn to stop when we have nothing more to say. It’s only words... yes, but words can do great damage, so let’s be careful.
