Parenting in the Digital Age

Lesson Summary — Parenting in the Digital Age

Bro. Jason Moore | Year-End Seminar | 15 November 2025

We live in a world where technology has connected us globally — yet families have never been more disconnected.  Social media, devices, and the always-online culture have quietly found their way into the home, creating distance between parents and children.

Even in schools, when cell phones were banned, students began to talk, laugh, and interact again — but the loudest complaints came from parents who were upset that they were no longer in 24/7 contact with their children.  The message was clear: the digital age affects not only children, but parents too, and both must learn to navigate it wisely.

 The acronym P.A.R.E.N.T. — Prepare, Authority, Relate, Engage, Navigate, Talk — breaks the lesson showing parents how to reclaim the heart of their children in a digital world.

PREPARE

If we fail to prepare, we prepare for heartache and pain.  Parents cannot anticipate every danger, but they can prepare for what is within their control.  Sending children into the vast “wilderness” of the online world without knowledge, oversight, and preparation is foolish.

Technology grows exponentially; parents must grow in awareness as well.

How can parents prepare?

a. Learn about dangerous websites.

Some sites steal personal information; others expose children to harmful content.  Parents should take time to read articles, stay informed, and understand the online dangers their children may face.

b. Learn about social media — even if you don’t use it.

You cannot guide your children in a world you do not understand.

c. Learn the good resources online.

There are tools for learning, for spiritual growth, for educational enrichment — parents must know the good so they can direct their children to it.

Scripture teaches the importance of awareness:
“The heart of the prudent acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks knowledge.” (Proverbs 18:15)
“A prudent man foresees evil and hides himself” (Proverbs 22:3; 27:12).

AUTHORITY

Parental authority extends even into the digital world.  However, holding authority is not about dictatorship; it is about guidance.  Parents are not to go too far with this, its not about restricting them in every single aspect.  Authority can be difficult sometimes and Trust must be developed. 

A parent would never send a child into a building full of strangers — yet many hand their children smartphones with no boundaries, no limits, and no oversight.  This is not wisdom.

Parents must:

a. Be sure their restrictions have reasons otherwise children will rebel

Rules without reasons provoke rebellion.  Parents must explain the “why,” not simply enforce the “what.”

b. Set healthy boundaries.

Limit time, restrict sites, control purchases, establish rules for online behaviour.

Proverbs reminds parents of their responsibility:

“My son, hear the instruction of your father… they will be a graceful ornament on your head” (Proverbs 1:8–9).
“My son, keep your father’s command” (Proverbs 6:20–23).
“The rod and reproof give wisdom” (Proverbs 29:15).

Authority must be exercised lovingly, consistently, and sensibly.

RELATE

Authority alone is not enough.  Children are people — with thoughts, interests, fears, and dreams.  If parents ignore their children’s interests, they will drift apart, and once the children become adults, that emotional distance often becomes permanent.

How do parents relate?

a. Show interest in what interests them.

Know their favourite colour, their hobbies, their shows, their interest, their challenges.

b. Support and foster the growth in their interest.

Encourage their interest

c. Spend time engaging with their interests — even if you do not share them.

Proverbs teaches this relational responsibility:

“Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due” (Proverbs 3:27).
“As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend.” (Proverbs 27:17).

Parents sharpen their children by being present — emotionally, mentally, and spiritually.

ENGAGE

Technology’s greatest temptation is to ignore each other while sitting right beside each other.  Children need to know their parents are involved, and parents grow when they actively engage their children’s lives.

How do parents engage?

a. Make the effort — intentionally.

Closeness does not happen by accident.

b. Spend meaningful time — not just time in the same room.

Talk, play, eat, pray, and plan together.

c. Put down the devices.

Spend time together, engaged with one another with no devices

Proverbs teaches diligence:
“The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty.” (Proverbs 21:5)

And parenting with purpose:
“Train up a child in the way he should go…” (Proverbs 22:6)

NAVIGATE

Parents are the lifeline of experience for their children.  They have “been there, done that,” and their guidance is urgently needed.

Parents must:

a. Guide children in how to use the digital world.

Parent need to teach their children about personal information and when to give it

b. Teach discernment.

Children must learn what is true or false, right or wrong, wise or foolish.

Scripture repeatedly emphasizes guidance:
“Where there is no counsel, the people fall.” (Proverbs 11:14)
“He who walks with wise men will be wise.” (Proverbs 13:20)
“Plans are established by counsel.” (Proverbs 20:18)

TALK

This final point is essential: Communication is the bridge that ties every other principle together.

Too often families sit under the same roof but never speak — each absorbed in a screen – there is no connection.

Real relationships require real conversation.

How can parents communicate more effectively?

a. Establish device-free family time.

Meals, evenings, weekends — unplug to reconnect.

b. Create shared activities.

Game nights, outdoor activites, dinner outings etc. for the family to engage with one another

c. Set time to talk about God

No lesson is complete without spiritual discussion.  Children must hear about faith from their parents — not just the preacher.

Proverbs emphasizes the power of words:
“The wise in heart will be called prudent… pleasant words promote instruction.” (Proverbs 16:21–24)
“Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” (Proverbs 18:21)

Conclusion

Parenting in the digital age is challenging — and requires conscience effort.  Technology will continue to advance, grow, and complicate our lives, but God’s wisdom endures.

Through the principles of PREPARE, AUTHORITY, RELATE, ENGAGE, NAVIGATE, TALK, parents can protect their homes, strengthen their relationships, and lead their children toward a godly life.

Technology may shape the world our children live in, but parents shape the hearts of the children who live in that world.

May we use every tool wisely, and every opportunity faithfully, to raise children who love God, honour His word, and walk safely in a digital age.