Social Media and Young Christians

[Godfearingfeminist]

Warning: there are some dark topics in this post such as bullying, stranger danger, sexual references.

Something I think about a lot - not surprising since social media is pretty much ingrained in most people's daily routines these days - is how Christians use and let their children use social media. Are some apps okay and others not? Or do you ban it completely in your household? Do you track your kids activity or put protective passwords on the internet? 

I've thought about this a lot in the past, but thought I'd post about it now because at the moment, I'm sitting in my 13 year old sister's room while she's on her phone talking to a stranger over WhatsApp. The stranger is a teenager who is confused about their gender. They already had reassignment surgery and now a couple years later they want to change back, so my sis tells me. They're also a self harmer, which I have sympathy for, but I don't really want my sis exposed to any pictures or gory info about this person's experiences with self harm. 

My sister is mature, but lacks common sense sometimes. The stranger has been harassing her for months, saying that she loves her and that she belongs to her. Even though my sis has made it perfectly clear they're not 'together' this person keeps insisting they are and she knows one of my sister's friends in person apparently. That's kinda creepy.

I only use FB and IG for business promotion now, but in the past I've had messages from strangers on IG which turned out to be naked pics or porn, and I'm a bit worried my sister has experienced this too. Of course I can't do anything about it since she's not my child. I've told her to block the person but she says she feels bad if she ignores them as they guilt trip her with sad stories about them. I've got all her passwords so I can monitor what she's doing online. I trust her, she's not an idiot, but I don't trust other people on the internet. (How ironic that I'm posting this on an online forum ?)

She's sweet and innocent and smart, never had a boyfriend, whereas her real friends have had boyfriends and girlfriends and done things with them. She knows I don't think she's in the right circle, but she thinks she knows what she's doing. I can't blame her, I was the same at her age, however I always say I was born first so I could do all the stupid stuff so they wouldn't have to. I was hoping they'd learn from my mistakes lol. 

Point is, the internet can be a dangerous place, especially for kids. For most people these days images of sex/violence, deadly internet pranks/trends and online bullying is normal and not something to be especially anxious about, but for Christians who actually practice what they preach and try their best to keep themselves and their families away from these things in real life, the internet and social media is something worth protecting ourselves and our children from.

So I want opinions from fellow Christians. Is it okay to let your kids/younger siblings on the internet unsupervised, or should we block some things? Or can some kids be trusted to obey their parents if they set some basic rules for using the internet? Should kids be banned from social media all together? By kids I mean people under 16. Other than staying in touch with friends, I don't see the point in people younger than 16 having social media. Sure sometimes their picture gets likes and it makes them feel good for a bit, but sometimes they don't get any likes or response on their posts at all and believe me, in a teen's mind the bad will always outweigh the good, whether they're Christian or not. It's like if a hundred people all gave you a compliment. You'd appreciate them, but if someone insulted you, you'd think more about the insult than the compliment. 

I don't know, maybe I'm just one of those people who doesn't understand it despite my age. I grew up poor and while some of my friends had all the latest tech as soon as it hit the shops, I had to use a landline or my legs to stay in touch with people until I was fifteen, when I finally got my own laptop. I didn't have a decent mobile phone (that I didn't have to share with my 2 brothers) til I was seventeen and even then I never had credit, so I wasn't constantly available to everyone. I just find it weird that such young kids are so easily accessible to friends and strangers alike I guess ?

What do you think and what are some good and bad experiences you or your children have had on the internet??

 

[The_Patriot21]

That many issues...yeah my guess is your sister found molester...not someone genuinely struggling for help...I'd talk to your parents and see if you can get them to intervene.