198 episodes
Gospel Tech with Nathan Sutherland Purposely
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- Education
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5.0 • 51 Ratings
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Gospel Tech is a resource for parents who are feeling outpaced and overwhelmed as they raise children in a tech world.
Our goal: Equip parents with the tools, resources, and confidence they need to raise kids who love God and use tech.
Gospel Tech’s mission is to equip families to love God and use tech. We want to empower parents to:
Talk about healthy techCommunicate the GospelConnect the hope of the Gospel to their everyday tech lives
Introduction to Gospel Tech
Three years ago I (Nathan) started Gospel Tech as a ministry to help connect the Gospel to the daily tech lives of families in practical ways. As a middle school teacher I saw a need for intentional, Gospel-focused conversations about tech. Tech was creating more distraction than inspiration in the classroom, and I saw the need for more than just new habits—there was a desperate need for new hearts.
Gospel Tech bridges the gap between scary tech conversations and the hope of the Gospel. With engaging stories and practical applications I bring Gospel-centered tech solutions families can apply in everyday life.
Gospel Tech Resources Beyond The Podcast
The Parent Tech Workshops: A two-part series addressing:How should we handle Tech’s Big 3 (smartphones, gaming, pornography)?How do we make tech safe at home? (two types of tech, tech health, and building tech trust)Youth Talks:The Tech Talk: Use the best tech on purpose, not for purpose.The Hope Talk: A conversation about our goals, purpose, and how making a mistake doesn’t make us a mistake.The Family Tech Framework: A two-hour workshop where families leave with the words to say and the plan in place for healthy tech at home and in daily life.Part 1: Talk It Out: Parents learn key points of discussing healthful tech.Part 2: Walk It Out: Families work together to create a Family Tech Framework customized to their needs, goals, and season of life.
At the end of the day our children aren't problems to fix, they're people to love. We need to point them to the purpose and hope available in Christ, in the work he's already done to make them new and to call them on to good works, and then use tech from that hope. This is why I love to say that in Christ we use tech on purpose, not for purpose.
That's the goal of Gospel Tech. Thanks for letting me be on this journey of parenting with you.
-Nathan Sutherland
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193. Take a Tech Sabbath
Sabbath is a gift. It's not a rule meant to ruin our fun, it's a present we are to open and enjoy. But how do we sabbath in a tech world? Today we talk about the three ways we can practice sabbath with our tech and begin to enjoy the rest and presence of God even in our daily tech lives.
Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3REUkNh -
192. Taking a Break from Tech
Sometimes tech is just too much for a child, or for a season, and we need to take a step back. I want you to know two things:
It's reasonable and loving to remove unhealthy tech. Take a tech break.Tech breaks need to be 30 days.If you've given a RESET, found there's an issue, and tried to manage the problematic tech but to no avail--it's time for a tech break. In today's conversation we'll discuss:
taking 30 days away from unhealthy tech to reset your child's brainusing a RESET to start the conversationbuilding a hedge around your family (family tech framework)how this is both Biblical (remove, Matthew 5:28-30) (raise up, Prov. 22:6) (good fruit vs. bad fruit, Gal. 5:19-22) and loving (give child an egg, not a scorpion (Lk. 11:11)Finally we'll talk about replacing with Analog Adventures-pace of real life and how to introduce the tech back again after 30 days. Keep in mind, there's always a chance you won't replace it.
Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3PQgWJk -
191. How To Talk With Our Children About Pornography
Disclaimer: This story contains sensitive content that may not be safe for young ears. Consider putting in earbuds if you have kids present.
How do we best protect our children from pornography in a tech world? The answer may surprise you.
Yes, we take preventative measures like filtering and building hedges around our tech, but those aren’t enough. What we need to do is talk about pornography with our children.
But how?!
That’s where Sam Black comes in. Sam has spent the last 16 years as the Director of Recovery Education at Covenant Eyes, a screen accountability software program.
He recently published The Healing Church which deals with the tough conversations around pornography and the American church, and he’s with us today to talk about how we can raise porn-resilient children in a tech world.
Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3PHPuxt -
190. Why Your Child Doesn't Need a Phone at School
As hope-focused parents who use all the tech that helps our children, and none of the tech that hurts them, our children don't need smartphones at school. In fact, to quote a pro in the field of smartphones and social media, we need to get phones of out schools now (Jonathan Haidt).
Today's discussion tackles this conversation in three steps:
Why the smartphone conversation is different nowWhat schools can doWhat we can doThis conversation is one focused on the strong believe that God has made our children with a purpose, that education is a gift we must steward well, and that smartphones have their uses but the classroom is not one of them.
Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3PcZ6yJ -
189. Use Tech on Purpose (Prep Tech for School #3)
There’s LOTS of stuff out there we could be doing. Many of those options are either morally neutral or even good (working out, time with friends, playing sports, serving at church).
The question is, what will get your time this week, when push comes to shove, what falls off the table first? Sometimes we’re choosing our tech because it makes us feel important or we simply can’t stand being alone with our thoughts. Sometimes we choose being busy or being still and abiding, and many of us choose our tech as the go-to way to fill the void.
Today we’re addressing five ways to use our tech on purpose and ensure our tech use is intentional as we head back to school.
Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3PltkB6 -
188. Build a Hedge (Prep Tech for School #2)
We're on to part 2 of prepping our tech for school!
Now that we've assessed our tech, we need to build a hedge around it. We need to build a hedge around our:
.📱 Devices
.🎮 Network
.🏡 Family
This first step provides a next-step for tech conversations and continues the tech wins with our family so that we can fight for our kids, not with them, when it comes to technology.
Show Notes: https://bit.ly/3Pkuo8p
Customer Reviews
Great tool for Biblical living in a tech world
This show is well produced and flows smoothly. He offers lots of very practical and wise advice on how to navigate uses of technology through the lens of a biblical lifestyle. I find nuggets of truth that help me guide my family in each episode. I highly recommend for any parent.
Very helpful and practical and necessary
Been looking all over for help navigating technology safely as my kids approach their teenage years. This stuff is very helpful to hear, is clearly presented, and is not overly paranoid or unreasonable. Technology is only going to grow in our society and to our kids so it is vital to understand the dangers and how God would want us to engage with it. As a father this gives me things to consider and ways to lead my family.
Very timely and super helpful!
Thanks for all your hard work on this podcast. Found you through Fierce Marriage and so thankful I did. It’s already been so helpful not only for myself but for my family and how to manage our 4 kids and tech. Thanks Nathan and Anna and keep up the great work!
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