Welcome back. This week on Family Matters, we’re going to talk about how you as parents can help equip your sons and daughters to handle pornography.

Scripture

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:5

Video

Transcript

Porn has become a huge issue in the body of Christ today, and yet we so rarely speak about it. Too often, we try to keep it in the dark, and that only leads to shame and to hurt and that’s exactly the opposite of what God wants. He says in John 1:5 that the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it. What we need to do is to shine light on to this issue and when that happens when we shine light on to pornography it will have no choice but to flee.

What I want to do today is give you guys as families some tools to help tackle and hopefully prevent this issue altogether.

1. Create a safe space to talk about these topics. The enemy wants us to feel isolated, like we’re struggling alone. Having really honest and open conversations about this, conversations that are filled with grace and love are extremely vital to helping prevent this.
2. Inform them of the dangers of porn and the effects that it may have. Porn can be massively dangerous both emotionally and spiritually and so equipping and informing your kids of this is also another way that that you can help prevent.
3. Put boundaries in place. Porn is more easily accessible than ever and so having sight blockers in place, having apps on their phones; it’s vitally important that that happens because it’s so easily accessed.
4. Set a good example with the way you’re viewing media as a family, and so that goes with movies and the shows you’re watching, making sure those things are wholesome and not leading them down roads to temptation.

Wrapping up all these things is always reminding them that God is a surpassing goodness… that Jesus is better than anything this world can offer. Those things together can help prevent this issue as a family.

Additional Resource – a previous Family Matters article

Teach the Dangers of Pornography – by Jonathan Pokluda

Reflect

1. Have the courage to approach the topic of pornography in conversation with your kids.
2. Pornography too easily comes to kids without them searching for it.  “Click the “X” & tell an adult what happened”…is one way to equip kids when a pop up happens on their device.
3. Be worthy of imitation…model healthy habits of media you consume.

Camper Corner

What will it take for you to have the courage to talk with your parents about any experience with pornography? They can help.