Focus on the Family Magazine - August/September 2023
It can be a struggle to raise a family while balancing your work life, social life and relationships. Focus on the Family magazine is here to help! Each complimentary issue delivers fresh, practical Biblical guidance on family and life topics. Every issue comes packed with relevant advice to build up your kids, strengthen your marriage, navigate entertainment and culture, and handle common challenges you may face in your marriage and parenting journeys. Plus you'll find seasonal advice ranging from back-to-school activities to date night tips for you and your spouse.
It can be a struggle to raise a family while balancing your work life, social life and relationships. Focus on the Family magazine is here to help! Each complimentary issue delivers fresh, practical Biblical guidance on family and life topics.
Every issue comes packed with relevant advice to build up your kids, strengthen your marriage, navigate entertainment and culture, and handle common challenges you may face in your marriage and parenting journeys. Plus you'll find seasonal advice ranging from back-to-school activities to date night tips for you and your spouse.
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KIDS & TEENS / CELLPHONES<br />
LIFE-SKILL<br />
CHECKLIST<br />
DO YOUR TEENS DO THESE<br />
TASKS ON THEIR OWN<br />
WITHOUT REMINDERS?<br />
Pers<strong>on</strong>al hygiene<br />
Laundry<br />
Cleaning<br />
Pet care<br />
Babysitting<br />
Homework<br />
Waking up <strong>on</strong> time and<br />
getting ready for school,<br />
church or activities<br />
DO YOUR TEENS HAVE A . . .<br />
budget plan (tithing,<br />
saving and spending)?<br />
part-time job, a leadership<br />
role or volunteer obligati<strong>on</strong>s?<br />
ARE YOUR TEENS ABLE TO . . .<br />
come to you when a task<br />
or situati<strong>on</strong> is too difficult?<br />
respectfully stand up<br />
for <strong>the</strong>mselves?<br />
carry <strong>on</strong> a c<strong>on</strong>versati<strong>on</strong><br />
with adults?<br />
take care of <strong>the</strong>ir<br />
pers<strong>on</strong>al items?<br />
make a grocery list?<br />
cook meals for<br />
<strong>the</strong> family?<br />
change a flat tire<br />
<strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong>ir car<br />
open and maintain<br />
a bank account?<br />
fill out paperwork<br />
at a doctor’s office?<br />
call <strong>the</strong> appropriate people<br />
for different emergencies?<br />
keep c<strong>on</strong>sistent<br />
Bible-reading and<br />
prayer times?<br />
—Kay Johns<strong>on</strong><br />
C<strong>on</strong>sider opting out<br />
As parents, we’re advocates for abstinence<br />
when we talk to our teens about<br />
sexuality. However, we take a very different<br />
approach when it comes to <strong>the</strong><br />
topic of technology. It seems inevitable<br />
that every child will get a smartph<strong>on</strong>e<br />
so<strong>on</strong>er or later, so we d<strong>on</strong>’t even c<strong>on</strong>sider<br />
opting out of giving <strong>the</strong>m <strong>on</strong>e.<br />
My s<strong>on</strong> Ethan never had a smartph<strong>on</strong>e<br />
in high school, yet he made<br />
friends, was involved in leadership<br />
positi<strong>on</strong>s and earned good grades. He<br />
eventually got his first smartph<strong>on</strong>e <strong>the</strong><br />
summer before going to college.<br />
C<strong>on</strong>trary to popular opini<strong>on</strong>, our kids<br />
can abstain from smartph<strong>on</strong>es, gaming<br />
and social media and still c<strong>on</strong>nect with<br />
friends and family. Perhaps we give our<br />
children too little credit. They are capable<br />
of much more than we think.<br />
I decided not to give my daughter,<br />
Lucy, a smartph<strong>on</strong>e for her 13th<br />
birthday. She w<strong>on</strong>’t be getting her<br />
own ph<strong>on</strong>e until her senior year, or<br />
later, and she’s actually OK with that.<br />
She’s had a fr<strong>on</strong>t-row seat watching<br />
her ph<strong>on</strong>e-free older siblings opt out<br />
of trouble and drama.<br />
Your kids might say, “Mom, Dad,<br />
d<strong>on</strong>’t you trust me?” While <strong>the</strong>y may<br />
be trustworthy, <strong>the</strong> big-tech companies<br />
that created smartph<strong>on</strong>es<br />
are not.<br />
If you have doubts about giving your<br />
child a smartph<strong>on</strong>e, opt for delaying.<br />
After all, taking away a smartph<strong>on</strong>e<br />
is much harder than not giving your<br />
child <strong>on</strong>e in <strong>the</strong> first place.<br />
Arlene Pellicane is a speaker and <strong>the</strong><br />
co-author of Screen Kids: 5 relati<strong>on</strong>al skills<br />
every child needs in a tech-driven world.<br />
22<br />
FOCUS ON THE FAMILY CANADA<br />
AUG / SEP <strong>2023</strong>