Welcome to the Paul Tripp podcast, where pastor and bestselling author Dr. Paul David Tripp

connects the transforming power of Jesus Christ to everyday life. In this episode of Ask Paul Tripp,

Paul answers three questions about parenting, specifically the challenges that parents in the 21st century face.

If you have a question you want to ask Paul, visit paultrip.com slash ask.

Here's Paul with how parents can help their children think about social media.

If you're a parent and you're not concerned about powerful, pervasive, attractive

and seductive media in the lives of your children, you're just not paying attention.

We live with more dominant and atrusive media than ever before.

Teenagers have cell phones and when they have cell phones, the world is attracted and available

to them with Instagram and Snapchat

and all those things that are so compelling.

Now I think it's important to do a couple things.

First of all, don't ask the law to do what only grace can accomplish in the hearts of your children.

I really do think that there are very, very significant heart issues that are exposed

in this struggle with social media.

Now, it's right to warn your children of the dangers that are out there. And that role of parents to hold good, godly, practical, functional warnings in front of their children

is really very, very important. And to prepare your children for the temptations that are available

to them because they're carrying this powerful media with them.

But I think there's some heart issues that you need to talk with your children about.

And one of the dominant issues is the issue of identity, where I attach my worth, my identity, my sense of self to how many clicks I get,

how many likes I get, how popular I am in social media. And that is a very, very significant identity seduction

to young people in this generation.

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