Parents, the reality is that our children are being exposed DAILY to the temptations of evil.  We have to be aware in order to fight back.  I have a great blessing in my life; my husband has the gift of discernment.   He can tell when something is not right with our kids and he is never afraid to confront them immediately.  After their open, but private, discussion, they hug each other and often pray together.  I believe all of us can ask Heavenly Father for this gift and practice this fearless pro-active way to guard our children.

Stephen has graciously written these tips out for us.  Let them act as a reminder to keep parents and grandparents alert.

This is a posting for parents so that they can protect their families. Like most inventions the Internet is neither inherently evil or good, but can be used for either purpose.

The Internet is a wonderful tool that can be the source of great information, on-line purchases, research and finding just about anything.  Unfortunately, this also includes some very bad things such as pornography.

Parents need to be very vigilant and proactive with regard to protecting their children and themselves. The following are recommendations for safe Internet usage:

• Always install web or Internet filtering software. It isn’t perfect and teenagers can still get around it, but it does log all Internet traffic, which is key.
• Always review your web filter logs to see where everyone in the family is spending time on the Internet.
• Always put computers in well-lit and public areas of the home. Never allow children their own computers in their rooms.  This should include TVs as well.
• Always check the browser history. If the browser history is being deleted then someone in the house is trying to cover their tracks. This is a red flag and requires further investigation.
• Don’t allow Internet browsing after a certain time at night. Late at night is a ripe time for inappropriate Internet browsing.
• Be a good example as a parent and follow the same principles and guidelines. A parent’s example is always a key to teaching children.
• Don’t allow Internet browsing on cell phones and/or handheld PDA devices. This prevents sending pictures in most cases and access to the Internet. There isn’t any good blocking and filtering software for cell phones. If you don’t block the Internet on cell phones or handheld devices, you are giving your children a loaded gun, which will cause harm to them and others.
• Monitor the text messages of your children’s cell phones. It there are problems, then block texting.
• Make sure you monitor all TV channels and block inappropriate channels. Block anything that is rated R or worse. Block any program that has nudity and sexual content. If you subscribe to cable or satellite service, new channels are added all the time and need to be monitored and added to your blocks.
• Know that predators are active on MySpace and Facebook and other chat sites.  Teach your children to not give out any personal information on the Internet under any circumstance.
• Talk to your children about the Internet. Be open and direct. They might know more about using it than you, but the principles of following guidelines is still the responsibility of the parents to teach to their children. They need to be taught the principles of using the Internet appropriately.
• Teach your children to be open. This includes teaching them to come to you when they accidently or intentionally access bad content.  Bad things on the Internet are always done in secret.  If your child is ever asked to keep a secret, it depends on your standing relationship with that child to gain his/her trust over the solicitor/pedophile.  So don’t over react when they share with you, or you discover inappropriate access.

Love is a powerful weapon.  Emotional control will go far in these attacks.  But we can not turn a blind eye.  Constant vigilance is required of us.