Last month, in our series Modern American Problems, I taught on the topic “Technology Instead of Community.” Since then, a significant development has emerged.
New research suggests that, for the first time in recorded history, the latest generation is less cognitively capable than their parents. Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath, a cognitive neuroscientist, recently testified before Congress:
New research suggests that, for the first time in recorded history, the latest generation is less cognitively capable than their parents. Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath, a cognitive neuroscientist, recently testified before Congress:
“Since we’ve been standardizing and measuring cognitive development since the late 1800s, every generation has outperformed their parents — and that’s exactly what we want. We want sharper kids.”
He continued:
“Across 80 countries, if you look at the data, once countries adopt digital technology widely in schools, performance goes down significantly — to the point where kids who use computers about five hours per day in school for learning purposes will score over two-thirds of a standard deviation lower than kids who rarely or never use technology at school.”
And then came the punch line:
“We have evolved biologically to learn from other human beings, not from screens. And screens circumvent that process.”
Even secular research is now confirming what Christianity has affirmed since its earliest pages: it is not good for man to be alone.
Perhaps this also gives fresh weight to the Scripture that reminds us, “Our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.” (Eph 6:12)
So what are we to do? How do we fight a battle that appears aimed not only at us, but at the generations coming after us?
At the end of the message, I briefly mentioned The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch. This short but practical book offers tangible, thought-provoking ideas that can help us shape our lives with greater intentionality — producing deeper meaning and greater capacity for God and for the image-bearers sitting across the table from us.
Early in the book, Crouch outlines “10 Tech-Wise Commitments” his family has adopted. They provide a helpful framework for stimulating meaningful discussion about what could realistically take shape in our own homes.
I want to reiterate that what follows is not a list of rigid rules to obey, but catalysts for conversation that can help to shape a healthier family culture.
1. “We develop wisdom and courage together as a family.”
At the heart of family is formation. We are shaped by our parents — and in turn, we shape our children. Together, we can develop a shared vision for greater health and responsibility in how we use technology. Crouch suggests creating a “Family Technology Covenant” — a document that casts vision for a flourishing future rather than merely imposing restrictions.
2. “We want to create more than we consume. So we fill the center of our home with things that reward skill and active engagement.
Our modern world revolves around passive consumption. Creativity, however, demands engagement from our whole selves as we reflect our ultimate Creator.
Before unlimited access to devices, children might learn instruments, write stories, build, paint, or pursue other creative endeavors. Crouch also challenges us to examine our physical spaces. Is the living room arranged around a television, or around one another? Even our architecture quietly disciples us.
3. “We are designed for a rhythm of work and rest.”
Crouch recommends one hour a day, one day a week, and one week a year without screens — time to worship, feast, play, and rest together.
Our devices demand our constant attention through endless notifications and subtle dopamine triggers. Intentional breaks allow our souls to recalibrate — not toward the next digital stimulus, but toward our Heavenly Father and the relationships that truly matter. It may even expose what feels uncomfortably close to device addiction.
4. “We wake up before our devices do — and they 'go to bed' before we do.”
For many of us, our phones are the first thing we reach for in the morning and the last thing we set down at night. Instead of filling our minds with curated content at both ends of the day, we could reclaim that time for prayer, scripture, journaling, silence, or simple rest.
Research also shows that having phones next to our beds disrupts sleep, placing us at a deficit before the day even begins. Crouch recommends physical alarm clocks, shutting down devices an hour before bed, and creating a common charging station where devices “sleep” at night.
5. “We aim for “no screens before double digits” at school and at home.”
Even non-Christian research (as mentioned at the very beginning of this article) increasingly suggests that screens do not enhance early learning — and may hinder it.
Author Jonathan Haidt recommends no smartphones before age 16, and then only with significant supervision. Instead, children need creative play and even boredom which fosters imagination and resilience. Have you seen what a child can do with nothing more than a cardboard box?
6. “We use screens for a purpose, and we use them together, rather than using them aimlessly and alone.”
Technology can serve us (e.g., a dishwasher gives us time back), or it can isolate us (e.g., social media often fragments relationships).
Rather than binge-watching something alone, we might watch a movie as a family or invite friends into that time. Are the apps we use cultivating genuine connection — or loneliness? Crouch also recommends no televisions in bedrooms and designated screen-free zones in the home.
7. “Car time is conversation time.”
How often do we default to music, podcasts, or audiobooks? What if even these moments became opportunities for conversation with one another, or with God? Spend some time in conversation with God or call a friend you haven’t connected with in a while.
When others are in the car, we have a rare captive audience. Why not use it for intentional connection?
8. “Spouses have one another’s passwords, and parents have total access to children’s devices.”
The internet provides unprecedented opportunities for secrecy. Accountability protects families.
This isn’t about surveillance; it is about safeguarding our hearts and minds. Tools like Covenant Eyes can provide additional accountability.
Jonathan Haidt notes in The Anxious Generation that traffickers are no longer prowling the streets. Instead, they primarily target vulnerable minors through social media platforms. The stakes are simply too high to remain hidden in the shadows.
9. “We learn to sing together, rather than letting recorded and amplified music take over our lives and worship.”
Before radio and television, families regularly gathered around pianos and guitars to sing. The Bible encourages us to speak "to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music from your heart to the Lord.” (Eph 5:19)
Singing together requires active participation rather than the passive observation that we’ve been trained in today. Would this be awkward to do with your family? Maybe. But, it could also be an opportunity for vulnerability, growth, and probably even a little bit of laughter.
10. “We show up in person for the big events of life. We learn how to be human by being fully present at our moments of greatest vulnerability. We hope to die in one another’s arms.”
When we were living in New York City some of our deepest and closest friendships were formed as we cared for friends in their most vulnerable moments.
We took in and cared for friends after major surgeries, we hugged and held friends at the unexpected losses of their parents, and they came at a moment's notice in the middle of the night to our house to stay with our youngest when my wife went into labor with our second-born. Showing up solidifies that we are not merely ships passing in the night, but joyful friends standing together through joys and sorrows.
We are not meant to be alone.
As I write this, I realize that as my own children grow older, it is time for us to revisit these principles and reestablish rhythms that will help our family flourish.
The encouraging news is that we do not fight this battle alone. Even in the secular work The Anxious Generation, there is recognition that families need other families willing to adopt shared values and standards to help each other walk this out well. As Christians, we are uniquely positioned for such a critical moment in history.
Scripture does not provide explicit commands about smartphones or streaming services. It does, however, command us to consider others as more important than ourselves, to defer to one another in love, and to model our lives after a Savior who sacrificed His comfort for our good.
How that applies to how we live in relation to technology will require prayerful wrestling.
The world is also asking how to live wisely in the midst of rapid technological revolution. Maybe God has given us this moment not to be passive observers, but to be active evangelists for a different way to live — demonstrating a way of life richer than anything a Google or ChatGPT search could ever deliver.
Simply put: Jesus offers a better way.
Perhaps this also gives fresh weight to the Scripture that reminds us, “Our battle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the world powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavens.” (Eph 6:12)
So what are we to do? How do we fight a battle that appears aimed not only at us, but at the generations coming after us?
At the end of the message, I briefly mentioned The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch. This short but practical book offers tangible, thought-provoking ideas that can help us shape our lives with greater intentionality — producing deeper meaning and greater capacity for God and for the image-bearers sitting across the table from us.
Early in the book, Crouch outlines “10 Tech-Wise Commitments” his family has adopted. They provide a helpful framework for stimulating meaningful discussion about what could realistically take shape in our own homes.
I want to reiterate that what follows is not a list of rigid rules to obey, but catalysts for conversation that can help to shape a healthier family culture.
1. “We develop wisdom and courage together as a family.”
At the heart of family is formation. We are shaped by our parents — and in turn, we shape our children. Together, we can develop a shared vision for greater health and responsibility in how we use technology. Crouch suggests creating a “Family Technology Covenant” — a document that casts vision for a flourishing future rather than merely imposing restrictions.
2. “We want to create more than we consume. So we fill the center of our home with things that reward skill and active engagement.
Our modern world revolves around passive consumption. Creativity, however, demands engagement from our whole selves as we reflect our ultimate Creator.
Before unlimited access to devices, children might learn instruments, write stories, build, paint, or pursue other creative endeavors. Crouch also challenges us to examine our physical spaces. Is the living room arranged around a television, or around one another? Even our architecture quietly disciples us.
3. “We are designed for a rhythm of work and rest.”
Crouch recommends one hour a day, one day a week, and one week a year without screens — time to worship, feast, play, and rest together.
Our devices demand our constant attention through endless notifications and subtle dopamine triggers. Intentional breaks allow our souls to recalibrate — not toward the next digital stimulus, but toward our Heavenly Father and the relationships that truly matter. It may even expose what feels uncomfortably close to device addiction.
4. “We wake up before our devices do — and they 'go to bed' before we do.”
For many of us, our phones are the first thing we reach for in the morning and the last thing we set down at night. Instead of filling our minds with curated content at both ends of the day, we could reclaim that time for prayer, scripture, journaling, silence, or simple rest.
Research also shows that having phones next to our beds disrupts sleep, placing us at a deficit before the day even begins. Crouch recommends physical alarm clocks, shutting down devices an hour before bed, and creating a common charging station where devices “sleep” at night.
5. “We aim for “no screens before double digits” at school and at home.”
Even non-Christian research (as mentioned at the very beginning of this article) increasingly suggests that screens do not enhance early learning — and may hinder it.
Author Jonathan Haidt recommends no smartphones before age 16, and then only with significant supervision. Instead, children need creative play and even boredom which fosters imagination and resilience. Have you seen what a child can do with nothing more than a cardboard box?
6. “We use screens for a purpose, and we use them together, rather than using them aimlessly and alone.”
Technology can serve us (e.g., a dishwasher gives us time back), or it can isolate us (e.g., social media often fragments relationships).
Rather than binge-watching something alone, we might watch a movie as a family or invite friends into that time. Are the apps we use cultivating genuine connection — or loneliness? Crouch also recommends no televisions in bedrooms and designated screen-free zones in the home.
7. “Car time is conversation time.”
How often do we default to music, podcasts, or audiobooks? What if even these moments became opportunities for conversation with one another, or with God? Spend some time in conversation with God or call a friend you haven’t connected with in a while.
When others are in the car, we have a rare captive audience. Why not use it for intentional connection?
8. “Spouses have one another’s passwords, and parents have total access to children’s devices.”
The internet provides unprecedented opportunities for secrecy. Accountability protects families.
This isn’t about surveillance; it is about safeguarding our hearts and minds. Tools like Covenant Eyes can provide additional accountability.
Jonathan Haidt notes in The Anxious Generation that traffickers are no longer prowling the streets. Instead, they primarily target vulnerable minors through social media platforms. The stakes are simply too high to remain hidden in the shadows.
9. “We learn to sing together, rather than letting recorded and amplified music take over our lives and worship.”
Before radio and television, families regularly gathered around pianos and guitars to sing. The Bible encourages us to speak "to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music from your heart to the Lord.” (Eph 5:19)
Singing together requires active participation rather than the passive observation that we’ve been trained in today. Would this be awkward to do with your family? Maybe. But, it could also be an opportunity for vulnerability, growth, and probably even a little bit of laughter.
10. “We show up in person for the big events of life. We learn how to be human by being fully present at our moments of greatest vulnerability. We hope to die in one another’s arms.”
When we were living in New York City some of our deepest and closest friendships were formed as we cared for friends in their most vulnerable moments.
We took in and cared for friends after major surgeries, we hugged and held friends at the unexpected losses of their parents, and they came at a moment's notice in the middle of the night to our house to stay with our youngest when my wife went into labor with our second-born. Showing up solidifies that we are not merely ships passing in the night, but joyful friends standing together through joys and sorrows.
We are not meant to be alone.
As I write this, I realize that as my own children grow older, it is time for us to revisit these principles and reestablish rhythms that will help our family flourish.
The encouraging news is that we do not fight this battle alone. Even in the secular work The Anxious Generation, there is recognition that families need other families willing to adopt shared values and standards to help each other walk this out well. As Christians, we are uniquely positioned for such a critical moment in history.
Scripture does not provide explicit commands about smartphones or streaming services. It does, however, command us to consider others as more important than ourselves, to defer to one another in love, and to model our lives after a Savior who sacrificed His comfort for our good.
How that applies to how we live in relation to technology will require prayerful wrestling.
The world is also asking how to live wisely in the midst of rapid technological revolution. Maybe God has given us this moment not to be passive observers, but to be active evangelists for a different way to live — demonstrating a way of life richer than anything a Google or ChatGPT search could ever deliver.
Simply put: Jesus offers a better way.
