By: Noel Liemam on February 21, 2025
Introduction One review stated that the rewiring of childhood has led to a decline in physical play and independent exploration which are crucial for healthy development in our children. And Haidt called for both parents and educators to recognize this issue and to adapt in order to support the mental health of the children.[1] This…
By: Julie O'Hara on February 21, 2025
In The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness, social psychologist Jonathan Haidt provides the research behind what I thought I already knew: devices can be dangerous. Our Story It was late 2012 when our then-sixth-grade daughter convinced us she needed a phone. Her youth pastor communicated…
By: Joel Zantingh on February 21, 2025
It was a couple of years ago that I did a quick informal survey of the prevalence of mental health diagnoses among young adults in my world. It aligned with what the Canadian Association of Mental Health reported, that “Mental illness is the leading national cause of disability among those aged 15-29, with an estimated…
By: Chad Warren on February 20, 2025
“You’re killing me, Smalls!” I grew up watching The Sandlot, which is easily one of the most oft-quoted movies among my friends and now my kids. It reminds me of the magic of a childhood spent outdoors—pick-up baseball games, daring adventures, and friendships forged through scraped knees and summer mischief. The boys in The Sandlot…
By: Debbie Owen on February 20, 2025
I put another log on the fire and closed the door to the wood stove. I waited a moment until the flames caught, sending warmth into the room. I sat down, opened The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt, and picked up where I had left off the night before. Just as I started reading, my…
By: Daren Jaime on February 20, 2025
Taking a trip down memory lane, I vividly recall witnessing fights, student altercations during lunch, instances of verbal disputes, and, in rare cases, incidents of extreme violence such as stabbings or killings. While peer pressure, hazing, and occasional encounters with bullies were commonplace, the overall climate was mild. Fast forward to 2025, and the landscape…
By: Elysse Burns on February 20, 2025
Nothing incites panic quite like realizing your phone is missing. While driving through a narrow street in our neighborhood, Kari hopped out of the car to help direct me through. Somewhere between exiting the car and stepping into her role as traffic guide, her phone slipped from her lap and disappeared into the sand. Neither…
By: Graham English on February 20, 2025
Six years ago, I gathered a few teachers in my church and facilitated a conversation, hoping to learn more about the community we were pastoring. When I asked them about the issues that children and families were dealing with, the number one response was anxiety. Each person spoke about how alarming levels of anxiety in…
By: Christy on February 19, 2025
With high ratings from Bill Gates and many others, I was looking forward to this week’s reading. [1] Moreover, my church’s family ministry is currently reading The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood Is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness by Jonathan Haidt. [2] Haidt explains two trends that are shaping today’s world:…
By: Diane Tuttle on February 19, 2025
When I was growing up, summer was magical. Many days my neighbor and I would grab our bikes and ride for miles. Other days were spent at the local park where along with most of the neighborhood children, we played hockey, made crafts and took turns on whatever apparatus was open. My mother’s only rule…
By: Kari on February 19, 2025
Ding-ding. Is that mine? Bzzzz. Whose is that? Hardly five minutes go by before someone checks their phone or smartwatch. Even the vibration mode or a screen lighting up can feel as disruptive as a ringtone left on. We live in a day and age where our phones dictate our lives. I am guilty. You…
By: Shela Sullivan on February 18, 2025
About the book The Anxious Generation: How the Great Rewiring of Childhood is Causing an Epidemic of Mental Illness” by Jonathan Haidt. He explores the alarming rise in mental health issues among Generation Z. Haidt emphasizes that the increasing integration of digital technology, particularly smartphones and social media, into children’s lives has fundamentally reshaped their…
By: Adam Cheney on February 18, 2025
For weeks I have been waiting to read this week’s book, The Anxious Generation. I had wanted to read it for a while and as it sat on my shelf, I kept looking at it, knowing it would validate the struggles we as a family have gone through. I have been telling my kids to…
By: Jennifer Eckert on February 18, 2025
“Rock and roll will rot your soul”[1] was a phrase many adults born into the Silent Generation muttered to their children, reflecting their fears that the younger generation’s music would lead them to moral decay, rebellion, and brain rot. It was a warning against what they perceived as cultural chaos and immorality. To them, rock…
By: Glyn Barrett on February 18, 2025
“Standing on a whale fishing for minnows”[1] is an apt description for many critics of the modern-day church. Many years ago, one of my best friends and I were working together in a church. We were involved in youth ministry and evangelism together. They were exciting times and were foundational to the type of leader…
By: Jeff Styer on February 17, 2025
In The Anxious Generation Jonathan Haidt writes “My central claim in this book is that two trends—overprotection in the real world and underprotection in the virtual world—are the major reasons why children born after 1995 became the anxious generation.”[1] Reflecting upon Haidt’s statements I realize that my wife and I are not perfect parents, but…
By: Noel Liemam on February 14, 2025
Current Concept of Colonialism ‘Colonialism,’ defined as “domination of a people or a area by a foreign state or nation: the practice of extending and maintaining a nation’s political and economic control over another people.”[1] Before any further discussion, I believe that ‘colonialism’ is embedded within the human nature; I would say that it comes…
By: Julie O'Hara on February 14, 2025
Summary of My Beliefs and Understanding of Colonialism Most recently, I have understood colonialism as a system that begins with powerful nations using their power to enrich themselves by taking resources from other people groups. The “powerful” nations are typically inhabited primarily by white people who view the other people, normally brown, as inferior. The…
By: Kari on February 14, 2025
Colonialism: A Personal Reflection Colonialism, the act of settling and taking control of land and its people, has significantly shaped world history. Since the time of Noah’s descendants spreading across the earth, humans have conquered and settled new lands. Colonialism has profoundly affected both positive and negative global politics, economies, and cultures. Entire groups have…
By: Chad Warren on February 13, 2025
Colonialism is often a theme in pop culture, effectively shaping public perceptions of history in ways that range from celebratory to critical. For example, Marvel’s Black Panther presents Wakanda as a technologically advanced African nation untouched by colonial rule, offering a potent “what-if” scenario that reimagines history. Meanwhile, the musical Hamilton reshapes the narrative of…
