Gospel Centered Tech with Nathan Sutherland

This is your reminder to pre-order my new book, Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn: a Parents Guide to Helping Children and Teens Develop Sexual Integrity, today!  

I have been asked to write this book for years and now, I have! Your pre-orders are tremendously helpful in growing the reach this book will have. I need your help in getting this book into as many hands as I possibly can, so pre-order and share away! 

You can pre order Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn here 

In todays episode, I get to talk with my friend Amber Johnston. Amber is a wife, a home-schooling mom to 4, a world traveler, author and speaker. She is also a world changer! One of the things that has most impressed me about Amber in my years of knowing her is the way she sees something that needs to be done and she does it. This is the way she changes the world. It is inspiring and hopeful. We talk about this and so much more in this episode. You are sure to enjoy it. 

Where to find Amber: 

Find Ambers website here 

Find Ambers first book, A Place to Belong, here 

Find Ambers second book, Soul School, here 

Find Amber on Instagram here 

Where to find the books mentioned in todays episode: 

Find Soul School here 

Find The Read Aloud Family here 

Find Honey for a Childs Heart here 

Find Honey for a Womans Heart here 

Find Honey for a Teens Heart here 

Find Book Girl here 

Find Read for the Heart here 

Some favorite quotes from todays episode: 

The freedom of home schooling is one of, if not the best parts of home schooling. Even as a kid, I recognized the beauty of the freedom of home schooling. Greta Eskridge  

My husband originally suggested home school and I burst out laughing. It was literally the most ridiculous thing I had ever heard. Then I joined a home-schooling group and that changed everything for me becau was in constant community. Amber Johnston 

Those moms gently and consistently told me I was the best. They spoke truth into me and built me up and that made all the difference. Amber Johnston 

My kids were always visitors to someone elses stories and that was something we had to radically change. Amber Johnston 

You know your kids and you know what makes their learning come alive. Thats a beautiful part of home schooling. Greta Eskridge 

If there is a book you want to read but it hasnt been written yet, then you must write it. Toni Morrison 

Dont complain. Dont talk about it. Be about it! Amber Johnston 

I am really proud to have that work not just for home school moms but into perpetuity and into society and to be able to say there was a point in time when these authors and illustrators were given their flowers and really focused on. Amber Johnston 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org

Reminder to pre-order my new book, Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn: a Parents Guide to Helping Children and Teens Develop Sexual Integrity, right now and it will arrive at your door step March 4, 2025! You all have been asking for this book for years and I have been praying I could write it for years and now, I have. Please go ahead and pre-order it now as that is tremendously helpful in the reach this book will have. And then share the heck out of it, OK? Ill need your help in getting this book into as many hands as I possibly can. 

You can pre order Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn here 

Todays episode is part 2 of my conversation with Anna and Nathan Sutherland. Today I get to speak with Nathan and our conversation it going to enlighten and inspire you! Nathan and his wife Anna are the founders of Gospel Tech, an organization that exists to equip families to use tech in a God honoring way in a tech saturated world. Rather than painting all tech as bad, Anna and Nathan want to help families talk about tech, communicate the gospel and connect the hope in the gospel to the use of tech. It is a beautiful mission and they are doing it so well! 

In an effort to get more of this message into the hands of more people, Nathan wrote the book, Gospel-Centered Tech: Raising Faithful Followers of Christ in a Digitally Distracted World. This book will enlighten and inspire you to push forward in using tch in the best way possible with your familya way that honors God. Yes, you can honor God with your tech use! Nathans book and our conversation is honest and helpful and it is also hopeful. That is such an important element whenever we talk about tech use and screen time. It is not all doom and gloom! I know you are going to love this episode like I did. 

Where to find Nathan: 

Find Nathans book here 

Learn more about Gospel Tech here 

Follow Gospel Tech on Instagram here 

Some favorite quotes from todays episode: 

There are two kinds of tech: tool tech and drool tech. Tech that helps us build is on the tool side and tech that helps us consume is on the drool side. Nathan Sutherland 

Drool tch comes to the table with its own goals. It wants to take our time and our focus and our money. And until we understand that, were going to wonder why we keep fighting with our family. Were never going to understand why its always Fortnite and never Microsoft Word. Nathan Sutherland 

We arent perfect in our tech use. But the goal isnt to be perfect. The goal is to be humble enough to recognize we need a savior and that applies to our tech too. Anna Sutherland 

We need to know understanding what operant conditioning is so that we can have compassion for our kid when theyre stuck in the loop of social media or a video game. Greta Eskridge 

Technology isnt fair. Its designed to increase engagement and build habits. That is not an accident. Theyre using a mind bending amount of data to give you things you didnt even know you wanted. And to make you think you need things that you never wanted. Nathan Sutherland 

The definition of addiction is when you give up what you need to get what you want. Nathan Sutherland 

When we understand how tech works it gives us the opportunity to come to our kids with compassion and grace and understanding rather than the frustration we often resort to. Greta Eskridge 

Dumb phones are great! Greta Eskridge  

Porn is bombastic now. I dont know if the porn I saw in 7th grade even counts as porn anymore. Im not 100% sure that we adults understand what kids are experiencing from their pocket device or their friend showed them on the bus. Nathan Sutherland 

Its not about porn proofing. Its about equipping them to make the best choices. Its about not being afraid to bring it up with them. Its about not being afraid to answer their questions. These are all things we can do to help our kids be resilient in this world that is saturated with porn. Greta Eskridge 

I shared some big news at the start of this episode: my new book is available for pre-order! Thats right, you can go pre-order my next book, Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn: a Parents Guide to Helping Children and Teens Develop Sexual Integrity, right now and it will arrive at your door step March 4, 2025! I am just overjoyed to be sharing this book with parents and giving them the tools they need to talk to their kids about a subject that can feel daunting, uncomfortable, scary, painful or just too difficult. Or maybe a mix of all of those things. I am here to help! You all have been asking for this book for years and I have been praying I could write it for years and now, I have. Please go ahead and pre-order it now as that is tremendously helpful in the reach this book will have. And then share the heck out of it, OK? Ill need your help in getting this book into as many homes as I possible can. 

Pre Order Its Time to Talk to Your Kids About Porn here 

And now, for the rest of todays episode:  I get to speak with Anna Sutherland and our conversation it going to inspire and excite you! Anna and her husband Nathan are the founders of Gospel Tech, an organization that exists to equip families to use tech in a God honoring way in a tech saturated world. Rather than painting all tech as bad, Anna and Nathan want to help families talk about tech, communicate the gospel and connect the hope in the gospel to the use of tech. It is a beautiful mission and they are doing it so well! 

In alignment with that mission, Anna just wrote a book called The Graceful Disconnect:  25 Days to a Quieter Heart in a Tech Saturated World. In this episode I get to talk with Anna and Nathan, but really focus on Annas book. Next week youll get to hear from Nathan and his book! Annas book is a challenge, but it is a doable challenge. And an inspiring one that most of us, if were honest, need to take part in. I cant wait for you to learn more as you listen. 

Where to find Anna: 

Find Annas book here 

Learn more about Gospel Tech here 

Follow Gospel Tech on Instagram here 

Some favorite quotes from todays episode: 

*Moms, this is why I am writing to you. As much as wed like to turn a blind eye to that screen time number that pops up (our own and our childrens) we simply cannot. We are fools if we think the conditions of our hearts arent impacted by what we digitally consume. Anna Sutherland 

*Most conversations take at least seven minutes to really begin. Sherry Turkle 

*The car is a space where we default to isolation. What if, instead, it became a place for conversation and connection? Anna Sutherland 

*You can speak a common language because you share the time in the car instead of everyone doing their own thing. Greta Eskridge  

*Even as a kid, I recognized there was a break in connection when people put their headphones on. Greta Eskridge 

*Were playing the long game as parents. We want these kids to launch and to be successful adults. Our job is teach them how to do that. Life is a parenting opportunity. Anna Sutherland 

*Tech is the easy default because we dont have to deal with our kids. But easy is not the goal. Anna Sutherland 

*My grandma was a stay-at-home mom and her ministry was cookies. Thats attainable. I can make cookies! And she prayed for us every day and its incredible to have that kind of prayer covering. She made a difference for the kingdom. Anna Sutherland 

Dont forget to subscribe to this podcast. And Id be so very grateful if you leave a 5 star rating and a short review of the podcast. 

Reviews are incredibly helpful to me as a new podcaster. 

Thank you for listening and being part of my team.  

I love you guys! 

Greta 

What a fun and important episode this is. A few weeks ago I shared a photo on Instagram introducing our son William and his new girlfriend, Georgia. The response was full of joy and excitement for William and Georgia but also for our whole family, as this was something to celebrate. 

There were also a lot of questions from my Instagram followers. They wanted to know details like: how old are our kids when we let them start dating, how do set up healthy boundaries with dating, how did I feel about losing my sons (spoiler alertIm not losing them!) and so many more questions. 

So I decided to turn it all into a podcast episode and here we are! I cant wait for you to listen and to get a glimpse at the beautiful and good way God can uses dating in our kids lives to bring them toward Him and toward pursing relationships that are honoring to Him and to one another. 

The two books mentioned in this episode can be found here: 

Chasing Love: Sex, Love and Relationships in a Confused Culture by Sean McDowell 

Outdated: Find Love That Lasts When Dating Has Changed by Jonathan JP Pokluda 

If you enjoy this episode, will you please consider sharing it on your socials? Or text it to a friend? Sharing my podcast is so helpful and I deeply appreciate it! 

And I also always appreciate podcast reviews. Have you left one on iTunes yet? Id be wildly grateful if you leave one today. Thanks, team! 

Love, 

Greta 

This episode is a really special one. I am delighted to introduce you to todays guest, John Fort. John is the director of Be Broken Ministries, which exists to help individuals and families move from sexual brokenness to wholeness in Christ.  

John is also the author of several books, including Honest Talka New Perspective on Talking to Your Kids About Sex, which we talk about today. 

John vulnerably and courageously shares his story of sexual and pornography addiction and how God has redeemed his story to give him a purpose driven by hope and healing.  

I loved talking with John!  

He is full of wisdom, reassurance and, theres that word again, hope. He encourages parents to be honest with their kids about their own sexual past and then shows us how to do it. I read his book cover to cover in a few days and I cant encourage you enough to get your own copy. But start by listening to this episode and getting to know John better. Youll be so glad you did! 

Find John here: 

Be Broken Ministries 

Find Johns books here: 

Honest Talka new perspective on talking to your kids about sex 

Father-Son Accountability : Integrity Through Relationship 

Some favorite quotes from todays episode: 

*I was a little afraid to get into this work but God kept shutting all the other doors. It was like He said, I didnt bring you out of this for nothing. John Fort 

*There is so much freedom in honesty. Greta Eskridge  

*Look at what God did! He did it for me and He can do it for you. Greta Eskridge 

*If parents would be brave enough to tell their own story then their kids would be able to say, oh you do understand! and then they could talk. John Fort 

*He realized at that moment that he was not too broken to be loved by his parents or by God. For the first time he felt a surge of hope that he had someone to talk to about sex and maybe his father could help him. That event , just hearing his fathers sexual story became the turning point for this young man to actively engage in his own journey to sexual wholeness. John Fort 

*My problem had nothing to do with sex. I was using pornography and other sexual things to deal with emotions I didnt know what to do with. John Fort 

*The days I looked at pornography as a teenager were the days something bad happened and I didnt know what to do with that. John Fort 

*If in our house we never talk about body parts, we never talk about anything, that gives the silent message that its not OK to talk about these things. John Fort 

*We surveyed a bunch of teenagers and asked why dont you talk to your parents about sex. They had two answers: Im afraid my parents wont understand my past or Ill get in trouble for what I say or even what I ask. John Fort 

*Your story is simply a way to show them it is OK to talk about these things. John Fort 

*We can pretend its not happening or we can just talk about it. Greta Eskridge  

*You dont even know what your kids are dealing with until you ask. And the older they get the more often we have to ask them what theyre seeing and what theyre hearing. John Fort 

*People are looking for help for their addictions and hope for their broken hearts. They want living water. If we run away or become judgmental or uncomfortable any time we see sexual pain, we will miss the greatest opportunities to enter the pain of their sexual brokenness and share the love of Jesus Christ. Julie Slattery 

*Emotional resilience is connected to sexual wholeness. Greta Eskridge  

*We think that telling our story is going to make our kids not respect us, but the opposite is true if we do it well. John Fort 

Thank you so much for listening and being a part of my show! Id be so grateful if youd leave a rating and review of the podcast if you havent already. I appreciate each one of you. 

Keep chasing joy! 

Greta 

The Greta Eskridge Podcast is a part of the Christian Parenting Podcast Network. For more information visit www.ChristianParenting.org