Monday, April 18, 2011

PROTECTING OUR FAMILIES--GIVEAWAY.


PhotobucketTo be completely honest, I am quite naïve. Call it sensitive or inexperienced, but I have never had much of a desire to do wrong. I’m definitely not perfect, but I don’t seek out things I shouldn’t.  I consider this a great blessing.

When I was a missionary in Ecuador we were allowed to use the internet to e-mail our families each Monday morning at local internet cafes. On one of those mornings I learned a very powerful lesson, that has stuck right with me.

As I was working on my weekly e-mail, I glanced up and my eye caught the screen of another computer, what I saw was graphic and completely inappropriate. It blew me out of the water. Quickly, I put my head down, finished my e-mail and we left the internet café. But, the images stuck, and they have to this day.

Luckily, the effect of the experience for me has been positive. I was disgusted more than anything, but amazed at the power of such an experience. I learned then, how even in avoiding evil, we can become casualty to Satan’s cunning tactics. I learned how readily available pornography is and I learned just how accepted it has become. I am very aware of the powerful influence of pornography.

I love the metaphor that Sister Beck made of women being the “lioness at the gate” in their homes. I gain great strength and power from that visual as I think of myself as the keeper of the gate into our home. What comes into my house, must pass through the mama.

Ever since that experience, and even more so as I’ve become a mama, I am hyper aware of the media consumption in our house. At this point Jimmy and I are really the only ones that use the computers, and we control the TV and movie selections. As nice as that is, I know that soon enough our girls will be savvy enough to navigate the internet and control the remote. As such, I want our home to be protected from anything that might be of harm to anyone of us, and that includes my and husband and myself. 
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One of the things we have always had is an internet filter, where we have controlled the settings of what can and cannot be accessed on our computers. It has provided a safe guard and protection for us, providing safety as we use the internet every single day. We know that even when we don’t seek for evil, it can find its way into our homes, and a filter prevents that from happening—in most cases.

We have used a few different companies over the years, most recently using Net Nanny, and have been very pleased at the protection it has provided. I'm happy to share today, that Net Nanny has offered a few copies of their filtering system to Mamas Who Know readers. Their program, a $39.99 value annually, is available for download and will be given to two lucky giveaway winners here on the blog. They have also offered two additional copies to Facebook commenters. Even if you've got a filter, you can use this when your current subscription ends.

So, mamas, here's your chance to win a Net Nanny filtering system for your home computer. Leave a comment here for a chance to win. And, to up your chances, head over to Mamas Who Know on Facebook and leave another comment there. I'll announce the winners on Friday morning.

Quote taken from an article entitled, "The Secret Enemy", in February 2011 Ensign.

23 comments:

Jocelyn Christensen said...

Please please please pick me! :) I am so with you on this...I am always calling out things in media that is not acceptable. I used to work in TV...I loved it. But now as a mom, I see things that I don't want to be a part of our home.

Savannah said...

I think this would be great to have in our home!

Zoey said...

What a wonderful giveaway! We have the computer in the front room where traffic is highest, but this would be so great to add!

Heidi said...

I think is a must in every home! My oldest is 8 and is starting to come home from school with school approved websites and wanting to play...it makes me nervous because like you said, it comes to us...you don't have to seek it out anymore!

Marissa said...

I think that no home should be without such a wonderful tool. Hopefully it will come to our home!

Heidi said...

Great giveaway!

Staci said...

this looks like a great product. my kids are getting older and i would love this.

Laura said...

This is something we definately need!

Samantha Murphey said...

I've been looking for an internet filter software. I'd love this!

Cheeri said...

Our kids are using the internet more and more so this would be an awesome thing to have :)

Unknown said...

Thank you for that tip! I have been sheltering my 11 year old by only allowing her to go on her own gmail and rarely anything else. But there are times when I want to say "google it" to her, but still don't want her to get on and navigate alone. This would TOTALLY help.

Hannah said...

Our subscription to net nanny just ran out, so this would be wonderful! I agree that we need to be so careful with computers. The internet can be a wonderful place, but it can also be a very scary place.

The Mangums said...

What a great giveaway! I love the link to Sister's Beck's talk about being "the strongest lioness at the gate" during the “swing shift.” That’s the afternoon shift. That’s when everyone comes home hungry, tired, needy, and less lovable. It is when you are hungry, tired, needy, and less loveable. It is also the time of day when people are more teachable, when they are most grateful." So so true!

The Bobos said...

What a fantastic product to have in our home. It is frustrating when even simple phrases entered into search engines that have nothing to do with pornography can result in disgusting results. Thanks for the giveaway! P.S. I'm so excited to see you guys in less than a month!

2tiredmommy said...

We have the computer where I can monitor what my children are viewing, but it is far too easy to have something inappropriate pop up. With teens and tweens, it is becoming more difficult to keep my children in the "bubble" of inexperience.

Heather@Women in the Scriptures said...

I am so amazed at how computer savy my little ones are. My 21 month old knows how to use a mouse! It scares me sometimes how much they might get into before i even know it! This is a great giveaway.

The Allen Family said...

What a great giveaway! Thanks for the chance.

Heidi said...

My kids are using the computer a lot more, and this would help them be safer!

Kim H said...

This would be a great thing to have as our kids are getting older also!

Tiffy Ann said...

That would be nice to have. It is always good to be protected!

Daniel Walker said...

Great Idea! Hope to win:)

skinners said...

What a wonderful tool and I say the more protection, the better!

Unknown said...

We have used different software through the years, some good and some just plain frustrating. It would be nice to see how this one works!

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