Pledge personal online integrity. Articulate your desire to align your online life with the values you profess by creating a personal Internet mission statement. Share it with some of your closest friends and family, and consider even posting it publicly, such as to your personal pages on MySpace or Facebook.

Seek trusted accountability. Ask someone you trust (like your spouse or sibling or close friend) to meet with you regularly to discuss your online life and encourage you to set and maintain the right boundaries.

Apply helpful technology. Research products like Internet access devices that can help you make healthy choices about how you use the Internet. Select the ones that meet your specific needs. Install and configure them. Maintain the technology well, and regularly reassess your technology needs as circumstances change.

Balance online and offline life. Constantly analyze when to use the Internet and when to turn it off and spend more time in the real world. If you find it hard to unplug when you need to, consider these tips: Set time parameters for each online task so you don’t get lost in cyberspace, try to limit your time online to certain times of the day, close your e-mail and turn off your instant messaging and RSS feeds while you’re trying to focus on a task, keep your goal in mind when you do Internet searches, and keep a running list of interesting links you uncover rather than just clicking on them right away.

Practice humble authenticity. Make sure that when you’re online, you’re representing yourself for who you really are. Regularly and honestly examine your values – and let those values guide you when you surf the Internet. Stay away from places online that you know tempt you to sin. When communicating with others online, identify yourself as a Christian whenever it’s appropriate to do so, and make decisions that reflect what Jesus might do if He were online.

Become a cyber ambassador for good. Beyond just avoiding bad behavior online, you can use the Internet as a powerful force for good. Instead of retreating from important topics, engage others in conversations about them and help redeem cyberspace in the process. Speak up with the truth in loving ways when you interact with others online. Get to know the Bible well so you’ll be prepared to communicate its truth to others online. Don’t take yourself too seriously, flaunt your faith, or condemn others. Instead, be relaxed and upbeat when you share your faith. Listen to people patiently, pray for them, and steer conversations in positive directions. Help build and maintain websites to support your church and service efforts through ministries, charities, and other organizations in your community. Start a blog on a topic that interests you and provide a Christian perspective on it. Be creative as you think and pray through ways you can represent Christ well in cyberspace.

Adapted from Virtual Integrity: Faithfully Navigating the Brave New Web, copyright 2008 by Daniel J. Lohrmann. Published by Brazos Press, a division of Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Mich., www.brazospress.com. 
Daniel J. Lohrmann, an award-winning computer security expert, directs the State of Michigan’s Office of Enterprise Security and is Michigan’s chief information security officer. He was named the 2008 Chief Security Officer of the Year by SC Magazine and one of the 25 most influential people in the security industry by Security Magazine. A sought-after speaker at technology conferences around the country, he lives with his wife and four children in Grand Ledge, Michigan.