What One Teenager Can Do

by Dick Blackford The article below was written about 17-year-old Tim Wadlington. Tim died of cancer on Sept. 8, 1989, and I attended his funeral on the 12th at Eddysville, Kentucky. The church at Suwanne, where Tim worshipped, has a bulletin that is published solely by the teenagers, called The River of Life. I knew…

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Dealing with Criticism

by Mike Grushon One of the persistent problems young people must overcome is criticism from adults. Paul exhorted Timothy to conduct himself in such a way that he would give no one a basis of truth for such criticism (I Timothy 4:12). Unfortunately, some choose to criticize the young even if they do not provide…

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Planning Your Life

by P.D. Wilmeth These seven teenage years are a great adventure in experiences, with all the risks and hazards of unknown paths. They are tremendously important years this is a journey that we make only once. There is no roundtrip ticket, most of us according to the calendar will be on this road for about…

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I Wish Someone Had Told Me

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/I-Wish-Someone-Had-Told-Me.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Proverbs 5:7-14   I.         I ran across an article by Chuck Lawless about “Ten Conversations I Wish Someone Had with Me as a Teenager.”             A.        Hindsight generally reveals that mistakes could have been avoided             B.        I constantly get told: “I wish someone had told me just how bad this could get”             C.        And…

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Can Teens Make an Impact?

by Ronald D. Kelly Have you ever wished you lived ages ago? Like in pioneering days? Or during the age of knights and ladies? Or even in Bible times? Most of us have. We’ve read books or seen movies about life long ago and experienced a little of what it must have been like. The Bible…

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Hormones

by Joe Fitch “Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (II Timothy 2:22) Paul reminds and warns young Timothy of the danger in youthful lusts. Not all youthful lusts are sexual, but surely sexual lusts are included — maybe top…

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Young People’s Program

by Robert Turner In the small town of Sundridge, Ontario, Ca. 300 miles north of the U.S. — Canadian border, the young folk of a small congregation (45-50) put many of their U. S. counterparts to shame. They are High School and under: with the same love for and participation in sports, parties, etc., that…

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You should make videos answering important questions for teen boys

Question: Hello, I wanted to email you because I have a few things to say. I’m looking at these other questions from young men my age and I’m wondering “OK, do we need to stop as a society and talk more about these things?” We need to openly discuss these important issues. Your site is…

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Advice to Young Men

https://www.lavistachurchofchrist.org/cms/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Advice-to-Young-Men.mp3 by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Titus 2:6-8   I.         In the Seattle Weekly, August 21, 2002, Philip Dawdy wrote an article titled “What Little Boys Are Made Of”             A.        The thrust of the article is that school systems are biased against the way boys generally behave. 85% of the students in the “emotionally and behaviorally disturbed”…

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Not Too Young

Author Unknown Recent research has revealed what teenagers truly desire from the adults in their lives. The Search Institute study found that teens want parents and other older influencers to do the following: Look at us. Spend time talking with us. Listen. Be dependable. Show appreciation for what we do. Relax. Show that you’re interested.…

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How do I start being a good parent?

Question: Hello, I am a babe in Christ. I was just baptized last month. My life has changed very much since then, and I have no desire to go back to the way I was. I still have struggles, but I am trying to live a Christian life. A major problem that I have right…

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The Effect of Family Instability

Source: Sydney Briggs, “Family Instability and Children’s Social Development,” Child Trends, 7 Aug 2019. “Family stability can promote positive social behavior in children and adolescents, while instability is associated with social maladjustment, including behaviors such as aggression toward peers, teachers, or parents.” “Adolescents whose mothers were married at birth had higher social competence and lower…

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I found a wonderful resource for preteens and teens in your writings

Question: I just wanted to take a moment to let you know how appreciative I am to have access to your scripturally sound, open materials. As the mother of two boys and a current elementary principal in our public schools, I see the daily pressure and struggles of preteens and teens. I’m constantly on the…

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Should we allow our son to get an earring?

Question: Dear brother Jeffrey, I hope you are doing well, and that everything is going well in your work and in the local church. Brother, I wanted to ask about this personal matter. I have a 15-year-old son who is not a Christian. He is generally a good boy and obedient to us like his…

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Teenage Suicide: Its Causes and Its Cure

by Harold Fite Guardian of Truth – June 20, 1985 If the trend continues, 50,000 suicides will have occurred in this country by the end of 1985. Ten thousand of this number will be committed by young people between the ages of 15 and 34. Suicide is the second greatest killer among those between the ages…

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Reaching the Youth

by Terry Partain Forty-five years ago I was hired to work with another preacher to especially reach out to the youth. I was too late. The youth and their parents had separate social lives. The practice of catering to groups according to their age has destroyed the bonds of affection and understanding as well as…

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My friends are not content with the church. What can I do?

Question: I read your questions and answers often, and find real, godly, and biblical solace in them. I trust your judgment and wanted to ask you several things. My family has been attending churches of Christ since before we are born, and I could not see myself anywhere else. I’m a teen in the youth…

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How do you handle inappropriate talk in a youth Bible study?

Question: I just graduated from high school and started hanging out with my sister’s friends who are the college-age people in our church. Most of them are on our youth staff. They meet together in what they call a Bible study, but we did not touch a Bible once. It seemed like the whole time…

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How can I defend the faith as a Christian youth?

Question: Please assist me with this question: “How can I defend the faith as a Christian youth?” Thank you. Answer: “Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to…

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Adolescent Alcohol Use

Source: David Murphey, et al., “Alcohol Use,” Adolescent Health Highlight, Child Trends, Publication 2012-34, November 2012. Though continuing a downward trend, alcohol use remains a problem among teenagers, despite the fact that the minimum drinking age is 21 throughout the United States. 40% of high school seniors, 27% of high school sophomores, and 13% of eighth-grade…

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I recently caught my son masturbating. What advice can I give him?

Question: Hello, I recently caught my son masturbating. I wasn’t aware that he had begun to do something like that. I talked with him about it, and he does feel it’s wrong to do it. He feels he is doing it too much and has difficulty resisting it. He has also looked at pornographic material…

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Why Teenagers Take Risks

Source: “Teens more likely to embrace unknown,” The Omaha World-Herald, 3 October 2012 An interesting study finds that teenagers are more likely to take risks when they don’t know what the odds are, but if they know the odds are poor will avoid dangerous situations. Adults will do the opposite. They will avoid situations where…

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Drunk Driving Down Among Teens

Source: “Drunken Driving Down,” Omaha World-Herald, 3 October 2012 It is nice to have some good news once in a while. “In 2011, 10 percent of high school students reported drinking and driving, compared with 22 percent in 1991.” More notable is that this change is attributed in part to enforcing the law. “The legal…

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Doctors Push for Teenage Girls to Use Birth Control Devices

Source: Lindsey Tanner, “Teenage Girls Should Get IUDs or Hormonal Implants for Birth Control, Says American College of OBGYNs,” CNSNews.com, 20 September 2012 Logic has not been the strong point among liberal policymakers for decades. It seems that whenever it is found that people are ignoring moral common sense the outcry is for society to give…

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Sexting Is Associated with Risky Sexual Behavior

Source: Eric Rice, et al, “Sexually Explicit Cell Phone Messaging Associated with Sexual Risk Among Adolescents,” Pediatrics, 17 September 2012. Source: Genevra Pittman, “”Sexting” again linked to risky sex among teens: study,” Reuters, 18 September 2012. Source: Genevra Pittman, “Teen sexting: Strong link to risky sexual behavior,” Christian Science Monitor, 17 September 2012. Basic common sense has been once more confirmed.…

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My son recently underwent puberty but has suddenly stopped

Question: My son has recently undergone puberty but his growth has suddenly stopped. He has both facial and body acne, hair on his upper lip, and a consistent deep voice. He is of Asian descent. What stage do you think he is at, based on those few details? I’m too embarrassed to ask for more…

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You Need Standards and Guidance to Reduce Risky Behavior

Source: “Research Finds Parallels Between Sexual Risk Avoidance Approach and Successful Public Health Campaigns to Prevent Teenage Drinking, Smoking, and Reckless Driving,” House Energy and Commerce Health Committee, 06 July 2012. Source: “A Better Approach to Teenage Pregnancy Prevention: Sexual Risk Avoidance,” U.S. House of Representative Committee on Energy and Commerce, July 2012. The Energy and Commerce Health…

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Over a Quarter of All Teens Send Nude Photos of Themselves

Source: “28% of teens polled send nude photos of selves,” Bloomberg News, Omaha World-Herald, 2 July 2012. Source: “New Study Says Nearly 30 Percent of Teens Are Sexting,” Matthew Grant Anson, American News Report, 2 July 2012. “In a poll of nearly 1,000 students, 28 percent of teens – over one in four – admitted…

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Your Parents Can’t Make You Go to Heaven!

by Ted J. Clarke One of the greatest miseries of being a child is being made to do things that a child does not want to do. Eating vegetables, brushing teeth, taking a bath, cleaning one’s room, going to Aunt June’s, going to school, attending worship and Bible study — these all rate high on…

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Can someone there talk to my son?

Question: I am a single mom with a 14-year-old son who is starting to become curious about sex. I caught him masturbating, which was awkward for both of us, to say the least.  I decided this was a perfect opportunity to have “the talk” with him, but he doesn’t want to talk with mom about…

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What Keeps a Man Sexually Pure?

by Jeffrey W. Hamilton I ran across several interesting studies the other day dealing with the factors that lead teenage boys to engage in sex prior to marriage. One study is titled “The Transition of Adolescent Males to First Sexual Intercourse: Anticipated or Delayed?”  The reason for the title is that the surveyed youths were divided into…

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What Boys, Girls, and Their Parents Need To Know

by Wendi Capehart The following is adapted from an old post the good blogger at Wit-nit wrote. He wished to illustrate just how heady and disorienting a brew lust can be, how dangerous in the hands of the immature, but he is not a believer and he wrote an R-rated post. He allowed me to…

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