by Jefferson David Tant<\/p>\n
Well, that’s obvious, isn’t it? I’ve never heard of anyone going through their youth twice.<\/p>\n
So, what are the implications? What is the importance of this fact? The reality is that in our young years, we set the course for our lives. We start on the course we will follow for the rest of our lives.<\/p>\n
In our youth, we form habits, and habits are hard to break. I have known too many people who took up smoking tobacco when they were young and, in the coming years, dealt with some health difficulties from this habit and really struggled to quit smoking. Thus, a habit formed when they were young produced problems when they were older. Young people also sometimes develop other bad habits that cause problems.<\/p>\n
We are involved in many areas of life where early choices matter.<\/p>\n
Obviously, we attend school when we are young. And what should we be doing from the beginning of each new semester? Who would disagree that studying our class textbooks from the start of the semester is wise? Diligence in studying will produce good grades on our report cards and, eventually, guarantee our graduation.<\/p>\n
Students who go home from school and spend their time playing games and watching TV rather than doing their homework and studying their class textbooks will not do well on final exams.<\/p>\n
There’s nothing wrong with having a good time and enjoying some good things around us, but diligence should also be given to learning class material, which will be of benefit in the future.<\/p>\n
School textbooks are the Words of Education, but God’s textbook, the Bible, is the Word of Life. It should be obvious that no source of information is more important than the book God has given us through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It not only guides us through our lives in this world, but also opens the gates to eternity-a life in heaven.<\/p>\n
My memory tells me that there were times in school that the class teacher would say, “We’re having a surprise exam today.” And what if we hadn’t done our daily homework and studied our textbook? We would likely fail.<\/p>\n
Consider the apostle Paul’s advice to a young man named Timothy: “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth<\/em>” (II Timothy 2:15). I also like the way the old King James version reads: “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth<\/em>.”<\/p>\n Note that “give diligence” and “study” carry the same meaning. And note also that Paul’s exhortation was given to a young man. And Solomon also has some good advice: “Remember also your Creator in the days of your youth, before the evil days come and the years draw near when you will say, ‘I have no delight in them’<\/em>” (Ecclesiastes 12:1).<\/p>\n And remember that some die young, either from accident or disease. So, be ready! You are only young once! So make good use of your time.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" by Jefferson David Tant Well, that’s obvious, isn’t it? I’ve never heard of anyone going through their youth twice. So, what are the implications? What is the importance of this fact? The reality is that in our young years, we set the course for our lives. We start on the course we will follow for…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[27],"tags":[309],"class_list":["post-97744","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","tag-youth"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":62320,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/establishing-good-habits\/","url_meta":{"origin":97744,"position":0},"title":"Establishing Good Habits","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 29, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: II Peter 1:2-12 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We spend a lot of time and money on education \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We learn fundamental skills and search for information that makes us stand out in the job market \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0We teach our children, even when they whine and moan about school work, so\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":69352,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/tampering-with-sin\/","url_meta":{"origin":97744,"position":1},"title":"Tampering with Sin","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jefferson David Tant The story is told of a man in Rockwood, Tennessee, many years ago. Wilkie was a bricklayer, and one day, he caught a black snake and tamed it so that it would coil about his neck as he walked up and down the streets of his\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rattlesnake-300x169.avif","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":42733,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/reaching-the-youth\/","url_meta":{"origin":97744,"position":2},"title":"Reaching the Youth","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 21, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"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\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":35177,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/young-people\/","url_meta":{"origin":97744,"position":3},"title":"Young People","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 8, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"by Hugh Fulford As is the case with old people, the Bible has much to say about young people. In some respects, both \"young\" and \"old\" are relative terms. Even after I was in my 60s, I would sometimes be told, \"You are still a young man.\" To me, anyone\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Article"","block_context":{"text":"Article","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/article\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/youths-300x168.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":20553,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-my-soul-in-jeopardy-if-i-dont-talk-to-a-christian-about-his-smoking\/","url_meta":{"origin":97744,"position":4},"title":"Is my soul in jeopardy if I don’t talk to a Christian about his smoking?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 21, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is my soul in jeopardy if I don't address the issue of a known smoker that attends the church where I attend?\u00a0\u00a0He was baptized years ago and partakes of the Lord's Supper. By not addressing the issue with him, am I now out of Christ?\u00a0 Also, if a preacher\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":10270,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-children-contribute-to-the-church\/","url_meta":{"origin":97744,"position":5},"title":"Should children contribute to the church?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"June 6, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: My daughter is now eleven years old. When we, in the church, lay by in store on Sunday she has always put in her small amount. I have encouraged this to teach her to give. 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