TLEM
True Light Educational Ministry
Then
you will
know the Truth and the Truth will set you free ( John
8:32)
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Witnessing
To Teenagers
They are
without doubt the strangest, most challenging group of people you will ever
try to witness to. Here's the best part: we were all a members of this group .
Oh yes, you were too!!! You were once a teenager.
Remember
those difficult years? Your mind told you that you were now an adult. The
world around you said "No Way!" Remember those condescending looks
you were given when told to go be about your business? The adventure that is
the teen years has its share of frustration and pain.
Most of
the teens we meet today who do not know Jesus were in fact baptized as
infants. Sadly, that plan didn't go as it should have, and now they're empty
where they should be full, lonely when they should never be alone, and thirsty
with living water all about them. Ah, but getting them to drink, that is the
task before us. Remember that baptism is the Lord reaching to us to make
fertile ground for faith to grow in. They are thus as tilled ground waiting
for us to plant the seed. In no way should this imply that an unbaptized child
is to be passed over. No one is unworthy of the message of Jesus Christ as
Savior. And because of that all are able to know salvation, forgiveness, and
eternal life. Biblically we are commanded to preach the Good News without
reservation Matthew 28: 19- 20 says: Go ye therefore, and teach all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost; Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded
you...."
Here are
some things to consider, First, peer pressure for a teen is about like
carrying an anvil on your chest uphill after an ice storm in January.
Homosexuality is being presented as normal in a constant barrage to this
generation, and pre-marital sex is almost a required course for a high school
diploma. In this day of AIDS it's almost as if one is lucky to "only be
pregnant." After all, abortion on demand is now a "right."
Drugs are easily accessible, and sometimes (like crack) almost instantly
addictive. These young people about us are bombarded by Satan's ideas so much
that they can be pictured as virtually standing in the front line of a
battlefield. And the non-Christian is unarmed. We must seek to dress our young
people "in the full armour of the Lord." We must pray. Pray hard.
Pray a lot. Our Father in heaven longs to hear from you and "it pleases
Him to give you the kingdom." Satan is like a roaring lion, so don't
become his feeding ground. Pray for and allow the Holy Spirit to protect you
and lead you. He can and will put the right words in your mouth. It will be a
bumpy ride but hold on!!! To quote Mother Teresa, "There is a net of love
by which you catch souls."
The key
word to the whole process is LOVE. Love that which is created by and in the
image of God. Remember Psalm 139, how God formed and knew you in the womb.
Well, He knew our teenagers too. He loved and formed them as well; and you've
been led into their path by the Holy Spirit because of love. So, keep this at
the too of the chart. They may not admit it, but they'll know it. It's only
normal to listen to someone who you believe really cares. You've opened the
door.
Now
stick your foot in and say something positive. "Children have more need
of models than critics" (French proverb). Reach out from a positive
attitude, not negative. Never begin with someone by listing all they do wrong.
Tell them something you've noticed they do well and how that is pleasing to
God. Don't act like this time and conversation with the teen is an obligation
for you right up there next to a root canal. "For even the Son of Man did
not come to be served, but to serve. . . ." (Mark 10:45) Serve this child
you're with well by making her/him feel that God loves them just as they are.
Don't forget that "while we were yet sinners , Jesus out of love for us
died on the cross." Once you've gotten the point across that God loves
them you can then explain to them the positive proof of God's love, love
expressed by becoming man to be crucified for our sins. That the pure love of
the Lord gives us eternal life through Jesus when we repent. Of course, this
means addressing sin. They won't like this part. Well, do you? Emphasize
forgiveness first and foremost and then what needs to be forgiven. Make sure
that they understand that there is no degree of sin, that all sin is an
offense to God's perfect righteousness, and that sins are forgivable through
the grace of Jesus Christ.
To get
through this you must be willing to listen!! Teens need to be heard; they need
us to talk to them, not at them. Their lives are as important to them as ours
are to us and all of them are equal before God. Dealing with a relationship
where sex is beginning to be forced on you is just as important as getting the
car payment in on time.
It's
very important if they ask why and you don't know the Biblical reference to
give an exact answer, SAY SO. You can get the facts from the Bible and go back
with the information. They will respect you more for it. Remember they deal
with teachers as authority figures who insist on facts.
Think
like Daniel 4:.2, "It is my pleasure to tell You about the miraculous
signs and wonders that the most High God has performed for me." Don't be
ashamed to tell what God has done for you. Include not only the really big
miracles, like saving a marriage, but also little things, like the oven that
always acts up making it through Christmas dinner without a hitch. We want to
teach our children that God will hear them not only to help, let's say, fight
off the temptation of drugs, but will be there for biology exams.
Lastly,
the teen you're trying to reach needs an example. You must act the way you
tell them to act -- like a Christian. Don't preach against foul language and
than curse out somebody for taking your parking space. Don't tell them to be
sexually moral and then watch Playboy. Don't teach honesty and then laugh when
the sales associate forgets to charge you for an item. Matthew 23: 27 says:
"Woe to you.... you hypocrites!' You must practice what you preach
Be brave
in the Lord, have faith in His faithfulness!!!! And for the teen you may never
know you reached, I thank you for being obedient to God and allowing Him to
use you. Plead with the Lord of the harvest to send out more laborers to help
you, for the harvest is so plentiful and the workers so few." Luke 10:2
For
Additional Information Contact
True
Light Educational Ministry
P.O. Box
310
Shirley,
NY 11967
Telephone
(631) 395-4646
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