I wanted to take a moment to share a few things that I hope will be helpful to you. Even though I can’t be with you right now, I will still share some things that can guide and protect you. What you do with them is up to you.
This is a time in your life when much will change for you. There is much to look forward to…and much to be careful of.
I wish that I could be there to help you navigate the teenage years. You will experience so many wonderful things and people. You will become aware of new ideas and concepts. Some of these things will be very positive and helpful to you. Yet some of them will seem positive and “enlightened” (or very intelligent) right now, yet you will come to understand later, that our culture doesn’t agree with our Lord on some very important issues.
There will be people (friends and adults) that will try to get you to do things that you know God is against. Don’t do it. It’s never the right thing and will only come back to hurt and deceive you.
Just remember God’s word is always right. I don’t care who says different, how smart they may sound, or even if they tell you they are a Christian, but they don’t live like Jesus teaches. If it doesn’t line up with scripture, then it isn’t true. If you hold on to that perspective, it will protect you from many dangers in this life.
Here are several important character traits that will serve you well the rest of your life if you embrace them.
Integrity (or honor)
One of the best definitions I have ever heard is this. Integrity is “what you do, when no one else is watching”. Always remember guys, even if no one else can see you, God is always with you. The bible says that His goal for each one of us is to become more like Jesus every day. It hurts Him and us every time we sin.
Faithfulness (or loyalty)
It is easy to follow God when everyone else around you is doing that. As you probably already know, that is not always the case. What will you do when (not if) your friends are all doing something that you know you shouldn’t be doing. What if they make fun of you, call you names, or even threaten you if you don’t go along with what they are doing? How will you respond then?
My advice is this. Decide now, before you are in that situation, that you will remain faithful to God and your beliefs no matter what. That may mean walking away from a situation, or possibly even walking away from a friendship. If that’s the case, the friendship probably wasn’t worth keeping, or you taking a stand, may help a friend to stop doing something they shouldn’t be doing in the first place. Whenever it’s a choice between being loyal (and fitting in) with friends or God, always choose God.
Courage
Courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability to act in spite of the fear. Everyone is afraid at different times. Fear is nothing to be ashamed of. Just don’t let it control your actions, or stop you from doing the right thing.
There will be many times in your life that courage is required. In extreme cases, it may even mean that you need to physically defend yourself or someone else. Remember that even when it seems that you are all alone, Jesus is right there with you. You are never alone!
You may not think that is much help at times (because you can’t see him), but it really does make all the difference guys. He is with you always.
Purity
This means that we need to guard our hearts, minds and body’s from anything that is not holy, according to God.
Your minds and body’s are changing and growing at a rapid pace. No matter what anybody tells you or does, always keep yourself pure for God.
People will try to get you to try drugs and alcohol with promises that it “will be fun”. They’ll taunt you by asking you if you’re just a baby, or too little, to do whatever it is they want you to do. Don’t fall for it guys! Drugs and alcohol can destroy your body and mind. They don’t care about you or what happens to you. They are usually just as afraid as everyone else to try these things, but they aren’t strong enough to say no. You be strong enough. You will never regret it.
The other area that satan will try to attack is your sexuality. He will use everything in his power to try to tempt you sexually. You are both old enough to understand most of what I am about to share. This letter will remain on your site for you to refer back to whenever you need to.
Let’s begin with the obvious and most important aspect of this part of your life. God created sex. It is a very good thing in the context of His plan and blessing. Always remember that there is nothing wrong with sex itself between a man and a woman. But it is NEVER blessed by God to be all that He intended, unless it is within a committed marriage relationship.
I guarantee you that some of your friends and maybe even relatives will tell you different. You may also have people that say they believe what the bible says, yet they will live their life very differently in this area.
Do not fall into this temptation and trap. Wait until you are married, to the woman that God has chosen for you to spend your life with, before you have sex. If you will do that, you will experience God’s rich blessing of sexual fulfillment, and His protection from harm in this area of your life.
Our culture advertises with sex all the time. God created women to be beautiful to the eyes of man. There is nothing wrong with a woman’s beauty. It is a wonderful and good thing to behold. The difference is this. Satan wants to tempt and destroy us by perverting (twisting or altering) something that was meant to be beautiful and holy when it was created.
One of the ways that he does this is through pornography (pictures or movies of people that are naked or even having sex). He uses this method to take our eyes off of God and getting us in bondage (prisoners) to sin. I will warn you both right now. The internet is filled with those kind of things. Some of your friends will most likely start finding and watching them. Don’t do it! Stay as far away from that stuff as you can. It won’t be easy, but it is worth it.
Another area that is common these days and is even worse. There are those that believe in same sex relationships. They call it being “gay”. Unfortunately our society has allowed this tragic lifestyle to exist and even promote itself. It is very unpopular among certain groups of people to admit that you believe homosexuality is a sin. Again guys, go back to your bible. What does God say about those kind of relationships? He is totally against it and calls it sin.
The worst part about this particular sin is this. Those people are always trying to recruit other people (get others to be like them). They want everyone to be like them, so they will try to talk you into “trying” their lifestyle. They will use arguments like “you might be gay and just not know it”. What a bunch of garbage! They just want you to doubt yourself and they are trying to confuse you. Don’t ever fall for it! It is a lie from the evil one.
Sometimes there will be an older person that says they are your friend, a coach, or maybe even a relative, that wants to be too close to you. Don’t let that happen guys. Be on guard against anyone that tries to get too close to you, in a way that is inappropriate (not right or healthy).
I do not want either of you to be fearful of this world, but I also need to share these words of caution, the same way that I would if I were there to protect you myself.
Just like your earthly father, there are those that will try to take you away from your heavenly father as well.
Unfortunately I have to cut this short, I will add more later. I love you both. You are always on my mind and in my heart. I believe in both of you. I always have and I always will.
Love,
Dad
