Becoming the Teen God Expects You to Be

It is a difficult task for teenagers today to listen intently for the will of God in their lives while they are surrounded by a sea of sad expectations from the world, but it is absolutely essential in becoming a vessel that God can use. If one is not careful, he will easily fall into the trap of basing his life around the assumptions of the majority rather than what God would expect from him. One might even fall short of accomplishing all that he is capable of. Sometimes an idea is so constantly thrown at a person that he starts to believe it and accept it as his own standard. Here’s an example of how an idea can bloom into a barrier. In Asia, elephant owners are able to contain their elephants in a certain area simply by tying them up with a small piece of rope.[1] How does this work? Couldn’t the towering elephant easily break free? The elephant could, but does not. Here’s how it works: When the elephant is still very small, it is chained to a tree by a large, heavy chain. The elephant may try and try to break free, but its efforts are no use. No matter how hard it pulls, it can’t move from its spot. After days of exhorting all of its strength into working to snapping the chain, it finally gives up and accepts the fact that it will not be able to leave the tree. Soon after, the owner switches out the chain for a piece of rope. Again, the elephant tries to leave, but at the slightest feeling of resistance it gives up. It could easily break loose, but because it has accepted the idea that if there is something around its leg, it won’t be able to move.[2] It is the same with teenagers. If you accept ideas from the world as your standards, you are likely to follow through to them, and you are likely to fall short of rising to your full potential. [3]

Why do we strive to be loved?

Why do we strive to be loved by other people? Why do we feel like if someone else does something, then it's okay for us to do it, to even out the playing field? Why do we strive to make things fair when we know that life isn't always going to be? Why do we worry about what other people think more than what God thinks of us? Why can't we do what's right no matter what everyone else is doing? Even if things don't turn out fairly, isn't the satisfaction of knowing you're doing what Jesus would do better than knowing that you were just as low as the other people? Why isn't God's love enough for us, and we feel like we need to feel loved by other people? Why aren't we satisfied with God's love when it's the greatest love of all? He sent His PERFECT son to die for people like us, who disregard His ultimate act of love! Why can't we realize that He's on our side and that when we stand up for what we believe in no one can stand against us because we have the Creator of the ENTIRE UNIVERSE with us?

Esther

I had to write a paper about a faithful follower in the Bible for Literature last year. I love Esther's story and I think she's a great example to all of us on how to be faithful to God.

Esther is a very inspiring character from the Bible because she trusted God to help her through all of the hardships she faced. She understood God's will and followed through in doing it, even though it was hard.

When the king was looking for a new queen, Esther was taken from her home and had to be kept at the palace for a long time to be brought before the king. After the king picked her, she and her people were put in danger by an evil man named Haman. When her cousin Mordecai begged her to ask the king to spare them, she decided to do it because she realized that that was the reason God had put her in that position. After doing the dangerous task of going before the king, he granted her request, and her people were spared.

Ester was faced with many challenged but she stayed true to God through it all. She showed great courage by doing something life-threatening for the sake of her people. She proved that you need to trust that God will get you through hard things, and that if you do God's will you'll never come out empty handed.

Now I want to know..who's your favorite Bible character and why? Esther is one of my favorites, as well as David, because he was THE musician of the Bible. He had such a heart of worship!

~Amy