Every day young people are lied to. From media images of the “perfect body” to music lyrics of the “perfect life”—you know filled with gang violence, sex and of course money.

 

Teens are told on a daily basis that they will never be good enough unless they do something or be someone other than who they are and normally contrary to the image of Christ.

 

Many teens, including those within the church, are trying hard to attain the world’s idea of a perfect life.

 

I have spoken with many young people over the years, but one teenage girl’s comments are seared in my mind forever.

 

She told me that the only reason she sleeps with so many different guys is because she feels loved and accepted when they are sleeping with her. She said for just that moment she feels beautiful.

Heartbreaking. She felt so unloved that she would give of herself just to feel and be told she is special for a few moments. 

 

Do you think that if someone had told her that her Creator thinks she is so special that He numbered the hairs on her head that she would feel that she needed to sleep around?

 

She bought the media’s lie that says that if a man wants to sleep with you then that must mean you are beautiful.

 

We should be making a conscious effort to saturate our teens with the truth—what God says about them in His Word.

 

Tell them that God knit them together in their mothers’ wombs. And that God knew them before the beginning of the earth. Tell them that they are not an accident or a mistake because nothing catches God off guard.

 

Some teens don’t know that God has great things in store for their lives and it doesn’t have to surround being a movie star or an athlete.

 

As believers we should make an effort to find out what our teens are good at and encourage them in those areas. Help nurture their gifts.

 

Some teens are fearful of using their gifts because they are afraid they won’t be accepted or that they will fail and then be ridiculed. 

 

We can tell them that with Christ there is no limit to what they can do.

 

You never know if the words you speak could be life altering for a teen.

 

As humans we want to hear positive things about ourselves, but if we are told negative things over and over we start to believe them— even if they are not true.

 

Let’s tell teens the truth so they won’t have to believe the lies.