teenagers.

I read this blog today (a friend had posted it on Facebook) about parenting teenagers and it got me thinking.  I am certainly not a mother, although I hope to be one day.  But I do have the distinct privilege of working with teenagers on a regular basis.  And here is the deal folks - teenagers are remarkable.

My mom has always said that children are influenced by the power of suggestion - if you tell them they will change upon midnight of their thirteenth year, they just might prove you right.  But I can tell you with sincere confidence, there is much more good in our high school students than bad.  They face different obstacles than any generation before them, are constantly bombarded by various forms of media, and experience tremendous pressure on a daily basis.  But what I see is not the "monster-like" stereotype that seems to be broadcast among the adults of our culture.  The youth I spend time with love one another, encourage one another, and lift each other up.

Allow me to give you an example.  In the youth band at Church Street UMC, we have started a tradition at the end of each rehearsal called "Peaks and Pits."  Each individual shares their high and low point of the week.  The students have become increasingly invested in each others lives - asking from week to week about the things they have shared.  One student had a rough start to her year - new school, moved houses, lots of change.  One week she said, "Well, I don't think I have a pit...it's actually been a really good week!"  The joy that the other kids had for her took my breath away. They were genuinely thrilled that she had turned the corner in her school year, and it brought tears to my eyes.

Why am I sharing this, you ask?  Because I am on their side.  They are not perfect.  They mess up.  They can be unreasonable and impulsive and unfocused and emotional and stubborn.  But they are also kind and generous and wise and strong and funny and determined and beautiful and good.  We shower them with recitations of 2 Timothy 4:12 - "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young..." but do we forget that this passage might be meant for us too?  A reminder that they are more than capable, that they are a force to be reckoned with, and we shouldn't discount who they are.

The youth I know show me the love of Christ all the time, and most of the time, they don't even know it.  So, here's to our teenagers - the ones with braces and learner's permits and growth spurts and questions and big dreams.  Let us love them well, because they deserve it, and so much more.