There Once Was a Prince...

Okay you guys, the topic of this post is something I believe is very important in every christian teen life. Yeah, you guessed it. Abstinence.  And where did your mind go? Probably where mine used to go every time I heard that word. Far away, tuned out because you’ve already heard so much about it. Don’t fret, this isn’t going somewhere where your mind shouldn’t follow.  But, everyone needs to truly learn about Abstinence, and what you can do to keep your body ‘a temple for God’.

In fact, I have a little story for you guys. It involves a prince, and some hard-core morality.

    King Louis (XVI of France) had been taken from his throne and imprisoned. His young son, the prince, was taken by those who dethroned the king. They thought insamuch as the king’s son was heir to the throne, if they could destroy him morally, he would never realize the great and grand destiny that life had bestowed upon him.
    They took him to a community far away, and there they exposed the lad to every filthy and vile thing that life could offer. They exposed him to foods the richness of which would quickly make him a slave to appetite. They used vile language around him constantly. They exposed him to lewd and lusting women. He was surrounded twenty-four hours a day by everything that could drag the soul of a man as low as one could slip. For over six months he had this treatment - but not once did the young lad buckle under pressure.

Finally, after intensive temptation, they questioned him. Why had he not submitted himself to these things - why had he not partaken? These things would provide pleasure, satisfy his lusts, and were desirable; they were all his. The boy said, “I cannot do what you ask for I was born to be a king.”

- 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, Page 15

Right now you are probably wondering why I even put this story in here. In all actuality, it was originally used to explain paradigms, or the way we view things, our perspective. But more on that later.  Remember how the men wanted to destroy the prince’s spirit?  Well,  they wanted to so the boy would never realize that he was supposed to be better; they wanted to literally destroy it. now think of the men as sin, and the boy as you. Would you have given in?  Sin wants to constantly destroy your spirit, it doesn’t want you to recognize that you’re supposed to be something greater.  As 1 Corinthians 3:16 states,”Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you?”

    Well, don’t you? if you know that you’re the temple for His spirit, why do we continue to sin? It’s because we give in to the temptations of sin. All the time, Satan is whispering in our ear. And it is no help that the media helps him. Ever have thoughts like:

“Oh, this show is a little wrong, but it is alright, it isn’t going to hurt.”
                     “How can one drink get me addicted?”

“Cutting classes is fine, everyone does it.”

“Besides, all my friends are doing it, why shouldn’t I?”

Or anything similar? We all sin, it is our sinful nature.  Romans 3:23  reminds us of it. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”. And  since God’s Spirit lives inside us, it’s getting little attacks from all the sin you commit. If God is in our body, why are we trying to make him leave with the continuous sin? We should not be defined of things of this world, but rather, by our God.

Romans 8:9 “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.”

    Even according to the bible we are not controlled by our sinful nature. That is why we have the ability to say no, to abstain from things we know will do us harm. And God wants us to. Every time we sin, we fall short of the glory of God,  doesn’t that just wrench a soul in your heart? Every time you participate in something you know is going to do you harm, you just got farther from God; farther! God doesn't want that, he wants to have you near him, you should want that too! The prince wanted it. He abstained from all of those horrible things that “could drag the soul of a man as low as one could slip.” Just think,  the prince could’ve added one word, and would have been a model for you to follow even more. He could’ve said this: “ I cannot do what you ask for I was born to be with a King.”  All of us were born to be with the King, (and not Elvis!) 1 Corinthians 6:19 says, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own;”
   

Remember in the first post were I talked about walking with the wise? I know remembering things again... But anyway, the second part of Proverbs 13:20 says that “the companion of fools suffers harm.” Guess, what! Those ‘fools’ aren’t just people. Think if the ‘fools’ as anything that can damage your temple. The media, drinking, foul language, partaking in sin, generally.  So what can you do? You can abstain from things that do you harm. Or ABSTINENCE! See, now we’ve come full circle. Abstinence is keeping your body holy for use as a temple for God’s Spirit. And  that is for the good of everybody. Even if you do end up sinning once in a while, the point is to keep trying, to persevere.  After all,  “There is not a righteous man on earth who does what is right and never sins.”

-Ecclesiastes 7:20

The Two Seas

“There are two seas in Palestine. One is fresh, and fish are in it. Splashes of green adorn its banks. Trees spread their branches over it and stretch out their thirsty roots to sip of its healing waters.
   

...The River Jordan makes this sea with sparkling water from the hills. So it laughs in the sunshine. And men build their houses near to it, and birds their nests; and every kind of life is happier because it is there.

The River Jordan flows on south into another sea.

Here is no splash of fish, no fluttering leaf, no song of birds, no children’s laughter. Travelers choose another route, unless on urgent business. The air hangs heavy above its water, and nether man nor beast nor fowl will drink.
   

What makes this mighty difference in these neighbor seas? Not the River Jordan. It empties the same good water into both. Not the soil in which they lie; not the country round about.
   

This is the difference. The Sea of Galilee receives but does not keep the Jordan. For every drop that flows into it another drop flows out. The giving and receiving go on in equal measure.

The other sea is shrewder, hoarding its income jealously. It will not  be tempted into any generous impulse. Every drop it gets, it keeps.
   

The Sea of Galilee gives and lives. This other sea gives nothing. It is named the Dead.

    There are two kinds of people in this world. There are two seas in Palestine.”

-The Man Nobody Knows by Bruce Barton.

Landing Hands First in a Cactus Or Rather, How Not To:

How DO you keep a christian mindset after the excitement wears off?

    Have you ever been on a really awesome youth trip and just felt the magic, the passion for Christ and your friends just flowing through you? Or, how about you went with a friend to a lock-in, and just being surrounded by such joy for God got you pumped? Now remember how you felt afterwards? I know, it’s a stretch. Remembering things isn’t my favorite thing either. I’ve had this experience, and the same thing happens every time.  Let me lay it out for you:
   

I went with my youth group to a ‘youth retreat’ at Mozingo Lake.  Everyone had been pumped for the event to happen, but when I arrived at the church that  late morning it was a different ball game. Everywhere kids were chatting it up, talking about the friends they brought or what activities the groups might do. We boarded the small bus and headed out. Now, I’m going to skip the details and get to the point. The number one thing that I looked forward to the most was our worship. Why you might ask? Simply because of the amazing energy of my friends.  Everyone was so pumped for Christ! Our voices sang in unison for His glory.

Are you connecting with this?  Maybe your wondering when  I’ll get to the point. Don’t  worry, it’s coming soon. Frankly, everything seemed so clear, our paths, our priorities. Then we came back home. It was our descent off of our mountain, where the view was clear, and into a valley where we were surrounded. Or at least I know that I was. Suddenly, as  I came off that mountain, I was confronted with obstacles, I didn’t feel quite as invincible as I did around that campfire, or singing those songs of praise.

As two of my new favorite authors experienced, coming down off that mountain is tricky, and sometimes you end up tripping and flying hands first into a cactus. (Which hurts a lot, I would think.) Then BAM! your back into your cycles  from before the trip, seemingly not changed at all.

The Solution according to Sydney

    Does this sound familiar at all? Maybe it’s like one of those groggy dreams that you only half remember. Don’t worry, I understand.   The important thing is that you get where I’m coming from. What can a person do once their passionate high has been broken down by sin and doubt, by the monotony of school? I’ve wondered this myself for a whole first semester. And I think the answer lies in some verses I’ve stumbled onto recently. The first is Proverbs 13:20, which states, “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” To read between the lines, and connect this with our problem at hand, this great verse states that when we hang with those that are smarter than us, (Wiser) we in turn be come more wise. But the second half of that verse states that  “ companion of fools suffers harm.”  If we hang out with ‘fools’ or people who do not live a godly life most of the time, you get sucked into a sinful life. You become a fool. We want to be surrounded by people who can life us up, people who can help fuel your  passion and get your life back on track. Attend Church regularly, go hang out with good Christian friends.  A good thing to try is to explain how you felt on that trip to someone. Ask them if they could take on the role of an encourager in your life. It worked for me!

Now, I’m not saying that you abandon all your other  friends.  They need you  more than ever if they walk without Christ. When they see you all fired up, hopefully you place a spark inside their own hearts that makes them wonder why you are so full of joy.  But as  Col 4:6 - states,”Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone. “ Don’t let yourself drift into something that leads to sin, rather, have your conversation ‘be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, ‘. Now, I bet you’re shaking your head wondering why I’m talking about salt. If you remember any history lesson talking about the old, old times, you would hopefully remember that they didn’t have freezers or food vacs.  Salt was not only good for a little bit of seasoning on foods, but some salt rubbed on that same meat slowed down decay. It was a  preserver. So, if we play a little Nancy Drew and decode that scripture, we get that  our ‘conversations should be always full of grace, seasoned with preservers, ‘

I know that even I confused myself a little back there. So, I want to sum up what two very good teen authors wrote.

“And-- worst-case scenario-- how do you keep the majestic view in mind when you’re digging cactus spines out of your hand?

The answer is to chart a clear course.

Unfortunately, that was basically all they said about the subject in that part of the book.   But I think it ‘s a pretty concise statement. Let’s look at the last sentence. Chart a clear course? We’re not  pirates!  But yet that is exactly what we must do. What I’ve said above are my personal steps to chart my clear course.  If you are serious about wanting to keep that Passion for Christ burning hot, then you can’t just give up. You have to fight the good fight, as Apostle Paul says.

Like 1 Timothy 4:12 states, “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.”

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