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talked with a group of teenagers recently about the things they deal with on a weekly basis.  Chad relayed to me, "I don't so much think about all of the crazy stuff that happens in my school and with my friends. I know it’s there, but I've gotten sort of used to it."

One of his friends spoke up and said, “Most of my friends drink, and a lot of them use drugs.” In addition, many are having sex at very young ages and those who have not yet experimented with sex are being pressured by their friends to do so.

American societal norms are changing at a rapid pace. The "crazy stuff" that takes place in the world of our students is  not only on school campuses but in their entire culture. How can young people keep a sense of direction and stay emotionally grounded as believers in Christ, despite the constant barrage of challenges they face from culture?

Many students are numb to “the crazy stuff” around them and don’t realize they are in a battle for their lives.

Chad told me that he has "gotten sort of used to it." That in itself is an indictment on the situation in which our young people find themselves. They have, to a degree, grown numb. 

Many students today do not even realize that they are in the midst of a battle for their lives. As Christian adults, it is our job to prepare them for this battle. How do we do that?

Before we do anything else, we must understand the battle. 1 Chronicles 12:32 speaks of some of the leaders in the tribe of Issachar. Scripture says that they were men “who understood the times and knew what Israel should do.” 

How can we as Christian adults know what to do to help our children, if we do not first understand the times? It is our duty to study the culture in which our young people are growing up. We cannot equip them with the proper tools and weapons for battle if we have no understanding of the battlefield. 

We cannot make the dangerous assumption that our young people know the difference between right and wrong. Studies show that more than 80 percent of teenagers do not believe in absolute truth.

The most important step in this journey of preparation is to introduce children to the source of all truth. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) Guiding young people to a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is the greatest help we will ever be able to offer young people for the battle that lies ahead of them.

We also must lead them to have convictions. This only comes through the teaching of God’s Word. Our young people will succumb to the pressures of culture if they do not have firm convictions. The pressures they face today are enormous. They face temptation on every front, and temptation is not the only pressure they face.  

Several of the students I spoke with have seen extreme violence break out on their school campuses. All of our young people live in a world that is completely lacking of a moral compass.  They receive the message from much of the entertainment industry that immorality and violence are positive ideals. They have seen corporate leaders fall because of their “indiscretions.” The world today is more violent than it ever has been before. Wars are being fought all around the globe.  

If we are going to prepare young people for the world they will face, we must combat this trend of relativism with solid biblical teaching. If young people are going to survive the pressures of the battle they will face in adolescence, it is imperative they have solid convictions based upon biblical truth, which is absolute.

If we want to instill a “sense of direction” in our young people, then we had better start when they are still children. The frightening truth of the matter is that when we wait until our young people are teenagers, many times it is too late. We need to start sooner.  Are you thinking, “It’s too late for my kids; I’ve waited far too long to begin grounding them in these principles.”?  Don’t allow yourself to be discouraged. It’s never too late to do the right thing. Why not start today?   

Leading young people to build a solid foundation of convictions is an imperative step in helping them to remain emotionally balanced.  

A student remarked to me recently that he thought the Bible was “just a book about Jesus.”  I explained to him that it absolutely is a book about Jesus, but it is so much more. God’s Word teaches us that everything in life is spiritual. I asked a college student recently how he could have been better prepared for adolescence.  He remarked, “I wish someone would have told me not only that the Bible is true but also why it actually mattered.”

Kids have to be taught that Scriptural truth applies to all of life. We need to show them why it should impact their daily lives.

When young people enter into adolescence, they need to be equipped with a biblical worldview.  It is essential for young Christians to view all of life through the grid of Scripture, and not just bits and pieces of it.  

Without doing these things we will continue to lose our young people. We will continue to see young people fold underneath the pressures they face. However, we must remember that doing all of these things will not give us success if we don’t do them in love. The apostle Paul stated, “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or clanging cymbal.” (1 Corinthians 13:1)

Kids need to know that they are loved and accepted long before they get to their teenage years.  Truth without love might still be truth, but it will not have the impact it can have when it is shared in love.

As adults, we would probably interpret the phrase “all the crazy stuff” in many different ways.  We would think of different challenges that our young people face in their different cultures.  The truth is that no two students will face the exact same challenges. Just as it is in our own lives, challenges for young people are, to a certain degree, unique to each person. However, we can be absolutely sure that our young people will face challenges.

One of the greatest challenges we face is making sure our young people don’t grow numb to “all the crazy stuff.” Let’s ground them in God’s Word, instilling in them a true perspective on life so that they might be prepared for the challenges that lie ahead.