My Life Motto (1 Timothy 4:12)

I have several all-time favorite Bible verses. These are the verses that I know by heart, verses that inspire my daily life, and the verses that will be recurring themes on this blog. Today I want to look at one such verse: 1 Timothy 4:12.

This verse says, in the ESV Bible,

“Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.”

 

Let no one despise you for your youth: In some versions, this is “don’t let anyone look down on you”, which I think illustrates what this means well. People have a tendency, especially with teenagers, to think that we are ‘just teenagers’ and to have low expectations of us. The truth is that teenagers are capable of doing amazing things. When we live in a way that makes others look down on us, we will never realize what we are capable of.

Set an example for the believers: Instead of living in a way that leads to bad opinions from others, we are to live in a way that models the Christian life to our family, friends, and church; just because we are teenagers does not mean that we cannot live the Christian life just as well as adults—in fact, we can!

What follows is a detailed list of areas we are to set an example in:

• The way we speak (cursing, complaining, gossiping, etc. are things we should avoid.)
• The way we act (do everything for the glory of God.)
• Our love for God and those around us (they are all made in God's image.)
• Our faith in God and his plan (He knows what is best for us.)
• Our purity and morality (don't follow the example of the world.)

When we do all of these things, we are setting an example to our church family. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you are “only a teenager”; you can still live like a follower of Christ!

Next Steps: Start actively striving to set an example in all of these ways. Pray that God would help you to fulfill this calling from day to day. If you catch yourself thinking anything along the lines of, “I’m too young” or “I should have fun now because I’m a teenager”, stop!

What do you think?

• Do you like this verse as much as I do?
• What are your favorite verses?
• Have you ever fallen into the trap of belittling what you can do because of your youth? 

Welcome to My Blog!

Welcome! I’m so happy you’re here!

This blog is meant to be a place of encouragement and advice for other teens who are striving to live as followers of Christ. My goal is to bring these people together in the Lord, so that we can all see that we are not alone, no matter how much it may seem that we are.

I will post daily to the best of my ability, Monday through Saturday.  Posts will include studies of Bible verses, practical life lessons, book and movie reviews, advice for girls on issues like clothes and makeup, and other articles on a variety of topics relating to the Christian life.

Feel free to comment on any article that gets your attention! If you have any topic ideas or questions you would like to see featured, let me know in the comments of any article.

I hope this blog encourages you in your walk with Christ!