Devotions for Teens

[Soldier4Christ]

  A Walk Through The Desert


"Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the desert these forty years, to humble you and to test you in order to know what was in your heart; whether or not you would keep His commands.  He humbled you causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your fathers had known to teach you.  That man does not live on bread alone, but every word that comes from the mouth of God." - Deuteronomy 8:2-3


Have you ever had a time in your life where you just feel dry?  You don't know what or where, or even who you are?  I believe that as Christians these times are where God is leading us through a desert.  It is dry, it is long, and it is frustrating.  All you can see is miles and miles of nothing.  It can be rather frightening, I know.  Especially when you don't know why you are there, and all you want is to live the way you did before, and love the way that you did before. 

I can't help but think of how the Israelites must have felt wandering the desert for a very long 40 years.  How frustrating that must have been for them!  To not know where you are going, and when you are going to get there.  It seems like they must have had a lot of despair.  Reading the verses above it is so comforting to know that God had a plan for them wandering through that desert.  He didn't just leave them there; he took them there to strengthen them so that they might be prepared for the path that He had laid out for their lives.  If God provided for the Israelites in that desert so long ago, you can rest assured that He is providing for you now.  Even in ways that you can't see it, God is plotting and planning your course.  He has you where you are for a reason, and I pray that you are able to come to know Him even stronger, and passionately when your time through the desert comes.  If you haven't gone through a long dry desert in your Christian life, know that sometime you will.  Be prepared to have your heart and life changed in that process.  Deserts are dry and they are long, but the Grace and Mercy of the Lord will never leave you! He does have a plan for your wandering.

[Soldier4Christ]

  My Sibling Is Driving Me Crazy

“My sister is just a real pain.  She is always trying to annoy me, or get
into my business.  She really is starting to become a nuisance. Do you have
any ideas?”

I think that all of us who have siblings at one time or another have had
sibling rivalry come into our lives.  Whether it be your older brother
picking on you, or your younger sister being an instigator, you have really
been annoyed and even to the point of wanting to find a way to get back at
them.  When it comes to sibling rivalry, it is perhaps one of the most
natural unavoidable occurrences within a family.

Sibling rivalry can be good, bad, or even ugly.  Some of you may see sibling
rivalry because your sibling is looking for your attention.  Some of you may
see sibling rivalry actually motivate you to do better in different areas of
your life.  Then some of you may see sibling rivalry actually causing some
serious pain in your life whether it be emotional, physical, or even
spiritual.  The question is, how do you deal with it?

First, for those of you who see sibling rivalry causing you to strive for
excellence.  That is not all bad. Maybe you had a brother who was the star
pitcher on the baseball team, and you are a great pitcher as well.  Going
out and breaking his records are not that bad.  Maybe you have a sister that
is a great swimmer and had many school records.  If you are a great swimmer
as well, breaking her records are not at all that bad.

Then there is the sibling rivalry that has caused much strife in most of our
lives at one time or another.  The Bible gives a lot of examples of sibling
rivalry, and the number one cause of that rivalry is jealousy.  Cain
killing Able.  (Gen.3) Joseph sold into slavery.  (Gen. 37) Solomon
ordering the death of Adjonoijah.  (I Kings 2:25) These are some really
tragic results of sibling rivalry.  What is the solution?

Rom. 13:13 says for us to behave decently and not in any type of jealousy. 
The biblical antidote to jealousy is love.  (I Cor. 13) “Adam, are you
saying that I have to love my sibling?”  That is right.  We can become very
good friends with our siblings.  We just need to take the time to spend with
them.  Show them attention.  Do not be so jealous because your sibling may
be better than you at something, or is not giving you the time of day.  Take
time to be humble and overcome what ever is bothering you about your
sibling, and watch your relationship grow.  See what kind of relationship
that you can have with them.  Be prayer partners, as well as find something
that you both like to do, and work together. Feel free to use your
imagination.

Finally, some of you may really be getting abused in your sibling rivalry. I
remember times that I tickled my sister until she cried, and the time that
she hit me upside the head with a golf club.  Sometimes I think that we
abused each other a lot.  That is not really very good.  Some of you may
have brothers and sisters that are really hurting you emotionally,
physically, and spiritually, I would encourage you to talk with them about
it, and see all of the help that you can get.  I hope that this helps all
of us, and teaches us to love our family with all of our hearts.  Kind of
like the old saying says, “You can choose your friends, but you cannot
choose your family.”  In my opinion, all the reason to love them more. 
May God’s Grace Abound In You.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Come To Me

"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest." 
Matthew 11:28

God never promised that you would not have problems in your life after you became a Christian.  It is a fact that we all have difficulties.  I have talked to many TDDM members over the years, many sharing their difficulties with me.  I have heard some of the worse situations that you could imagine.  Many of you are heavy-laden and weary from what you are living through in your life. I have heard many tragic stories involving substance abuse, rape, pregnancy, abortion, incest, illness and accidents. Then there are those living daily in the midst of just plain hatred and misunderstanding. Just when I think I have heard the worse thing that a teen could possibly tell me then someone else IM's me and tells me his or her story. It is heartbreaking to me.  I have wanted many times to reach through the computer and just hold them.  I have prayed and cried with many of you and wanted so bad to help ease your pain.

God promises that He will carry the weight of your burden.  He will walk through the difficulties beside you.  God asks you come to Him and surrender your heavy-laden burdens.  He promises to give rest to those who are weary.  When the weight is lifted then you will be free to see and deal with the situation in a different light. The storms in your life may be raging, and for many of you I know they are.  But as the storms rage you can find peace inside when God reaches down and takes the weight of it off of you.  The more you try to carry the burden alone the heavier it will become until it crushes you.  Go to God in prayer and ask him to take your heavy load.  Don't just read this.....  Really do it, go to God in prayer and ask Him to take the burden from you and experience the rest He promises to give.  I pray for all of you and want you to know each and every one of you are dear to my heart.

[Soldier4Christ]

  When People are Big and God is Small


Fear of man will prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the LORD is kept safe. (Proverbs 29:25) NIV

O LORD, you have searched me and you know me. (Psalm 139:1) NIV

They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator--who is forever praised. Amen. (Romans 1:25) NIV

Lately I have been learning a lot about the fear of man. I see it everywhere in my life. The title of today's devotional is actually the title of a book by Edward Welsh that I am going though with my prayer partner. I just wanted to share with you some of the things that I have learned from the book today that have challenged me.

What is the fear of man? The fear of man is when the things in our life other than God start to rule us. When we see people as more important than God and value what they think of us more than what God thinks of us. That is the fear of man.

In my life I see that I am run by the fear of man. I often value what other people think of me. When I don't get the approval of others I feel bad about myself. But it is not right to think that. I need to desire to grow closer to Jesus and know Him more so that the things of this world will not seem to matter as much.

We need to seek God's approval not men. We need to only care what God thinks about us. It is a hard lesson to learn. But it is possible and is definitely a great one to learn. The more that I learn about fearing God the fewer people have control over me.

The question today is whom do you worship: the Creator or the Creation? If you are worshipping the creation, people are going to look big. But if you worship the Creator, people will have no hold on you.

So who do you want to be big today: God or man? Think about it.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Take Off The Blindfold


Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore. (Psa. 16:11) KJV

A few years ago when my youngest son was a little boy we threw him a birthday party outside and his older brothers made up some games and obstacle courses they thought would be fun.  One of the funniest but most difficult was a short race where they had to wear a blind fold and run to a specific goal.  They were allowed to look under the blindfold at their feet but that was all.  Each time a group would get up to the line they were determined they could go that short distance without seeing. They would take off stumbling, twisting and turning trying to stay on their course.  It was so funny to watch them bump into each other, trip over their own feet or even fall down.  Some ended up on the sidelines or got turned around all together and ended back on the starting line. 

Once they were finished and took off the blindfold they couldn't believe where they ended up.  This same thing happens to many of us through life.  We reach a certain point and look back and we can't believe what we have done or been through.  Many of the difficulties that make us struggle or even fall are our own faults.  We were looking at our own little steps in life instead of looking to a goal. The cross of Jesus Christ should be our goal in life.  When we take off our blindfolds and look to God throughout our life we are assured to be going the right way.  Oh we will stumble or even fall at times but focusing on Him will bring us to the right mark, not the sidelines or the wrong way all together. 

How funny we must look to God, like those kids at the birthday party.  Running around with no direction in sight.  Take off your blindfolds, look directly to Jesus, focus on Him with every step you take and you will be in His will and go directly to your mark.

[Soldier4Christ]

  The Refiner

"He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver." (Malachi 3:3a) NIV

The refining fire of God. Is this something that you long for, or it something that you dread going through? Do you even know what it is? If you don't know what I am talking about, then this devotional is for you.

The refiner takes the gold and puts it over the fire. He turns the heat way up. The gold is constantly being burned. Before the fire can be turned off all the impurities must be burned away.

But that is not the end of the process. Next the refiner shines the gold until he can see his reflection in it. This process gets the gold to be in its purest form.

In this world, God is our refiner. He takes us and fires us until He can see His reflection in us. We are constantly being purified. The main thing to remember is this; God won't put us in the fire unless we are totally depending on Him. He will not put us in the fire until we tell Him we are ready.

Are you ready to be put into the refiner's fire? Are you willing to go through God's process of making us pure? Are you willing to feel the heat of the flames? Don't be afraid God will be with you the whole time.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Dealing With A Parents Divorce


"My parents have divorced, and I feel as if I do not have a life anymore because I am being tossed around so much. Do you have any ideas?"


I have seen his ways, and will heal him; I will also lead him, And restore comforts to him And to his mourners. (Isaiah 57: 18)

I would have to say that there are times that I wish that I were six years old again. If you were to ask me if I would change my parents being divorced, I would have to say that I would not change things. Because I know that even though it was not the will of God for my parents to divorce, I would have to say that God took a bad thing and made it good. One thing that I found that I had to change though was my attitude.

First, I had to change my attitude on whose fault it was that my parents divorced. For many years, it was my thought that my parents divorced because it was my fault. It was not until I was a teenager that I realized that it was not my fault. Many of you may be thinking the same thing and are going through some type of denial, shame, embarrassment, blame or guilt. I would encourage you to begin putting it into you mind that it was not your fault. They are the ones that made that decision, and even though it affected you, you can still live your life.

Next, you still have your life. I know that it can be difficult making the grades because of your visitation expectations, and I know that it can be difficult having friends, but that does not mean that you cannot give it a shot. I know that I had a hard time with the grades for a while there because of the visitation set up with my parents, but I finally came to the conclusion that I could do good because it was my life.

Next, when you begin to think that about getting married later on down the road, you have the right to make a covenant and say as I did, "Just because my parents divorced, it does not mean that I have too." You can be married for the rest of your life, and have the rest of your life to have life.

Finally, I would encourage you not to get angry and bitter because of what your parents chose to do. It was not your fault. I remember when bitterness entered into my life, I really was miserable. Until I was able to make decisions that I talked with you about earlier, I finally began to be happy and understand that God is in control of my life, not what is around me. I pray that you all will do the same and see real happiness in your life, as well as God will comfort you and help give you strength. May God's Grace Abound in You.

[Soldier4Christ]

  If Tomorrow Never Comes



But God said to him, "You Fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared."

Few things grip us with as much fear as the thought of death. The realization that today may be our last day on this earth. For some, this is a day they look forward to, a day of celebration, a day that they will finally see their Savior face to face. For others, it is a day of dread, a day of regret. We can look at it either good or bad, what are your thoughts?

Today is what most people celebrate as Halloween. A day of goblins, monsters, ghouls, and haunted houses. The day that fear is glorified and death is made into a nice costume to be sold at your local store.  But, there is one thing that scares me more than the movie 'Exorcist' and more than turning the corner and seeing a monster in my face. The thought that scares me the most is that today could be my last day.

You see, God already has a day picked out for you. A day when you will take your last breath. Only He knows, but that day is set and your appointment has been made for judgment.  You may be late to the dentist, a party, or your first period class, but this is a date you will not miss. The only problem is that we have no clue when the day or hour will be. The only thing we can do is be prepared that when the time comes, we can rest in peace knowing that our name is written in the book of life.

Right now, stop everything your doing and think for a second. When you lay your head on the pillow tonight, are you even the slightest bit worried whether today just might be your last. If there is someone who is mad at you, don't let today finish before fixing it. If you have done something to hurt someone, don't let the sun go down before apologizing to them.

Friends, we only have a certain amount of days left, and when they are over it's over. Live each day as if it is your last, because one day you will wake up and it will be the last one you have. If that day was today, would you be ready? May peace be with you.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Sticks and Stones


As a kid there was a singsong verse that said, "Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me."  So if the bad kids from the next street over came onto our street calling us names we would sing that back to them.  At the time it seemed to empower us until they went on their way.  We didn't have much violence back then between children, just some nasty words being thrown around.

Sticks and stones do hurt.  I remember getting hit in the head with a stone once during a stone fight between 2 boys.  It was all in fun with no injury intended. But I was in the wrong place at the wrong time and was hit.  Running home with blood dripping down my face getting into my eyes and mouth sure was dramatic for all of us.  When I got to my house I thought my mother would faint.  It was a tiny cut that produced lots of "gore" with my sweat and tears mixing with the blood only added to its horror.  Once cleaned up I didn't even need stitches.  Now I don't ever remember being hit with a stick, although my son was hit in the head by a 2x4 that his brother was swinging like a baseball bat.  He didn't see him standing behind him. It hit him just above the eye.  It knocked him out and they carried him home.  By the time they got him into the house he was fine but had a great black, blue, purple and red eye.  We did do a trip to the emergency room just to make sure it was nothing more.  Both Jesse and I can laugh about our stick and stone experiences now.  Sticks and stones may hurt but they heal.

But words not hurting?  That isn't true at all.  Words do hurt and don't heal like a physical hurt can.  I know many that still feel pain of words said to them when they were a kid well into their adult years.  When a person who you trust and love says words that hurt deep it doesn't go away.  You can't laugh at a later time about when your mother called you an idiot when you got a D on your report card, or when your father told you that you will never amount to anything cause you got fired from your first job.  Words do hurt.  Even words that are said among friends in anger penetrate deep and hard.  Yes, you may forgive them for saying they hate you and you are a jerk, but you can't erase how it made you feel.  I know a girl whose mother called her a horse cause she had grown to almost 6 ft. By the time she was 16.  She would make negative comments about having to buy her new clothes as she grew out of them.  She would say that if she grew any taller that she wouldn't be able to find a boyfriend that could reach her.  This girl grew up to be a beautiful woman, she could have been a model, but because of the words she heard growing up she developed a very low self-esteem and lived with an eating disorder for over 20 years. 

If you have a history of being called names, you may want to go to someone and talk about it. Just because someone calls you dumb or stupid doesn't mean you are.  These names can cause damage for a lifetime if you grow up believing what was said.  Children grow up really believing what is told to them, good or bad. Only God's love can take this pain from you.  God knows you aren't stupid or dumb and He knows you can make something wonderful of yourself and your future, don't let anyone tell you any differently. God made you and He doesn't make junk.

[Soldier4Christ]

  My Prayer Life is Lacking


My prayer life is lacking. I find it hard to just sit there and pray.
Sometimes it goes weeks before I pray. How can I improve my prayer life?

Matthew 6:6 “But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have
shut your door, pray to your Father who is in the secret place; and your
Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.” (NKJV)

It never fails! I get the dumbest looks when I am driving in the car
because it looks like that I am talking to myself, when I am actually
talking to God. Go figure huh?

This is an excellent question and I am glad that you sent this one in
because it is something that I hear all of the time in the lives of
teenagers. A lacking prayer life is something that is very easy to talk
about how to fix, but putting it into practice is one of the toughest areas
of the Christian life. Mainly, Satan would like nothing
better than to have you be lazy in your talk and intimacy with God.

I think that the first thing that we need to do when it comes to having a
prayer life is to set aside time with God everyday. When Jesus was here on
the earth, we find in all four of the Gospels that Jesus took time to pray
and spend with the Father. (Matt. 14:23)

When He did that it was a time of intimacy with the Father, and Jesus made
sure that He was alone when He had it too. He made sure that He took time
to be with the Father and “regroup” if you will, and we need to do the same
too. Take time everyday to be with the Father and work on our relationships
with Him.

Next, I think that we sometimes think that we are so worried about how we
pray, that we are not going to say what needs to be said in the proper
fashion that we just quit. Jesus gave us the proper things to pray for
(Matt. 6), but He never told us that we had to give some type of “preacher
prayer” every time that we pray. Matter of fact since God knows our hearts
anyway, He would rather us be ourselves to come to His throne room of grace.
(Matt. 6:6) When we take time to pray, we just need to be ourselves, and
talk about what is on our hearts.

Finally, remember that you can pray anywhere. Maybe you are in your room
or in a special place alone by yourself. You can grow in the Lord no matter
if you are praying in the car like I do, or if you are praying while taking
a walk. God is everywhere and we can talk to Him anywhere about anything.

In conclusion, when it comes to our prayer time, we have to remember that we
need to make the sacrifice on a daily basis in order to grow and have that
relationship with God that He so longs to have with us. I would challenge
you to look in the Scriptures and see how people prayed. When you look at
it, ask what, where, when, why and how. When you do, I know that you too
can see your prayer life change for sure. May God’s Grace Abound in You.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Forever


"The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word
of our God stands forever." (Isaiah 40: NIV

Is there anything in this world the will last you
through eternity? Is there anything that will be
around after we die? Is there any one thing that will
never change?

The answer is yes, there is. God does not change. He
is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Aren't you
grateful that God is never changing? In a world where
everything is always changing, God remains the same.
We as people are always changing. The world around us
is constantly changing. But the truth is that God
never changes.

God has given us His Word. His Word is the Bible. The
above verse tells us that the Word of our God will
always be there. It will never change nor will it ever
loose it's power. The Word has the power to speak to
us. It does all the time. Sometimes we may read a
verse many times and still not see any significance in
it. Other times we will read a verse over again and it
is filled with meaning.

Rejoice that God and His Word stand forever and that
they are never changing.

Here is a challenge for you, spend at least 15 minutes
reading your Bible everyday. It is a hard discipline
to learn but it is worth it. You will learn so much
about God and His Will for us. Remember to pray before
you read and ask God to reveal to you what He wants
you to see. If you don't know where to start try
starting with John and the Psalm.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Satan Knows Jesus?


John 17:3 KJV And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.   

I saw a sign on a small billboard in front of a church the other day that read "Satan knows Jesus and he isn't in Heaven."  It made me stop to think what that really meant.  Satan does know Jesus. There is a relationship between them, but not the kind that brings one to heaven. Satan does not reside in Heaven, because he turned from God. So this means that just knowing Jesus doesn't get you into Heaven. Just knowing Jesus, his life story and the things he has done isn't enough. 

This is often called book knowledge, you know the stories and the facts but that doesn't do it.  You need heart knowledge, a longing to love and honor God, a deep desire to be His child and follow Him. The difference here is a love relationship.  To be sure you have a reservation into Heaven you have to know Jesus not only personally but you need to have an intimate love relationship with him.  At some point in your life you need to make a conscious decision that you want Jesus in your life.  You have to pray to God and ask Him to enter your life.  With that you turn from you old ways and turn to the ways of God.  You need to follow this with growth in Bible study and Christian fellowship.  Just knowing and even admiring Jesus, his life story and the things he has done isn't enough. 

When Jesus enters your heart, you become one and the Holy Spirit dwells in you.  You feel the difference.  If you haven't felt the difference of knowing Jesus or really knowing Him, do this now.  All it takes is a sincere heart and a prayer to God.  Many a man will stand at the gates of Heaven and say they knew who Jesus was, even believed in what He did and that He was a great man.  Many a man will be turned away because this head knowledge wasn't enough.  Make sure your heart belongs to Jesus, make sure you know the difference.

[Soldier4Christ]

  His Masterpiece


"For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus
to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us
to do." (Ephesians 2:10) NIV

Each one of us is God's masterpiece. We were carefully
planned out before God's brush ever hit the canvas. He
designed us to fit in where He wanted us to be. What
would have happened if Moses was born today? You don't
have to answer that. It is just an example. God has
placed us in the right time at the right place. It may
not seem like it but He has.

A few weeks ago God put it on my heart to learn how He
sees me. This is key in learning the fear of the
Lord. So I decided to find out where in the Bible it
tells me who I am in Christ.

Psalm 139:14 tells us that "...I am fearfully and
wonderfully made, marvelous are His works...." (NKJV)

We were also created in God's image.

God loved us so much that He sent His only Son, Jesus
to die for us. Jesus died the most agonizing death
ever. He was crucified on the cross for our sins. He
took all our sins upon Himself. What a loving God we
serve. He was nailed to a tree for what we did. If
that doesn't tell you how God sees you than I don't
know what does. How could such a perfect God love such
an imperfect me?

If you would like to know more about how God sees us
then just email me. I will be more than happy to reply
to you and talk with you more. Also if you don't know
Christ and would like me to share the Gospel with you
let me know.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Grace

Romans 3:10- As it is written: There is none rightouss, not even one. (NIV)

  -Romans 10:19- Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God.

  Through the law we are aware of sin, because no one can keep the law! For example, how many of you have ever broke one of the ten commandments? I know I have many times, and they have shown me that I am a sinner, and I need a savior.

  -Romans 3:23- For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.

  If you are under the law, that means that you have to work for your salvation. That humanly cannot be done! That is why Jesus gives us grace.

  -John 1:17- For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

  You can only be "good" through Jesus. Through Jesus' grace we are forgiven and considered rightiouss before God, not by works. When Jesus dies on the cross his shed blood covered all of our sins, old, new, and future, so that we are clean and pure before a Holy God.

  -Romans 4:5- However, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as rightousness.

  -Romans 4:7-8- Blessed are they whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will never count against him.

Jesus died, taking our place so we wouldn't have to go to Hell. He died, because sin will uiltimatly cause your spirit and body to die. Things like sex, drugs, and alcohol, these things all lead to Hell.

Romans 6:23 says:  "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord."

Grace is our gift from God, it's free, and you can't do anything to earn it.

  Well, some of you might be thinking, "Okay, well since nothing is coiunted against me, I can do what I want!" Of course not! It's Jesus that keeps us from stumbling and doing wrong. We have to constantly struggle with our desire to do bad things, but Jesus keeps us strong to resist them. That doesn't mean you will never fall though. When you do fall, God is always righ there to pick you up again.

-Romans 7:22-25- For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work within the member of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God- through Jesus Christ our Lord!

  Even though Jesus makes us strong, we willtumble and sin, so Jesus is like our defense attorney who stands up for us, when Satan is accusing us of what we did. Jesus makes us innocent before God! So, even if you mess up, you are not held accountable to the law, but are rightiouss by faith in Jesus to save you! If you do not know him, please give him your life today. He will make you blamless before a mighty God who has the power to send you to Heaven or Hell.

[Soldier4Christ]

  God In Our Everyday Life


I recently read a statement made by Dr. Charles Stanley that said, "Christians often separate their spiritual life from their common everyday life.  God never intended that to be the approach you take."

How many times do we catch ourselves and think, "oh yeah there's God!" Sometimes we forget that we even have a God who watches over us and loves us.  We plow through life and try to do all the things that are expected of us, clean our rooms, study to get good grades, obey our parents, be on time at our jobs, etc. 

I can remember getting backed into a corner when I didn't study for a test and lied to go out with friends.  I remember getting a D on the test then getting grounded.  So what did that prove?  I was mad at my parents and upset because I couldn't see my friends, plus getting behind in class, well my life was all messed up.  Then in my desperation I cry out to God, "help me." And sad to say that these types of situations only get worse as you get older.  If it isn't a problem of the wrong decisions at school and home, it may be at college or on the job or with your own husband and children. 

We live minute to minute looking at what life dishes out then we do what we feel is best.  Most times we call out to God when we already mess up.  I know many times I would pray to God to help me out of a jam instead of constant prayer and following His will for me daily.  Oh what fool I was, doing my own thing, messing up and then calling on God to clean up my mess. He was always there for me and never let me down.  It wasn't until I was much older and had learned the hard way that it didn't have to be like this.  I can live my life in the world with God.  My spiritual life will be part of my everyday life.  This way I know I will have help making the right decisions. When I ask God to keep me from temptation, He will. 

When I ask for His guidance I know He will give it.  I lean on Him. This is not to say that I don't make mistakes, I do and will until I die.  But the difference now is that my life here is full of the Holy Spirit at all times.  It is in me, part of me and all I have to do is look to God for guidance, twice a day or 100 times a day. Just staying in His will keeps my head above water even before I know I am about to get a dunk.  This leads to peace and contentment in life.

"Therefore I urge you brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.  And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.  Romans 12 1-2