The Ohio Independent Baptist, February 1967

I • eenager! • IS s or I • By Douglas R. Couch Hi there teenager! I have a few thing on my che t that I would like to get off. I gues I am like the aver– age preacher; the kids think I'm a nice guy not to have around too much. I ometime feel like I am a popular a a frayed white hirt· but generally, I uppo e, Im respected a much a any of our peculiar specie . But you know, lately I have been ort of di turbed. Want to know why? Becau e many Chri tian kids I know, eem to be letting the Lord down and in o doing, letting their churches and their pastor down as well. I think there ha been a Jet down on the part of you young people, fir t in your evident disrespect for God's House. We see teenagers writing notes on church bulletins, or on tithing en– velopes. \Ve see them putting their feet on pew , passing pictures around· others chewing gum and candy and throwing the wrappers on the floor. Actu all y now, when you stop and think about it, it is God's House. How we act in it more or Jes tell \.\'hether we respect it or not. Your Responsibility hen secondl y, I find that other ~a, 1 e a disconcern when it comes to e ponsi bility. It seems that a Jong d they come to young people' at 6:00 o r 6. 30 on unday nights, they eel th is is all that i fequired of h e 111· or if they show up for the par tie th is is being real spiritual . h~re Ct.!m to be little effort today out ou t by id in choirs or in youth 1rogra,11111i ng. Rcspo 11 sibilit y eems to Je a 11a t ~, word defined and over- 1sed b}' 'l..ealot1 adult s. But the } 1 0t1th 1 1oup t l1at is 111ovi 1 g ahc,td i11stead >f 1reading wa ter j not I)arrott ing a 1>011 r' l}f~-digest d J}rogr,t111. '1h~y re pu11ir1g t}1eir ovln effort ot1t wi tl1 1 rat1 ) ing r Lil t • i1e11 I o t l1ere en1 to l)e di~– rd f r ur O\.\ 11 pi1 itua l a 11d I orul v. Ifar.. . v,.1 s e 111 10 co11e to hu, h and def}' ur J'a t r to L , ch I lifl) t}llWlg . , C 111 \\i tJl t lli a t- lt Ud , \ IJ , ~ Ii rjgJ t f JJ ,., , pro I J3 u t d , r t ) ti t r , Ii z t 1 a I a h11 t1a11 1 gar di ) tir g } lll l1u a r p n il>iltt) al ut ur 11 ral an 11iritu I I 1 • It l t f 1 Jl I I ' J) j l J I f j I ( H O 10 I D P N EN BAP IS pacify you, but to proclaim the Word. He i a heralder of the trt1th, not a ht1rdJer of every obstacle you face as a teenager . Most pa tor , Im ure, are wil ling to sit down and counsel with their young people, but it' high time we become dependent on Chri. t not the clergy, for piritual growth. The even commandment found in I The alonian the fifth chapter, tarting with ver e 17, ought to be tudied by every Christian y·oung per on, and applied to your live a teenage commandments. I don't need to remind you that the botton1 eem to be dropping 011t a far as Chri tian young people are concerned in thi battle for a moral and piritual tandard. May I give you three ru )e of conduct for Chri tian young people as they date other Chri tians? First of all, let u not have a double standard of dating. What I mean is thi . Let not have a tandard of dating one time for young people' social and the other for dating alone. Regular dater hould face the i ue sq11arely, hon– e. tJ y re pectfully and a k "What i the purpo e of our elating? I it for companion hip which eventually could grow into a mature love and ulti– n1ateJ y marriage? I it a sort of food, f tin, fell ow hip type of date? ot1ld the date end up in di honor to our bodi e , a di grace to parent an(i a future fiJJed with hame and re– gret?'' . o the tand ard that ) 'Otl l) JOU ly propo e during yot1ng people,s gathering, Jet u n1akc ure it i the \,tn1c \ tand ard foll owccl ""hen )Ott ..tt c ,tway J ron1 yot1ng people's Don't Rationalize cco11dly, he careft1l r1o t le) ra ti t1 n– aJiz · \\ ror1 g tencl cncic ·. I{c n1c 111l)cr, Rev. Douglas R. Couch they are there. Any young per on in the wrong frame of mind or tinder pre ure can f ail. Don' t ever think yot1 are above temptation. A familiar and yet very important axi om of cripture i : '·wherefore let him that thi nketh he tandeth, take heed le. t he fall. ' ( 1 or. 10:12) Necessity for Prayer Then thirdly I wo11ld ay, 1 t prayer be a stop gap of trot1ble. O\\ l don't n1ean that you ot1ght to turn every date into a re\ 7 ival n1ee ting, but I an1 aying before thing get too tough and the date tend to get ot1t o f hand, have a prea rranged agree– n1ent that yo11 wo11ld pray together and then go hon1e. ov thi i n·t a. ill y a it ound . If it i. prea rrang d it can he a real WIFE aver. I ay wife , aver, becau e on1eday yo11 \Vill be marri ecJ, and yot1 do n t \"Vant had n1en1ori t n1ar that n1arriag . Yot1 can not pra)' \\ 1th )'Ot1r n1ot1th and . till he thinking \.\ rong i 1 ) 011 r heart . Prayer will top the \\ rong idea'i. If it n1ca r1. ) Oll go ho111e earl, . go hon1c carl) ' 1 t i bet ter than reg retting the c \ c ni1g the re t of , ()ttr life. n l l ~() ) o t1 1g pcr\l1n, \\ hat ahl)lJt it ? \ h,1t 1~ \Ot1 r life ltk.c a\\ ,l\ frt 111 cht1 rch? R cr11c111bcr 'it) 111c )f , L tt 1.lfl' gl)1ng t() l1e th e 1111 ~,011d1 it:,, the f)tt') l ()r,, a 1 d tl1c lcctl1er ol t11 cht1rches ht)\\ }Ott li\ 1 c lL)tl ,l) , can \\ 11 ctfc ·r • • y c)Ur 1111 1 1str)' t <.) 111orro\V. inte r s t in 'our uud ' s hool w1th these e el - lt"'n t t k t· - horue J>aper~ ... ~l on1n1 nd ~le, r1 - 111.11 ' J>, 1, (>ur ge , h,111 nge n I 011qu s r ' J> Jler for eve1v agt· grr~UJ'l ·-beg1nner thrl.,u 0 h dult O, ,l e r toda) /r ,,, R GULAR BAPTI T PRESS 1800 0 kton Bl d•• De Pl In , I ll 6001 8 FEBRUAR 1967 PAGE 9