Hi Parents,
​You've heard the saying "Be yourself because everyone else is already taken."  We don't want to be like everyone else - not really - we just like some of our friends' best qualities.    We try taking the qualities we like best in others and make them our own, but that can be exhausting.  Not all of us can tell a great joke or talk to everyone we meet.  We can feel insecure about our appearance, feeling too small or too big in one way or another.  Sometimes we begin to wonder what was left for us.

​Our journey of finding our identity in Christ is the process of believing that I am identified not by the way I look on the outside, but by the power and grace of God within me.  This is my life, my journey, my story.  I shouldn't be afraid to stand out, to be different, to be myself. God knew us before the world was framed (Ephesians 1:4) and knit us together before we were born (Psalm 139:13), creating us in God's image (Genesis 1:27).  God says that we are enough because our worth is found in Christ.  To find ourselves, we must love ourselves in Christ. 
​
​Ask your teen...
​Where have you been trying to find yourself?

Challenge your teen...
​Take some time to rethink who you are and where you find your identity, to reclaim vulnerability and to give up power, to recreate and to restore relationships. 
Open yourself to the beauty of God's handiwork in the lives of those you encounter. 
Allow yourself to admit that you are broken, and yet choose to reflect the love and grace of God of the least, the second best, and the outcast.

​Prayer...
​Loving God, thank you for creating me in your image so that I might reflect your love to all people.  Help me to recognize your gifts within me and to enable others to see Christ in themselves.  Amen.  

Hi Parents:
Anger can be a controlling emotion.  It can take over your other emotions and it can take over your life.  It is an irrational emotion that causes us to lose our perspective about what is happening around us.  Take for instance, driving down the road.  I can be calm and peaceful one minute.  Then, BAM! someone swerves in front of me!  As I slam on the brakes, all self-control flies out the window.  Road rage consumes me and my blood begins to boil, just like the boiling pot pictured above.  ​Anger can make us feel strong and empowered, but moments like these can snowball into a life without self-control if we let them. Some of the ways we express anger are not acceptable, and the aftermath of a big blowup always gets to us.  We see the people we've hurt because of something we said or did.  We get mad at ourselves because we can't see a solution. 

According to Proverbs 16:32 (NIV), we can show strength if we include self-control and patience, "Better a patient person than a warrior, one with self-control than one who takes a city."  Where do we get that strength? Psalm 118:14 (NIV) says "The Lord is my strength and my defense; he has become my salvation."  I am so thankful for God's strength, because I know I can't do it alone.

Ask your teen...
When was the last time you lost your temper?
What other emotion may have been beneath your anger?  Fear?  Hurt?

Challenge your teen to conquer out-of-control anger...
1.  First, take a few minutes to cool off.  Go for a walk and remove yourself from the situation.  
​2.  Instead of allowing the rush of emotions to control your actions, offer your feelings to God and ask for help to respond in love.  God is always listening.
​3.  Pay attention to what it takes for you to boil over.  Begin to recognize what your breaking point is.
​4.  Take precautions.  When you feel yourself heading toward the boiling point, take a step back.
​5.  Re-evaluate the situation and decide if it is actually something worth getting angry about.
6.  There are things in this world that should make us angry, but the trick is to keep that anger rooted in love and truth.  Ask God to show you what things make Him angry.  Ask Him for wisdom about how to respond with love and truth.

Try a Breath Prayer...
As you exhale, pray: "Take away my anger, Lord."
​As you inhale, pray: "Fill me with patience and peace."

Hi Parents!
​Galatians 6:2 (NRSV) says, "Bear one another's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ." 

Each of us has a burden - anxieties, traumas, trials and fears.  Whatever the weight of the burden or the degree of trauma, the call remains the same: We are to bear with each other. Those who accomplish great things and even small everyday things are not those without fear, but are those who move forward in courage despite their fears.  

Courage is defined as "strength of mind to carry on in spite of danger or difficulty," but I believe it means much more than that.  Courage is standing up for what you believe in, even if you are ridiculed.  Courage is risking your reputation to help someone in need.  Courage is going against the crowd, saying no to something you believe is wrong. Courage is the ability to do something that frightens you.  

If you can pray and heal someone of their trouble - Great!  If you can produce the right words or the best Bible verses - Great!  But before either of these, you must show up.  Be present with your hurting friend and they won't be alone in their fear or pain.  Perhaps one of the most loving and courageous things you can do is to walk with somebody on the trails of their trauma and to point out the birds and the sunshine. 

Ask your child...
​How does your life reflect true courage?

Challenge your child...
To look their fear in the face and ask why they are afraid of doing that or this and try to figure it out.

​Fill-in-the-Blank Prayer...
​God, today I am afraid of ____________.  Give me courage and strength to ___________.  Thank you for being with me always.  Amen.