Reach YTH

No! It is important to remember that we are sinners. We will make mistakes and get it wrong. Baptism is an outward expression of an inward decision…we GET to make a choice each day. We get to choose to follow Jesus and make good decisions that bring Him glory OR choose to do our own thing and follow what the world says is ok. When we choose to follow Jesus, to obey Him and begin a personal relationship with Him it should become easier to do what is right. The choice is yours…each and every day. Choose Jesus or the world.

God knows you. He knew you before you were born (Jeremiah 1:5) and He wants to have a relationship with you. Baptism doesn’t save you; it is an outward expression of an inward decision. You chose to be baptized- to show and tell everyone that you love Jesus, that he has changed your life. God knows you, but if you don’t know Him, you will not be saved and have eternal life in heaven. Matthew 7:21-23 says, “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter. On judgement day many will say to me, “Lord! Lord! We prophesied in your name and cast out demons in your name and performed many miracles in your name.’ But I will reply, ‘I never knew you. Get away from me, you who break God’s laws.’ If you do not choose to follow Jesus, He will not know you.

It is not necessarily bad not to go to church, but it isn’t good either. Do not let excuses become the reason you’re not growing or maturing in your faith. Though we are saved through faith alone and not by works, or attendance, God still wants us to get to know Him better and grow closer to Him and with other Christians that can walk through life with you. “He who has the Son has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life”, 1 John 5:12. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” If we trust and believe these two verses, then we also should trust and believe 2 Corinthians 5:17, “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” In response to being new creations and being believers there should be a desire from within to want to attend church and be around fellow Christians. Doing this will help encourage equip and empower you to be an ambassador for Christ. We are also, as believers, told not to forsake the gathering in efforts to preserve ourselves and others. Hebrews 10:23-25, “Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Let us thinkof ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the dayof his return is drawing near.”

Colossians chapter 1 has a lot to say about knowing God's good news. It talks a lot about hope for the future, the joy of having your life change, the glorious future promised to those in Christ. It also is good to know in your life that you're never alone, you can always talk to God, and even in the darkest times of life, God sees you. Psalm 23 is a very encouraging psalm to read if you ever feel troubled.

John 14:6 makes it clear that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Him. The way we live our lives is sometimes the best testimony to unbelievers. They will see the change in us, and when we have an opportunity, we can tell them that Jesus is the reason for the change and Jesus is the one who paid for our sin. Matthew 28:19-20 says to make disciples (or get others excited to learn about God) and to teach these new disciples about the commandments of God. Ask God to help you seize the opportunities to share the good news of Jesus!

God always hears and answers our prayers, but He doesn't always answer in exactly the way that we want. God's love for us is unconditional; and unfailing, that's why Psalm 136:1 says, "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever." Sometimes we ask God for something and God's immediate response is, "yes." Other times we pray and God's response is, "no," or, "not yet." This is because God knows what we truly need and what is best for us. (Luke 11:11-13, Romans 8:28) Sometimes when we ask God for help He responds by taking away the problem or pain we're feeling; other times, God responds by giving us the strength and wisdom we need to get through the problem even though it's hard. No matter how God responds to our prayers, we know He responds based on His love for us and His knowledge of what's ultimately best for us.

One of the ways you can tell if God is working in your life is by looking for what is often called, "the fruit of the Spirit." If you have put your faith in Jesus as Savior and Lord, you are filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit changes us over time to love Jesus and be more like Him. This is why Galatians 5:22-23 says, "the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and self control." If you want to see God working in your life, look to see how He is changing your desires, thoughts, and actions. If you feel like God isn't working in your life, ask Him to help you develop these qualities and show you how you can grow.

Usually, when we ask our parents for something, it's because we want them to say yes. It's often the same with God. Because of this, we can think God isn't answering when, really, He is answering. It's just that His answer is "no" or "not now." God absolutely hears every prayer. (Psalm 139:4, 1 John 5:14-15, 1 Peter 3:12) Even when you're not praying to Him, He knows your thoughts; He knows everything about you! (Psalm 139) God's priority is for you and others to know Him and experience eternal and abundant life in Him. So, His answers to your prayers are going to be about what is best for you, which is not always what you want. The other hard part of this is that sometimes really miserable things happen to us in our lives. And, sometimes, people do terrible things that hurt us. But, as much as we pray for those things to go away, sometimes it doesn't happen. Those people are not letting God control their hearts and minds. What we do know is that some day God WILL redeem (pay back in good) every terrible thing that has happened to His people. He will make good out of the bad that has been done to you. The best way to pray is to ask God to show you what is best. Ask God for His will in your life. When things are tough, ask Him to show you what you can learn in the situation. Above all, keep talking to Him because He DOES see you and hear you. He DOES care about you. He DOES have your best interests in mind.

It's important to remember first and foremost that we are all sinners and fall short of God's glory (Romans 3:23) BUT the good news is that when we repent of our sins, God forgives us AND when we ask him for help amidst our sin, he comes alongside us and guides us through our struggles! Even though no matter how hard we try we will sin, here's a few things that can help us combat our sinful nature: 1. Praying that the desires of our hearts will align with God's heart and his plan for our lives 2. Staying in God's word and learning what sin is so we can be more conscious of avoiding it 3. Having accountability partners or a close friend/family member that we can confide in and trust to encourage us through our sins and struggles, while also calling us out in love!

Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. The best way to start in the Bible is to just start! There is no right or wrong way to begin studying God’s word. All you need is your bible (and if you don’t have one, someone from Reach would love to gift you one) and a pen! From personal experience, I have found resources like The Bible Project and the Holy Bible App as useful tools to get started. On the Bible app, you can find hundreds of topical plans about things like relationships, stress, God’s character, the story of Jesus, and more. Choose a plan that sounds interesting or applicable to you and start there. The Bible Project is an online resource with animated videos directly from scripture and can be a fun and engaging tool when it comes to getting a greater understanding of the text. Another great place to start is by reading all 4 of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, to learn for yourself the stories of Jesus. Don’t be afraid to ask other Christians what they are studying, and ask if you can read along with what they are studying for accountability! Underline what sticks out to you, write down your favorite verses, and ask questions based on what you’re learning.

This can help you see yourself as God sees you. 1. God says you are created in His image. Genesis 1:27 So God created human beings in his own image. In the image of God he created them: male and female he created them. 2. God says you are a loved child of the Most High God. John 1:12 But to all who believed him, he gave the right to become children of God. 3. God thinks you are beautiful. Song of Solomon 4:7 You are all together beautiful, my darling, beautiful in every way. 4. When God looks at you He sees the righteousness of Jesus. 2 Corinthians 5:21 For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ. All of us are a work in progress, but when God looks at us he thinks we are beautiful. He sees us with the robe of Christ's righteousness wrapped around us!

No, God will never give up on any of us, including you! 1. Romans 5:8 While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. (while we were still sinning, He died for us) He knew you were going to repeatedly sin, but he still died for you. 2. Deuteronomy 31:8 Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” -Matthew 28:19-20 “But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.” -1 Peter 3:15-16 Great question! We are told by Jesus to go and make disciples - we have a responsibility to share what Jesus has done for us and how he has changed our lives. We can share our faith with our families by telling them the Gospel. We can also share our faith by how we live our lives. When we live our lives in surrender to Jesus and let Him change our hearts and actions, our family will see those changes and hopefully want that same thing for themselves. The bible says to always be ready to share our faith. Pray for the Lord to give you moments where you can share Jesus with your family. You can make an eternal difference in your families’ lives! I am praying for you.

The first thing I would say is, don't follow the crowd. It's ok to not do all the same things as your friends or worry about them not liking something you do. So, if you want to follow God and people are telling you not to, you may need to ask them why. Maybe it's because they don't understand and you could share the Gospel with them. You also will want to surround yourself with people that follow God and that will help you stay on the right path. You also can ask God in prayer to help you have the courage to follow Him and not the crowd telling you not to. Romans 12:2 - Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

This is a great question! I will do my best to answer. When we die, the Bible says our souls will be in Heaven. Our souls include our minds, so I believe the answer is yes. It's important to note that all of our thoughts in Heaven will be pure and sin will not have a hold over us as believers any longer. Ecclesiastes 12:7 says "Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was; and the spirit shall return to God who gave it." Essentially meaning that our physical bodies may not be in Heaven but our souls will.

Provers 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Do not depend on your own understanding. Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Psalms 118:8 It is better to take refuge in the LORD than to trust in humans. Psalms 62:7-8 My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. There are so many amazing verses about trusting God. Trusting God is something that all Christians wrestle with at some point in their faith journey because it’s hard, and in some seasons it’s easier than others to trust him. So you are not alone in this question. Trusting God means dying to yourself, and seeking God’s will for your life. You can learn to trust God by remembering that he is all-knowing and infinite and sees the entire picture when we only see a little puzzle piece. God’s will for our life is perfect and the bible declares that over and over again, so we can know that it is true. God can be trusted because he’s been trustworthy and faithful forever and he will remain faithful forever. When you feel yourself starting to doubt, wonder, or worry, go back to God, and do that over and over again. It will always be worth it.