Dear Grown-up,
You may think the Teen Zines from StoryMakers are only for teens, but guess what? The promises are for you, too! We are all God’s children, so we can learn and be reminded of God’s truths alongside our teens. This year's blog series will follow Teen Zine vol. 4: Relationships, which discusses the Ten Commandments and God’s design for relationships with him, ourselves, and one another.
Teens are developing their skills in all types of relationships, but as parents, our relationships may feel more like a demand. We are in a stage of life where many people need us. At times, being needed can be a blessing, while other times, it feels like a burden. For example, I don’t think I have ever closed the restroom door without hearing someone immediately yell, “Mom!” Our kids need us to provide for them and listen to them, our spouses need us to spend quality time with them, our parents may be getting older and need a little more help from us, and our friends want to go out for coffee and chat, the school wants us to go on field trips, the church wants us to help with that big event, and don’t forget about staying in contact with friends and family who live far away (or at least keeping tabs on them on social media). We live in a time where we have never had easier access to more people, and yet, ironically, loneliness is at an all-time high. We are walking through life surrounded by others and somehow still feel alone.
That’s where God’s ten rules have something powerful to say. It is no accident that God begins his list of rules with a declaration and a promise. He says, “I am the LORD your God.” Before we look at our relationships with others, we need to be reminded of who we are and whose we are. God did not intend for us to be alone or to feel alone. Because, in reality, we are never alone. God is always with us, and he fully knows and loves us.
Chapter one of Teen Zine vol. 4: Relationships reminds us of this important truth:
"Being able to connect to a million people in a million different ways doesn’t mean you will feel known until you connect to the ONE who has made you and knows you—your Creator.”
God knows the number of hairs on your head (Matt. 10:30), and he knew you before the foundation of the world (Psalm 139:15–16). No one can ever know you in the way that your Creator does. He loves you unconditionally, no matter what.
This sheds new light on every other relationship. God has gifted us with one another. We may forget whose child we are and start to think that we are in charge of our relationships. But we can take comfort in knowing that those people who rely on us are known and loved by him, too. So when we remember that we are all fellow children in need of the LORD our God, the pressure and burden are lifted, and the joy begins.
