Why I Write This Blog

Why would a relatively unknown small-town Montana preacher by the name of JR Thompson spend so much time writing blog posts offering tips for those raising troubled teenage boys? That's a good question and I'll try to answer it the best way I know how!

God. There's your answer.

No, I couldn't stop there. That wouldn't suffice for very many of you, would it? But it is true. God is the reason I write this blog.


 

You see, when I was a teenager, I despised my peers. I was that awkward, skinny, nerdy guy who had the big glasses, the big nose, and teeth that were too big for his smile. I was the guy with the high-pitched voice, no athletic ability, and the annoying personality that made it hard to find friends. I suppose you could say I was despised and rejected by my peers. For that reason, I hated being around anyone under the age of 25. I just knew they would find something to make fun of me about, and they wouldn't have to look very hard to find a thing or twenty to poke fun about.

I'm telling you that to say this - I did not begin working with teens and their families because it was my idea. It was completely God's! And I still, to this day, remember when He started dealing with my heart.

I was 18 or 19 years old and a group of folks came to my church to present their ministry of working with at-risk teenagers. Some of the teens shared their testimonies of what God was doing in their lives. Some of the staff shared their testimonies as well. For a while, the whole group sang praises unto God. Our church had had quite a few different missionaries in, but nothing had ever spoken to my heart like that one did. I wanted a part of it. Had I been younger, I'd have begged to get enrolled and be a student there! But I was too old to be a student, and I knew it. I also felt, however, that I was too young to be used in such a ministry.

Fast forward a few years...  I saw the same ministry at another church. Again, I felt that burden. I talked to the director of it and was told how little it paid and how difficult the work was. To work at that ministry at that time, I would have had to sell my home and downgrade the kind of car I was driving. There was no way I could have afforded either on that tiny amount of money that would have been coming in. I told them I wanted to, but I couldn't.

As time went on, that ministry closed its doors. I was saddened by it, but there was nothing I could do about it. In a way, I was thankful I hadn't been a part. It would have been heartbreaking to be there when things fell apart. I don't know how much time passed, but at some point God started shaking my world up, and the next thing I knew, I was helping that ministry get reopened, and I was the guy in charge of it! I had never been in charge of anything before... but again, God ordained it.

Through various ministries over the years, God has used me to see a lot of young people give their hearts to Jesus. He's allowed me to be a part of broken homes getting put back together. He's allowed me to see kids that people thought were hopeless get back on the right path.

I've had some difficulties along the way. I've seen some youths who refused to be helped. I've seen some young people who wanted to go the right direction, but who came from families who weren't very supportive of them. I've seen kids who were so good about dividing and conquering and playing the victim card that they grew up to become anything but model citizens.

Some say, "If you've seen so many go by the wayside, why keep going?"

A former pastor of mine used to share a story about a little boy and his daddy. The two of them were walking along the seashore and a bunch of starfish had all washed up in the high tide. The boy had a big heart and he picked one of them up and threw it back into the ocean. Then he grabbed another, and did the same thing. After the third one, his daddy looked down and said, "Son, do you see how many starfish are out here? There are thousands of them! You can't save them all."

The little boy grabbed another starfish, smiled, threw it in the sea, and said, "No. But I just saved that one, didn't I?"

Now do you understand? I know that every story doesn't turn out with a happy ending! But if these blog posts even help one family get their boy living right, all of my time and effort will be worth it! 

P.S. The picture attached to this article is only a stock image. It's not of me or any of the kids I've ever worked with.


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