LIVING A BIBLE DRIVEN LIFE

    The most fundamental question every person will ever wrestle with is "Why am I here?"  Unlike past generations, teens today aren’t looking for the meaning of life. Instead they’re searching for meaning in life, a purpose for living, something that makes their life worth living. For instance, in Colossians we’re told, "… for everything -- absolutely everything -- above and below, visible and invisible, everything got started in him and finds its purpose in him” (Colossians 1:16, Msg).

    The Bible teaches that God had five purposes in mind when he made each one of us. Discovering and living these purposes is the single most important thing any of us can ever do.  Teaching these five purposes to our children is foundational to truly training them in the ways of the Lord.

WE ARE CREATED BY GOD TO FULFILL FIVE PURPOSES:

Number 1: WE are planned for God’s pleasure –WORSHIP
Revelation 4:11 (NLT) says, "You, God, created everything, and it is for your pleasure that they exist and were created.” Yet, most teenagers struggle with love and acceptance. We need to build into their lives the precious knowledge that they were created as an object of God’s love. The Bible says "God IS love (1 John 4:16).” It doesn’t say "He has love,” it says "He IS love.”
In addition, teens need to know that there is absolutely nothing that can stop God from loving them.

Number 2: WE are made for reaching out to others–OUTREACH
Jesus said in John 17:18 (Msg), “[Father], in the same way you gave me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world.” Every believer needs a ministry to believers, and a mission to unbelievers.  Studies show most people who come to Christ -- at least in the United States -- come to him before they turn eighteen. Other studies show people are far more receptive to hearing the gospel from a friend than a stranger. This combination gives Christian teenagers an incredible opportunity for ministry and mission.

Number 3: WE are formed for God’s family–RELATIONSHIPS
He gave us this longing because his second purpose in creating us was for us to become a member of his family. Ephesians 1:5 (NLT) teaches us, “His unchanging plan has always been to adopt us into his own family.” We need to teach our teens that the Christian life is not just a matter of believing; it’s also about belonging. God didn’t create us just to be believers; we’re also made to be belongers to the family of God.

Number 4: WE are created to be like Christ–DISCIPLESHIP
He created each one of us to be like Christ, and we call that discipleship. God made us to transform us into the likeness of his Son, Jesus Christ. The Bible says in Romans 8:29 (Msg), “God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him.”

Number 5: WE are shaped for saintly service–SERVICE
God created each of us to serve him, and in the church, we call that ministry. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT) teaches, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”  Every Christian is created to serve, and that means each teen is called to ministry, created for ministry, saved for ministry, and uniquely gifted for ministry. The Bible makes it very clear that every Christian is a minister, regardless of age.