Positive-Talk 4 Teens

Peer Pressure by Bailey Mashburn

noreply@blogger.com (Positive-Talk) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 22:20:00 +0000

Peer pressure is a big thing no matter what age you are. It’s always all around you and suddenly it will sneak up on you and surprise you. Then it will tempt you to bad things or to hang out with the wrong crowd.

My name is Bailey Mashburn and I am in middle school, and I’ll say peer pressure happens all the time around me, but I choose to walk away or leave the conversation. Sometimes I even stay but try to change the subject.

At my middle school some of the peer pressures that come around would be to get in a fight or disrupt a class or even some times I hear people asking each other to see who will start the food fight first, but you just have to be strong and know it’s the wrong thing and then just walk away.

You could even not know if it is bad or not at first but if you don’t know that probably means you should walk away.

Most of the time I am being tempted and not knowing it I usually can feel something inside of me that is telling me that it is the wrong thing or that I shouldn’t do it or something like that. In my personal opinion which could differ for other people is to just walk away and leave the situation before something does happen.

I don’t know all about it but I do know that it happens all the time. You could even pray if that’s what you feel comfortable with.

When you are in a bad situation you could:
1. Walk away
2. Pray to ask God to help you through the temptation
3. Talk to an adult
4. Talk to friends
5. Try to change the subject
….But whatever you do, do the right thing even if it is the hard thing.

Thankfulness by Nick Mashburn

noreply@blogger.com (Positive-Talk) — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 18:17:00 +0000

Dictionary.com defines “thankfulness” as feeling or expressing gratitude; appreciative.

We, as Americans, have many things to be thankful for.

We have the freedom to choose to follow whichever religion we choose, we have the freedom of speech, and we have homes and families that we can all be thankful for.

I’m going to focus in on being thankful for our parents. Though we may not realize it all of the time, our parents do a lot for us without even getting a “thank you.”

Some of you might be thinking “Well, they’re parents. It’s their job.” Being a parent is almost like doing volunteer work. You do it because you want to and you sure don’t get paid for it.

Sit down and think of 10 things that your parents do for you that you don’t really say thank you for. It didn’t take me very long.

Now, make it a point to think about those 10 things and when you see them happening make sure you say thank you. This lets your parents know that you really appreciate what they do for you. Thanks for listening!

In His will,
Nick

Making A Mark

noreply@blogger.com (Positive-Talk) — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:18:00 +0000

Read Psalm 17: 1-6

As Tad and his friends walked to the ballpark, they cut across the lawn of a large brick house on a corner lot. One day the owner of the house was working outdoors when they came by. “I know it’s a big temptation to cut corners,” said Mr. Nesemeier, “but I’d appreciate it if you would use the sidewalk so there won’t be a path worn in the grass. Okay?”
“Sure thing,” agreed the boys.
But the next day they crossed over Mr. Nesemeier’s lawn again. “Hey,” said Tad, suddenly remembering their promise, “we said we’d use the sidewalk.”
“So what? The old man didn’t catch us,” snapped one of the boys. “Anyway, how much harm can we cause just walking across his lawn once in a while?” Day after day the boys used the shortcut. By the end of the summer, a definite path appeared in the area where they had walked.
As Tad passed the house on his way home one day, Mr. Nesemeier was working on his lawn. “You boys didn’t keep your promise,” said Mr. Nesemeier.
Tad shrugged. “I guess we didn’t think that walking on the grass once a day would do much damage.”
Mr. Nesemeier answered, “Doing it over and over has a way of making a mark. Guess it’s like a bad habit.” He looked at Tad from beneath bushy eyebrows. “Some habits leave much worse marks than the path worn in the grass,” he said.
Tad thought of the temptations he sometimes faced – temptations to smoke, try drugs or alcohol, or participate in questionable “fun.” He was surprised to hear Mr. Nesemeier’s next words. “You know, bad habits aren’t always big things,” said Mr. Nesemeier. “But God wants to help us overcome any habit that keeps us from following him.” RIJ

How About You?
Do you find it easy to stay away from smoking or swearing? How about throwing clothes on a chair rather than hanging them up in the closet? Talking back to your parents? Putting things off until “tomorrow?” Bad habits are hard to break, but with God’s help you can do it.

Memorize:
“My steps have stayed on your path; I have not wavered from following you.” Psalm 17:5

Stop Harmful Habits – You can do it!

Do the Right Thing! by Nick Mashburn

noreply@blogger.com (Positive-Talk) — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 01:34:00 +0000

The Bible says “Treat others as you would like to be treated”. There are many ways we can do that. Whether it’s charity work, helping a neighbor or even helping a friend with their homework you can do the right thing and help out.

Doing this shows God working inside of us. There was a girl named Rachel Joy Scott that once said “If one person does something kind, which inspires someone else to do something kind and start a chain reaction. We could change the world!” that statement couldn’t be more true. When you do something kind for someone it shows your love for God which is highly contagious.

Don’t put it off and say “Oh, I’ll start tomorrow” Go NOW and start the chain reaction. Another quote by Rachel Scott is “Tomorrow isn’t a promise, it’s a chance”. Go out and spread the good news of God’s love.

Are You Who You Want to Be? by James Kicklighter

noreply@blogger.com (Positive-Talk) — Tue, 01 Jul 2008 22:41:00 +0000

Two years ago, I was fortunate to embark on an adventure that would take me across the United States, studying the life of character actor Dub Taylor. His career as a character actor spanned from Frank Capra’s You Can’t Take it With You to 1994’s Maverick, performing in over 200 film and television series over the course of his fifty-year career. But more importantly than his distinguished career, every person that we interviewed for the project, ranging from actress Dixie Carter to rocker John Mellencamp, all spoke of his work ethic and love for life. Mr. Taylor inspired, and entertained, many people during this career. But above his job, we discovered, people remembered the person for his unique qualities as an individual. The result was That Guy: the Legacy of Dub Taylor, a film that I am very proud to have served as Executive Producer.

The project left me with questions about my own life. What will my legacy be when I’m dead and gone? Will people remember me for my work, or for the way I live my life? Indeed, these are questions that we all grapple with, but I’ve found that many people don’t like to think about them, because we first must accept our own mortality. Last week, I turned twenty. Sure, that’s not old in the scheme of things, but it’s a step out of teenage hood, inching slowly into adulthood.

My generation is preparing to accept new responsibilities, as we age and older generations retire. But unlike many of our forefathers, we have new issues to deal with that are greater than many generations before us. We’ve got a Social Security system that’s failing, a war against a faceless enemy, rising energy and health costs, among other issues. How we deal with them will have a great impact on the future; our swift and timely response is critical.

To further examine these issues, I was fortunate to spend six weeks in Italy profiling four strangers; a devout Catholic in the heart of his religion, a Senior about to enter the workplace, a sheltered Freshman unsure about her future, and a first time international traveler who has never been separated from his girlfriend. While each provide unique perspectives due to those reasons, they all are connected by the same questions that I ask myself. We all have dreams and aspirations for our future, but sometimes with the hustle and bustle of our lives in America, we have a hard time seeing them. By stepping out of our culture for a few weeks, we get a new perspective on life. Will we find the answers to the problems we face? Maybe, maybe not. But we discover much about ourselves that we didn’t know; be it a heightened appreciation for the things we take for granted, or the people whose advice we didn’t listen to.

When we step back into the “real world,” the responsibilities and issues that we left behind still remain. The future keeps marching forward, whether we’re paying attention or not. Like Dub Taylor, we will one day die and people will remember us, be it the way we want or not. As we travel through life, it’s important to know where we want our destination to be, so we know what we’ll leave behind. When people revisit your life 100 years from now, what will they say? You don’t have to go to Italy to figure it out, but take a few moments away from your Blackberries, emails, and phones. This is your life now – are you who you want to be?
James Kicklighter’s Di Passagio will premiere at film festivals in Spring 2009. You can visit the production blog at http://dipassagio.blogspot.com/ for updates.

Younger Kids Are Watching Your Example

noreply@blogger.com (Positive-Talk) — Mon, 02 Jun 2008 10:30:00 +0000

by Nick Mashburn

What you do or how you act can greatly affect younger kids. They look up to older kids like us to show them how to act. If they see us causing trouble with our friends or doing things that don’t show God working inside us then they will think that its o.k. for them to do it too. Younger kids have a tendency to mimic what they see. The things that they see when they are that age could determine what kind of person they are when they are older. If their “role model” was a teenager who liked to goof off and smart talk his superiors how do you think they will want to act?

My main point here is to watch how you act around younger kids and to show them the person that they should look up to by becoming a positive role model. Luckily, when I was younger I was in a church a lot and was around a pretty nice group of teenagers that I could look up to. Not every kid has that kind of opportunity. Maybe their parents are fighting or whatever and they don’t really have anyone to look up to. YOU can be that kid’s role model. It is up to YOU whether or not you will be a positive or negative role model. Whatever you do remember that you are representing God inside of you.

In His Will,

Nick Mashburn