As your teenager grows up, explores new freedoms, and wrestles with bigger questions about life and faith, they need plenty of support, encouragement, accountability, and guidance along the way. As their parent, you are their primary spiritual leader, but one of the greatest gifts you can give them is a community of other godly adults who will invest in their lives. By the teenage years, they already have teachers, coaches, neighbors, and others influencing them, but those voices won't always point them toward Christ. That's why it's so important to intentionally connect your teen with trusted adult mentors who can model what it looks like to follow Jesus in everyday life. These relationships give teenagers a safe place to ask honest questions, process doubts, and discover who God has created them to be.

One of the main things we all want for our teenagers is for them to build and develop a faith in God that will last for a lifetime. They are being pulled in a lot of different directions with lots of different voices constantly speaking into what they think, how they should act, and who they should become. Their questions, doubts, and fears about themselves, the world, and their faith are bigger and more complex than ever. They need help, support, encouragement, and biblical accountability, and they need it from more than just us. As parents, we have a unique and important opportunity to surround our teenagers with significant adults who can help point them to a God who loves them and wants them to follow Him. But this window of opportunity isn’t open forever, so we can’t waste time.  If we can find Godly mentors who will lean in, model what it looks like to live a life of faith, and be there for our teens as they sort through the difficult issues of life, our teenagers will be more likely to embrace the faith we are leading them toward. This month’s Parenting Class will help you think through how you can best find spiritual mentors for your teens and invite these people into your family circle.