Romans 12:9a,10 – Love must be sincere. Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. (NIV)

I just returned from leading a weekend retreat with ten members of my youth group. I selected the theme of "Becoming" and chose Romans 12 as the Scripture passage. Over the course of the weekend, I was invigorated by the sincere desires and earnest dreams that I sensed within my youthful friends.

The theme itself came from the song "Place in this World," by Michael W. Smith. In the song, he uses the turn of phrase, "And this becoming is harder than it seems." For so many of our youth, this sentiment is a cold reality. I wonder how much we adults contribute to this reality. How often do we judge our young people by what they wear or how they look instead of seeking to discover the love they hold within them?

One of my youth members, in discussing the weekend afterwards, made the comment, "The whole weekend, everything, was about love; it's the only real way to live." May we all take something from this insightful young man and strive to give to his generation all the love and acceptance that our Christian hearts can muster … because every one of them is special and every one of them needs to hear that message.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to look beyond the surface to discover the beautiful person that lies below the hurt and pain within us all. Help us to love the young people in our lives and seek to give them the guidance and caring that they need as they grow. Help us to remember that it is not only our youth that must grow in faith and maturity, but that we are all in a process of becoming, together. Amen.

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About the author:

Derrick Cunningham <riker_omega@hotmail.com>
Cobourg, Ontario, Canada
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