This is a question I distinctly remember my girl friends and I whispering to each other, comparing notes on when our parents said we could date, and when our other friends' parents would let them date. There was usually giggling involved and comparing which of the boys we found cutest. Our middle school minds never seemed to be bothered by the fact

AWESOME! If you have given your life to Jesus Christ and accepted Him as your personal Savior from the punishment of sin, you are on a newly paved road that is the beginning of your story of eternal life (John 3:16; 10:10). Every one of your sins have been forgiven—past, present, and future sins included—and you are starting all over, shiny and new

Heavy metal music tends to have a pretty bad reputation among Christians. (Much like rap music.) Even if the band claims a Christian affiliation, many people worry about how the sound of the music itself will affect spiritual grounding and influence the listener. As with rock music, there are arguments that the arrangement, tempo, and general loud

In Matthew 5:27-28, Jesus said, "You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart." Does this mean we can't even look at a person we find attractive? Not exactly. Jesus was criticizing the legalistic habits o

Ephesians 6:10 begins a passage in the Bible commonly called "The Armor of God." The apostle Paul describes the armor that a soldier in God’s army needs to wear to stand against the spiritual attacks of our common enemy, Satan. In Ephesians 6:14, he talks about the "breastplate of righteousness," saying to "put on" this piece of armor. That indicat

The Bible doesn't actually specifically mention respecting our parents. So does that mean we're off the hook? Nope. The idea of respect is implied in other biblical principles that God has given us about honoring our parents. Honor Your Parents"Honoring" someone means giving value to that person and treating them with the dignity they deserve as p

Many of us have asked this question at some point in time. We might have a strong desire to attend a certain school, date a certain person, or go to a certain place. Did God place the desire there? Is it direction from the Holy Spirit? Do our desires originate from our own thoughts or sin nature? Or can desires sometimes be a neutral decision—neith

The Five Solas: not a retro singing troupe! Rather, the five solas are Latin phrases that became the rallying cry of the Reformation of the early 1500s. The word sola is the Latin word for "only" and was used to describe five key teachings that defined a biblical foundation of faith. The five solas are as follows:Sola scriptura: "Scripture alone"So

This is such a hard question to answer today because so much media like movies, books, and music are all available for "free" through sites like YouTube, BitTorrent, and PirateBay. (And probably more we don't even know about.) But just because something is "free" doesn't mean that there is no cost. Someone has to pay, and if it isn't you, then it's

Decorating a tree during the Christmas season has become a cultural tradition in many countries. Is this symbolic display something that Christians should be doing today? Maybe you've heard that Christmas trees have pagan origins or that they have nothing to do with Christ. Well, there's some mixed-up history and theology in there.The modern use of

CW: self-harm, depression, anxiety, suicidePart of the human experience often involves feelings of shame, awkwardness, and regret. Sometimes people feel hateful toward themselves, depressed, stressed, or anxious. Some may even feel compelled to inflict harm on themselves. These are all valid feelings and important perspectives to understand about t

"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen." —Jude 1:24-25When Jude says that God will "keep you from stumbling," does

We get so many iterations of this question at 412teens: "How should I treat someone who is [fill in the blank]?" The question I always want to answer back with is, "What makes you think you should treat them any differently than anyone else?" The Bible is incredibly clear about how we should treat others. We should be loving, kind, caring, compassi

First and foremost, it is important to remember that regardless of what movement or sub-culture someone associates themselves with, we are called to love and respect them. While the Goth / Emo subcultures definitely have elements and ties to things that are not honoring to God, not every person who claims "gothic" or "emo" interests is completely i

Christianity is, at its base, following Christ's teachings. And within Christianity, there are countless offshoots—or denominations—of differing WAYS to practice or prioritize different aspects of the Christian faith. Baptist, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Methodist, Anglican, Episcopalian, and more are all different categories and “style

Mental health treatments are a controversial subject among Christians. Here at 412teens, we strongly endorse seeking counseling and talking to your doctor about any mental health issues you might be experiencing. However, even if you want to pursue counseling, there are so many different resources for mental health assistance that it can be hard to

The quick answer is, yes, it is a sin to cuss or swear or curse. Ephesians 4:29 says, "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." That seems pretty clear! Also, 1 Peter 3:10 adds, "For whoever would love life and see good d

That is awesome that you are willing to share the gospel with your loved one! If they are showing an interest in God or Christianity, then it is a good time to start the conversation. We should always be prepared to explain our faith and hope in Jesus to others when asked (1 Peter 3:15).First things first though, we want to be clear that you can't

The last words that someone says often have the most impact or are highly valued—whether that person is moving, going away to war, on their death bed, or some other significant moment of departure. When Jesus was on the cross, He uttered seven phrases which are recorded in Matthew, Luke, and John. Often these "Seven Last Sayings of Christ" are exam

We see all throughout the pages of Scripture that God’s love is absolutely unconditional. This means that God’s love for us is not dependent on what we do or don’t do. You may have heard the saying that there’s nothing we can do to make God love us more, and there’s nothing we can do to make God love us less. And this is certainly true.Instead of l