"I want a way to live that keeps me involved in what God is doing in me and in the world around me," asks the Valparaiso, Ind., teen. "Do you know a way to live that is like this?"
That question launches the first chapter in Way to Live: Christian Practices for Teens, a book that challenges teen-agers to explore 18 Christian practices.
The book is written by teams of teens and adults from different parts of the United States and representing several denominations. The Christian practices explored range from "Food" to "Grieving."
For the chapter on "Friends," authors Katie Lytch, 15, and her mother Carol, a Presbyterian minister, invited a group of teens from their hometown of Louisville, Ky., to talk about friendship. Some of the teens were Caucasian and some were African-American. They came from different parts of the city, different economic backgrounds and different denominations. Their stories are woven into the chapter.
In the chapter on "Stuff," Alexx Campbell, 15, describes his experience with an assignment from his youth pastor to give away 40 possessions, one for each day of Lent. The assignment had two rules: 1. No junk. 2. The item could not be replaced within the coming year.
"After becoming attached to material things, it was really hard to give away some of the stuff that I had for a long time," says Campbell, of San Anselmo, Calif. "However, it is important to understand that none of us will ever attain true perfection or a perfect sense of what God wants us to do with ourselves."
A Web site and study guide, Way to Live: Ideas for Growing in Christian Practices with Teens, can be found online at www.waytolive.org.
The book, Web site and guide were developed by the Valparaiso Project on the Education and Formation of People in Faith, a project of the Lilly Endowment Inc., based at Valparaiso (Ind.) University. Dorothy C. Bass, director of the Valparaiso Project, and Don C. Richter, a Christian educator, Presbyterian minister and project associate for the Valparaiso Project, were co-editors of the book.
On the Web site, characters Michael, Sarah, Anna, Chloe and Nick speak about real-life issues. Actors from a public high school drama club used their own life stories to shape the characters they portray on the site. The scenes are meant to be take-off points for challenging conversations.
The book is published by Upper Room Books in Nashville, Tenn., and can be ordered at www.upperroom.org/bookstore or by calling (800) 972-0433. The cost is $16.
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