Struggling to Decide

Published: Feb. 28, 2022, midnight

b'I started following Jesus at age thirteen, and I constantly got comments such as, \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153I can\\u2019t believe you\\u2019re so young yet have a strong faith!\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d And yes, those comments are lovely, but they secretly struck my nerves. They made me feel belittled. The way people said my faith inspired them was in a tone that suggested my faith shouldn\\u2019t be this important to me yet. Even though this probably isn\\u2019t what those people meant, doubts started forming in my mind, and one night, I was sick of it. I cried out to God, asking Him why He chose me at this age.\\nI felt bad for questioning God\\u2019s plan and went to read my Bible app on my phone. It just so happened the verse of the day was 1 Timothy 4:12, which starts out, \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Don\\u2019t let anyone look down on you because you are young\\u2026\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nGod had answered my prayer. Why did I believe Satan\\u2019s lie that I was too young for a relationship with God? Scripture clearly says otherwise. God is infinitely greater than the enemy of our souls\\u2014and what He says about us is true. We are called to obey God, no matter what others might think about us! And a few ways to do that are listed at the end of 1 Timothy 4:12: \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153\\u2026in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nI love to write, and I can write about the goodness of Christ. Jesus died for us so He could be with us. And He rose from the dead, forgiving all who put their trust in Him and defeating Satan and his lies forever. Because of what Jesus has done, God sees me and smiles. He says, \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153There\\u2019s my child,\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d not, \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Oh yeah, there\\u2019s that young one who follows me. I forgot about her.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nGod never belittles you because of your age. He wants YOU, and you are not too young to have a relationship with Him. \\u2022 Lily Davito\\n\\u2022 In 1 Timothy 4, Paul is writing to Timothy, who is not only a young Christian but also a leader of the church in Ephesus. Like Timothy, you also have gifts to offer the church\\u2014God\\u2019s family. How might God be inviting you to set an example for Christians of all ages?\\n\\u2022 Can you think of a time you felt belittled? God wants to heal your hurts, and He invites you to come to Him with all your frustrations, doubts, and questions. \\nDon\\u2019t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity. 1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV)\\n\\xa0\\nRead Verses:\\nPs.23|Isa.28.29|1Cor.10.31|Prov.2.6'