Finding True Love in a Hook-up World

Written by Sean McDowell

If you could have any wish come true, what would you wish for? When I pose this question to my students they often say things such as, “to be rich,” “to be famous,” or “to find the perfect mate.” But of all the responses I have heard, the words of Ashley, an 18-year-old high school senior, stand out most vividly in my mind. After I spoke on sexual purity at a Tuesday-night youth group, she came up to me with tears in her eyes and said, “If I could have one wish in life, it would be to go back four years ago and hear this same message. I might not have ruined my life.” Ashley simply said thanks, and then walked away.

I have often wondered what decisions Ashley made that caused such deep scars in her life. Was she struggling with guilt or depression from a seemingly “harmless” hook-up? Did she get a sexually transmitted disease? Did she have an abortion? My heart went out to Ashley because I could see the pain on her face as she so deeply regretted her past choices. Somewhere she bought a false idea about sex, acted on it, and now she is paying a heavy price. Ashley learned a painful, yet powerful lesson: ideas have consequences. What you believe about sex will affect your choices, and your choices will shape the direction of your life. Misunderstanding the purpose and nature of sex can have disastrous consequences. So, what is the purpose of sex? And how can we find true love in a hook-up world?

Racing Toward Your Dream

God has placed special gifts, talents, and specific dreams inside each one of us; things He knows not only will define who we are, but also help us reach our full potential in life. In this new year, let's lay hold of those dreams and start pressing toward the finish line! 


Recently I was talking to a friend of mine who shared a motivating story about pursuing dreams. He told me that not too long ago, he found himself in the hospital facing a life-or-death situation regarding his health. While contemplating all of the serious “what ifs” that were going through his mind at the time, he remembers agonizing the most over one particular thought—the fact that while he was pleased with his life’s accomplishments, he still had one burning desire which, up to that point, he had not yet pursued.

As he shared his story with me, I couldn’t help but think about some of the desires and aspirations the Lord has put on the inside of me. Things I’ve wanted or dreamed about doing for years—things I know I am fully capable of doing—but up to this point, are things I still have not pursued.

Move Forward with God’s Forgiveness

by Rick Warren

"Look straight ahead with honest confidence; don't hang your head in shame." (Proverbs 4:25 TEV)

You don't need to walk around carrying a load of guilt. The Apostle Paul says, “Yes, all have sinned; all fall short of God’s glorious ideal; yet now God declares us ‘not guilty’ of offending him if we trust in Jesus Christ, who in his kindness freely takes away our sins” (Romans 3:23-24 TLB).

God wants to forgive you. Imagine a giant blackboard with all of your sins written across it and God comes along with a giant eraser and erases it all. It's like an Etch A Sketch: You turn it upside down and shake it, then turn it back up, and the slate is clean. That's good news, isn't it?

But we need to accept God's forgiveness. We may know about God's forgiveness intellectually, but we need to believe it, deep down inside, accepting in faith that it is true — because it is!

One thing that often blocks us from accepting forgiveness from God is that we are unable to forgive ourselves. You need to forgive yourself for your past failures and sins, for the habits and hang-ups that led you to sin. Forgive yourself!

Shake Yourself Loose From Condemnation

FRANCIS FRANGIPANE


We tend to boast in the power of faith while minimizing the value of hope. Yet, “faith is the substance of things hoped for” (Heb. 11:1). Without first having a living hope in God, our faith is meaningless. Indeed, the first stage of transformation is the awakening of hope.

Yet, even after we come to Christ, we still fail. Often a downward spiral occurs when sin opens the door to condemnation, and condemnation smothers the voice of hope. Consider the story of Israel's conquest of Canaan. The Lord was about to prosper Israel with the wealth of the Canaanites, but only if the spoils of their first battle at Jericho were completely dedicated to God.

No Regrets! Successful Aging Means Letting Go of ‘What Ifs?’

Regretting past mistakes may help young people make better decisions in the future. But for the elderly, emotional health may mean not dwelling on things you can't change.

By MAIA SZALAVITZ

Edith Piaf, the French idol who popularized the song “Non, je ne regrette rien” (No, I have no regrets), was far from an example of healthy aging, dying of liver cancer at 47. But new research published in Science shows that a philosophy of “no regrets” may be critical to emotional health in later life.

Researchers imaged the brains of 21 healthy young people, 20 people who had developed depression after age 55 (they were mainly in their 60s at the time of the study), and 20 healthy senior citizens. While the participants were being scanned, they played a video game in which they opened a series of boxes, moving sequentially from left to right. Eight boxes were presented in each trial and opening each revealed either “gold,” which had a certain money value, or a picture of a devil, which meant the loss of all the winnings from the prior boxes.

(MORE: Brain Aging: What’s Nintendo Got to Do With It?)

Participants could choose to stop and collect their winnings at any point. At the end, the position of the devil was revealed, providing players an opportunity to see whether they’d stopped at the right time and won the largest possible amount. This, of course, carried potential for regret — even though the game was primarily one of chance, not skill.