Back-to-School 2014: Rules for High School

In Psalm 73, we're reminded of the inner strength that we can have as we abide in the Lord and cherish His presence with us each day:
23Nevertheless I am continually with You; You hold me by my right hand.24You will guide me with Your counsel, And afterward receive me to glory.25Whom have I in heaven but You? And there is none upon earth that I desire besides You.26My flesh and my heart fail; But God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

He wants us to strengthen our hearts in His ways.  Jesus has promised to give us the Holy Spirit, who will guide us into all truth.   When we make God's Word - His truth - a priority in our lives and devote ourselves to following Him wholeheartedly, we can experience the life that He desires for us to live - a life full of joy and a sense of His abiding presence.  When are hearts are weighed down by the cares of life, He wants to lift us up and remind us of His great love.  We can delight in His presence and in following His precepts.

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In Proverbs chapter 4, we read a set of principles that challenge us to allow the Word of God to govern our lives:
20My son, give attention to my words; Incline your ear to my sayings.21Do not let them depart from your eyes; Keep them in the midst of your heart;22For they are life to those who find them, And health to all their flesh.23Keep your heart with all diligence, For out of it spring the issues of life.

Welcome to Back-to-School week at the Crittenden household!  My wife, Beth, who is a second-grade teacher, had her first day of classes and our son, Eric, experienced the first day of his junior year of high school yesterday.   By the end of this weekend, our daughter, AnnaBeth, will be back at college and we will have helped her move into her dorm room.

A number of parents are experiencing some form of the back-to-school experience.   We are only two years away from having two college-age kids, which is really, really hard to believe.  The empty nest, if you will, is calling our name.

There's a certain well-known minister north of Atlanta that has just experienced that, too.   You can hear his father every weekday morning at 8:00 here on Faith Radio.  Andy and Sandra Stanley just sent the third of three children to college, and their daughter wrote a rather remarkable list of "guidelines" that she wanted to leave with the middle school girls that she had been mentoring as they made their way into high school.  This list was posted by Sandra, and has received some traction, and was even picked up by a syndicated secular radio show.  (As Sandra points out, "Some of them are inside jokes she has with her girls, but you’ll get them anyway...")

So here we go with "Allie's Rules for High School:"

1. Surround yourself with people who build you up, not people who tear you down.
2. Treat your kisses like you have a limited supply.
3. Guard your heart. Seriously… your heart is precious.
4. Stay vertical/no buttons and zippers (or Velcro). In other words, set your boundaries and stick to them.
5. Have an accountability partner and be willing to tell HER everything.
6. Be so so so so so so so SO SO SO SO careful who you date.
7. If you’re wondering if you should break up with him, break up with him.
8. If your girl gets broken up with, go buy her a stuffed animal, a blanket, candy, and lots and lots of ice cream. (Other gifts are acceptable.)
9. Pray, PRAY, PRAY! Don’t ever forget how much you need God.
10. Have a quiet time. It may seem like a hassle, but it will help you stay close to God.
11. Be nice to your parents. They love you and want the best for you, so if you disagree with them, just realize that they are a lot smarter than you…sorry about it.
12. If you find yourself lying to your parents/other adults in your life, backtrack and get out of that situation IMMEDIATELY. You are somewhere you do not want to be.
13. Never be afraid to say no. It’s better to be a wimp than dead.
14. When you fall on your face, get back up and keep moving (literally and figuratively).
15. Journal so you can look back and see what God has done in your life.
16. Even when you don’t want to, GO TO CHURCH!
17. If it’s not classy, don’t do it.
18. Don’t judge. Even when people are doing things you don’t agree with, show them love.
19. Pause before you speak… this will prevent a lot of problems.
20. Selfies are for faces.

Wow, this is priceless, and you could even say that these rules are gender-neutral in many cases! They're really like modern-day Proverbs!  And, if we as adults lived by these Biblical principles, how much more enjoyable life would be.  

You see, God gives us rules not to restrict us but to help us enjoy the abundant life that Jesus died to give us.   His principles are timeless and proven and come from the heart of a loving, heavenly Father who wants nothing but the very best for us, and when we are determined to go our own way, we are essentially settling for less than what he has to give us.   

It's so important to guard our hearts, make good decisions, and abide in the presence of our Savior - He is with us, He loves us, and He has provided clear direction for our lives.