Christian Boarding Schools for Troubled Teens Philosophy - Part 2

All people, especially the youth of America , were created for a specific purpose. Each of us, including the troubled teens who are currently acting out, has a powerful destiny to fulfill. We all have been given special talents and skills in order to walk in our destiny. The problem is that the enemy is real, and his goal is to keep each of us from manifesting the glory of God through the fulfillment of our destiny in Christ.

"For whom He did foreknow, He also did pre-destined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He did predestinate, them He also called: and whom He called, them He also justified, and whom He justified, them He also glorified." Romans 8:29-30

God did not choose us because of our abilities, or our righteous acts. He did not choose us because of our obedience, faithfulness, or character. He chose us before we were formed in the womb, before we ever did a righteous act of faith or obedience. We are precious in the site of our Heavenly Father. He chose us regardless of what we have done, because the important thing is not what we can do for Him, it is what Jesus can do through us.

Some of us believe that the Father is looking for those qualities that we produce by our effort, (i.e., our righteousness, and our faithfulness). Again, God is not interested in our righteous acts, or our faithfulness. He chose us based upon His deposit of Christ in us... for He has made available to us the ability to walk in His power, His obedience, and His faithfulness. All of these are the product of our union with Christ, not a product of our effort. Our ultimate destiny is to manifest the particular and specific deposit of Christ that the Father has placed in us.

Therefore, the acting out troubled teenager is really only a child of God that does not yet understand that he/she was created to fulfill a specific purpose of God. Needless to say, he/she is lost only because he/she is seeking fulfillment through means that will never deliver. Currently, he/she is deceived in believing that he will find peace and fulfillment outside of God's will. Until he/she understands who they are meant to be in Christ, he/she will continue to behave in such a way as to bring forth anguish and torment. Unfortunately, those around him/her will suffer along with them.

God's purpose and plan for our life is a good one. In His will comes peace, joy, and a sense of fulfillment no matter what our physical circumstances are. "For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end (future)." Jeremiah 29:11 Many teen boys and girls today are reluctant to seek their God-ordained destiny because they are under the delusion that the ways of the world will bring forth happiness. It won't. Only through walking in the purposes of God will anyone find true joy and a sense of fulfillment.

Our destinies are often revealed through trials and tribulations. The difficulty that adolescents go through could be the very thing that reveals their destiny. Through the trials and tribulations God often reveals the schemes of the enemy. As the schemes are revealed, trials and tribulations can then be used as stepping-stones that lead us to our destiny.

Embedded in the very fabric of your destiny is the enablement to fulfill it. God has not equipped the American teenage boy or girl to be successful through defiance, disobedience, drug use, or any other anti-social activity. The ability to fulfill our destiny is woven into our fabric, a part of our DNA. For example, one of the greatest inherent needs is the "need for significance". We all have it, and teens do all kinds of inappropriate things to try to fill that need. The only way for any of us to fulfill the need for significance is to walk in our God-ordained destiny. Destiny is not something you can make happen; rather it is something that makes YOU happen.

" Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations ..." Jeremiah 1:5

Christian Boarding Schools

There is a battle raging for the soul of every teenager. Therefore, the only reasonable course that we have is to understand the battle, fight it, and be victorious. The battle is between good and evil, God and satan. It is a battle for life of the youth of America , and their soul is the prize of the winner. Understanding this battle will mean everything to the life of a teenager. Everyday, the enemy is either taking ground, or ground is being taken back.

God created us to be free, as we can never fulfill our destiny without the freedom to do so. God gives us freedom to choose between good and evil. He also gives us the choice between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of darkness. It is up to us. God gives us the option to choose Him and His liberty, and the enemy tries to force us to give up our liberty in return for his false promises. Furthermore, where God wants us to walk in freedom, the enemy's goal is trap us in bondage and torment.

" Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty ..." 2 Corinthians 3:17

The basic difference between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of darkness is that God wants to set us free through power and liberty, and the enemy wants to imprison us in fear, oppressions, and bondage. In the Kingdom of God there is faith in teens and freedom for teens, and in the Kingdom of darkness there is hopelessness and peril.

Freedom involves choice, and with choice there is consequence, both good and bad. This means that with freedom comes "responsibility" and "accountability". If one desires to be free, one also must be responsible and accountable. The enemy deceives the teenager into believing that there is no value in being responsible or accountable. As a result the enemy deceives the teenager into believing that responsibility and accountability are against them and only results in being held back. However, we are all called to rule with God. Since God will not release true authority without a corresponding commitment to responsibility and accountability, those troubled teens who refuse to be responsible and accountable never attain the true freedom and are forever held in bondage.

For those of us who are free in Christ it is our job to break the chains of bondage (schemes) of the enemy. The chains of the enemy are meant to keep our youth in darkness. It is the job of Abundant Life Academy to help your child break free.

Back to Our Philosophy Part I