AO Teens

 Everything may seem crazy right now. Covid cases are on the rise again. Everyone is freaking out about the new Delta variant. People are losing their jobs because of their religious  and medical choices. Afganistan  has been taken over by the Taliban. You may be thinking that it can't get any worse. That this is the end. But wait. It can't be. People have gone through even worse problems than this. And they still praised God. The world hasn't ended yet. Stop worrying and wondering about tomorrow. Lay your burdens aside and follow Christ. Tell Him all about it. Trust in Him and stay strong. This morning we were reading second Corinthians. Paul was telling the Corinthians what he had gone through. Listening to his hardships made me wonder if everything going on right now really was that bad.  2nd Corinthians 11:22-31 22  Are they Hebrews? So  am  I. Are they Israelites? So  am  I. Are they the seed of Abraham? So  am  I.  2...

                I feel that most of us take friendship for granted. We just assume that everyone has friends, and our lives are nice when we’re with friends. Have you ever stopped to appreciate your friends and how much they do for you? Let me tell you a story.                 May 3 rd, 2021, my best friend and her family moved to Wyoming. Ever since she had told me they were moving back in January I started to realize that I had never shown her how much she meant to me. So, I immediately got to work, I got together with some of her friends and made her a journal where all of us showed her how much she meant to us.   When she moved all I could think about was how I had never told her how amazing she was until she was taken away. It really made me realize how much I had taken her, and my other friends, for granted. Then not too lon...

 The Puzzle of Life By Hannah R. You know that moment when a piece of a puzzle that looks right, that you're certain is right, just won't fit where you want it to? You know that frustration? That anger that comes out? The throwing of the piece down, or that exasperated sigh of despair as you sit despondently back to stare at the unfinished puzzle? Remember how we need to stop, sit back, take a breather, and then come back to it with a renewed vigour and a fresh mind?  Maybe life is like that. Maybe those moments in life where everything seems to go wrong, or you keep trying to do what seems like the right thing is or you're certain is the right thing and it never works out are like those puzzle pieces that just don't quite fit. Maybe those moments of anger at something that just doesn't work out or that frustration at your calender not lining up so you can do everything you want to do is like that. Maybe, just maybe, mental health is like that. Maybe we're all t...

Hello! I am going to apologize for the pretty much nonexistent posts of late, I will personally try to make sure that I post more often, but I make no promises for my life tends to be busy and overwhelming as you will see in this post. A QUICK DISCLAMER- this post is not intended to be a pity party for me. I just wanted to share my feelings in a way that may help others so please understand that and don’t think I’m doing this for attention. -Kessa            I wanted to make this post because I feel that I cannot be the only one who is feeling this way. I am a planner, organizer, cleaner, leader, extrovert, etc. Mess stresses me out, disorganization stresses me out, spontaneousness is not my thing, and I always have to be busy. In case you can’t tell already, I get stressed out really easily. My planning, organizing, cleaning, extroverted, leading nature can be good, but it is often very bad. I tend to forget to go to God with all my troubles, I am stub...

  Hello, Alayna here! First of all, I’d like to apologize on the behalf of my friends and myself for the blog being so slow lately. Everyone’s schedules are picking back up again and it’s hard to find time to write together! We’re working on a new scheduling system though so there should be more activity now. This testimony is particularly tardy- I’ve been (sort of) working on it for months, but I just couldn’t seem to get it right for so long! But ahem. This isn’t supposed to be an excuse post. I’d better quit the apologies for right now. The world is a pretty depressing place. Everywhere I look I see darkness. The word “2020” is even starting to become a joke! People are scared, lonely, and depressed. They’re finding their identity in how many social media followers they have or how perfect their lives seem on the outside. It’s so easy to get swept away in the tension and petty bickering and to not fight to keep your head above water and your eyes on Jesus. Why waste time and get...

"My Battle Cry" by Isabella Cole Sometimes I look at the world, and I wish I could get away. Wars are waged in the street, even inside the people I love. Children starving, people silenced, tortured for Christ. So many ignore it, some say it’s fine, but I refuse to make myself blind. This is my song, this is my battle cry: I refuse to leave hope behind. Sometimes I look at my country, and see how far we’ve come. But I also see something else: How much further we have to go. We shout the names of some causes, while others suffer alone. So many see it, others refuse. But I won’t stand by. This is my song, this is my battle cry: I refuse to leave hope behind. Sometimes I look at my town, and I hurt inside. People divided, suffering, not even a mile from me. I see their faces every day. Some smile in passing, but I can do more. So many forget, some say it’s not there, but I refuse to let the darkness win. This is my song, this is my battle cry: I refuse to leave hope behind. Some...

Do you ever feel incapable of following Jesus?  Unworthy of His calling?  Not good enough?  Not strong enough?  You’re not alone.  In Exodus 4:10-12 (ESV), when God appears to Moses through a burning bush, Moses protests when God calls him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. Moses says that he “is not eloquent”, and is “slow of speech and tongue”. Moses had a stutter.  But God knew. “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the LORD?”  God knows about your struggles and imperfections, too. Yes, following Jesus and doing what He tells you is hard. Too hard, in fact. We can’t do it. Bearing the weight of this world, and getting to Heaven, is impossible.  But of course, if we could do it on our own, then what would be the point of the Gospel? We don’t have to do anything to earn His love (Ephesians 2:8), but we’re called to manifest , or display, G...

Hello, friends! Like Lily said a while back, a few of us decided to share our testimonies, and how COVID-19 has impacted them. One thing that I love about hearing other people’s testimonies is that God’s handiwork is laid out in front of you. You can clearly see his sovereignty, and his control. Sanctification is a powerful tool, friends! So my hope is that when you read this, you won’t just see an average story of a girl who follows Jesus, but that you will see my Creator, and the work that He has done in my life. I grew up in a Christian home, going to church every Sunday. During my early years, I didn’t really have an interest or desire for the Bible. I’m sure my parents realized this, but they continued to present it to me anyways. Around the time I turned six, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to the truth. Suddenly, I wanted to do what God said was right. I wanted to know Him. And even though I was young, even though I was incapable of so much, I was saved. I distinctly remember a...

Hello, reader! Before I get started, I want to thank you for taking the time to read this blog and especially my post. I hope I can encourage you and make this worth your time.  Contrary to popular belief, not everyone is hugely affected by this pandemic, in the sense that their daily routine is thrown completely off. My daily life didn’t change much, other than many things getting canceled. The only major difference right now is that my dad is working from home, which is a blessing.  But daily routines aren’t the only things that can be affected, especially by something as huge as this pandemic. During this time, I’ve seen friends much less than I would like to have done. I had a weekend retreat and a camp canceled, both of which I wish I’d been able to attend.  My youth group stopped meeting in person. My church stopped meeting in person. My friends and I would likely have gotten together multiple times during the months of quarantine.  And I hated it. And I do hat...

Hello friends! Quarantine has thrown us all through a loop, hasn’t it?  But, like Dom said in his introduction, there is light at the end of the tunnel,  and wow, that light is brighter than ever before right now!  Things are re-opening, some people are going back to church and work, and the end of this is in sight.  Now, not everything is normal. I know you know that. If you’re an artist of any kind, it’s very possible that you don’t see normal coming back for a while.  We’re artists, and we would like to come alongside you.  Below is a mock conversation, which we've put together in hopes of helping you see that you aren't alone. I hope this post is a source of encouragement for you all! Oh, hi Bella! Hello Nate! How are you? I’m doing great! How are you? I’m okay, but I just don’t have an outlet for my creativity anymore!  Dance is canceled, and I’m stuck with my writing- I don't know where to go next!  How am I supp...

HOPE Darkness deepens,  No end in sight. The future is scary, Lonely,  Black. Sometimes that’s how life feels. You think you’re alone, Lost in the darkness. We’ve all been there. Be patient. Hope is coming. You and I, We’re held in a Hand That will never let go.