THE 1ST TALK WAS ON PEER
PRESSURE INFLUENCE:
What is peer pressure? Peer pressure
is the influence you feel from a person or group of people to do something you
might not otherwise consider doing. It’s not uncommon to want to be part of a
group and feel like you belong in a community, especially if you are new or
less experience than the people around you. Peer pressure often happens because
you don’t want to be alone or left out. So you go with what other people think
in order for them to include you. A peer can be anyone around the same age-as
you, like a friend, classmate, or even someone you seen on TV and admire. You
might try to live up to people’s expectations, but it’s important to be mindful
to not have other people’s expectations cloud what you want. If you’re dealing
with peer pressure, you’re not alone. How does peer pressure affect us? Peer
pressure isn’t always a negative thing. It can be a positive influence and help
challenge or motivate you to do your best. However, it’s helpful to recognize
that peer pressure can also be negative. It can result in you doing something
that doesn’t fit with your sense of right and wrong. Peer pressure might
influence you in a number of ways, including: Fashion choices Alcohol and drug
use Decision to have a boyfriend or girlfriend Choice of who your friends are
Academic performance Where does peer pressure come from? Peer pressure can be
present at school or within a broader community. It can affect people of all
ages and backgrounds. Peer pressure can affect you in a number of different
ways: Directly. Peer pressure can be as simple and direct as someone telling
you what to do. It might be a good idea to talk to someone you trust if you
feel threatened, or if you are being hurt or pressured into something you don’t
want to do. You could talk to a family member, friend, teacher or counselor.
Check out the Get Help section for more information about how they can help.
Indirectly. Peer pressure might not always be obvious to you. It’s not uncommon
for a group of friends to have particular habits or activities that they do
together. But when you’re with a different group of friends, it might be
unlikely that you do those same things. For example, you might only smoke when
you are with certain friends, or you might be more likely to study when you are
with other friends. Individually. Sometimes the pressure comes from you.
Feeling different from a group can be hard. Sometimes this happens when people
move to a new city or start a new school or job. This often means having to
make new friends and fit into a new environment. To avoid feeling out of place,
you might do things to make sure you feel like the rest of the group. When
people feel unsure about themselves, they might be more likely to feel the
effects of peer pressure. What can you do about peer pressure? Being an
individual means making decisions based on what is best for you. It means
taking ownership and responsibility for what you do and how you think. But
being an individual also means that you can be a valued part of a comfortable
and welcoming group. It might be hard to resist peer pressure and stay an
individual. Here are some suggestions that can help you manage peer pressure
better. Value common interests. Hanging out with people who like doing similar
stuff may help you avoid a situation where you feel pressured into things you
don’t want to do. Remember that being seen hanging out in the “cool crowd”
might not be as much fun as it looks if you’re not comfortable with the
decisions that crowd is making. Say no. Having the strength to say no can be
hard, but it can also make you feel good to stick with what you believe in.
Explain to people in a calm way why you don’t want to be part of something, and
you might earn respect from others and gain confidence in yourself. Try not to
judge others. If possible, try not to place judgments on other people’s
choices. Respecting someone else’s choice may help them to respect yours.
Remember that you don’t have to agree with their actions. Focusing on the
reasons why you don’t feel happy with the choice might help you to not judge
them.
THE 2ND TALK WAS ON HOW TO SECURE A BRIGHTER
FUTURE:
Balance risk and reward and don’t skimp on education It has
been said that anyone who earns an income and pays bills does financial
planning. True, perhaps, but only in the broadest sense. When you delve into
the details, you find that long-term planning is really about balancing risk
and reward and being an educated consumer. Here are five tips to consider: 1.
Plan, plan, plan Most people spend more time planning their vacation than they
do planning their financial future. To the extent most people do any planning,
it’s typically on a piecemeal basis. Usually they receive advice from different
people at different times, with no one connecting the dots. Have one person in
your household act as coordinator and catalyst, and have one cohesive plan that
you re-evaluate regularly 2. Save, save, save The general rule is to save 10%
percent or more of your gross income monthly. After setting aside three to six
months income in liquid assets or cash as a cushion for emergencies, a fixed
amount should be saved for long-term needs such as retirement. 3. Find more
baskets You know the old adage, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”
Diversify your assets and investments. Relying on any one investment for your
financial well being is dangerous. Make sure you have a balanced portfolio with
varying degrees of risk in investments for your life stage. Of course,
diversification does not assure a profit or protect against market loss. 4.
Protect yourself Your most valuable asset is your personal earning power. When
you’re healthy, you are probably thinking of the next promotion, your dream
vacation home or your child’s education. But an illness or disability can suddenly
change everything. How will you pay your mortgage and medical bills if you
can’t work? Group disability insurance—the one you get typically through your
employer—is seldom adequate for a long-term illness and goes away if you lose
your job. Individual disability insurance, which you buy yourself provides
permanent protection and benefit payments are income-tax free under current tax
laws*. 5. Protect your loved ones Only 44% of households have individual life
insurance, with half of those saying they need more life insurance, and 30%
having no coverage at all, according to trade group LIMRA, in 2010. None of us
like to imagine our families without us, but it is a possibility that people
all too often ignore. If you only have group life insurance through your
employer, you may be at risk. If you lose your job, you are no longer insured,
and life insurance becomes more costly as you age. Don’t put your family at
risk.
THE 3RD TALK WAS ON THE RLE OF THE CATHOLIC YOUTH
IN THE CHURCH:
Remember your God in the days of your youth (Ecclesiastes
12:1-8, 13) Youths play vital roles in the life of the Church as they are the
future of the church. Learning from the elderly stands out but youth’s
contributions have been shinning and have always been flag bearers of
particular Churches. For any tangible growth to take place in any Christian
community, the youth must be significant in that process of growth. This is the
more reason why wise nations, countries and organization focus more on the
development of youths so that the future of such investments would never be
improvised or blind. It is therefore an imperative for us in the Catholic
Church to prepare assiduously youths for the tasks they would naturally face in
the coming future. It is only when we have nourished our youths that they in-turn
develop the Church. The questions are “what amount of attention do we give the
youths and what is the level of devotion that the youths give to the church.”?
THE YOUTHS IN SOCIETY: C.Y.O.N IN THE MAZE
The youths of today
have very high ideals, and to deny this would be grossly unfair. But we must
admit that very often these ideals can sour, can be perverted, can be
exploited. Often young people ultimately relinquish their ideals if they
suspect that the situation is hopeless; if they conclude that nowhere can these
ideals be fulfilled. Unfortunately, this is the usual progression of events
today. Disappointments lead to abysmal falls, often to depths lower than those
they condemned when their idealism was fresh. Where this does not happen,
ideals are exploited by false prophets of good. Why is it that sectarians far
from the fullness of truth are able to inspire youth to make such amazing
sacrifices? Yet at the same time, the Orthodox Church, possessing the fullness
of Truth, has a real difficulty in keeping her youth. Could part of the answer
be that in ignoring the high ideals and potential moral heroism of our youth we
have failed to familiarize them with our examples of such heroism, displayed by
our own young, even the very young, who loved Christ and His Church in past
ages? The youths are important fabrics in the society. Can there be any society
without youth? Obviously no, then we must see to it that our youths find their
rightful places in the church.
YOUTHS AND CHURCH DEVELOPMENT
Just as the youths are indispensible in the society, so they
are in the church. The future of any Church can be characterized, pictured or
deciphered by the quality of lives her youths are living. Thus we can say, “let
us see the youths and we will see the future of the church”. As such, youths
are centrally involved in the development of any particular Church and ipso
facto the universal Church. There are some necessary departments that youths
should venture if the Church would know any form of development.
MAJOR ASPECTS THAT THE YOUTHS SHOULD VENTURE IN THE
DEVELOPMENT OF THE CHURCH
The Liturgy of the
Church The Liturgy of the church is the first area that we can truly see if
there is any development in a congregation. The church is all about the liturgy
and the liturgy is the church ( SC, no 10 ), when the worship of any church is
porous and bitter, then the youths are dead and in active. On the other hand,
if the liturgy is interesting and lively then the youths are alive and active.
Thus, youths must take it upon themselves to see to the growth of the liturgy
in the parishes and centers. They must understand the liturgy in the light of
the Church’s teaching and live it in their own cultural manifestations and
experiences. Youths must join liturgical groups such as the Choir, Altar
servers association, Church Wardens, Lectors. E.t.c The Spirituality of the
Church In the development of the Church, the spiritual life of the community
can never be compromised. Spirituality is what makes a church- a gathering of
the people of God. Hence, youths must boost the spirituality of the church in
ways that would bring rapid growth and spiritual transformation to the parish.
First, youths must join pious societies and groups like Charismatic, Legion of
Mary, Pages of the Blessed Sacrament, Blue Army, Sacred Heart of Jesus
Association and the likes. The youths of the parish must also be devoted by
attendance to Church activities starting from Mass, prayers meeting, vigils,
adoration, e.t.c. Evangelization Another important aspect the youths can
develop the church is in the mandate given to all Christians by Christ himself
(Matt. 28:19). Evangelization is at the heart of the church. Can there be a
church that does not preach? The meaning of a church depicts a voice to the
world. Youths must not leave the work of evangelization to older members of the
Church. In fact, it is the prerogative of the CYON to reach out to the world in
the form or manner the Church has designed for her ministrations. The vitality
and youthful strength is meant to teach Christ vehemently as St Paul and other
scriptural figures did. Organization of the Church Organizations of events and
celebrations in the church must be the function of the CYON. Youths must come
up with new and novel ideas for different programs that the church may want to
embark on. The youths must make contemporary decisions to move forward the
Church in terms of hosting and organizing programs that can move the Church to
greater heights. Church Labour In every church, there is need for cleaning and
clearing, that is, doing manual labours. It is the legitimate duty of youths to
clean the church and make the place of God an adorable place of worship. Youths
should wear the example from Solomon, the son of David that built the Temple of
the Lord in Jerusalem. Any work around the Church must therefore be the
function of the young people of the Christian community. And this they must do
joyfully and happily- devoting their youthful life to God and to his works. It
is said: Ora et Labora , to work is to pray. Helping Each Other: Living in
Unity Furthermore, Youths are bound to help each other in the parish; because
in helping each other, the move for the advancement of the Church. We are not
equal, we can never be equal, and some will have more than the other. They must
be bound in unity. Psalm 133.
THE CHURCH AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT: A MOTHERLY RESPONSIBILITY
The relationship
between the Church and youths is a symbiotic reciprocity. The Church is a
mother to the youths while youths are children of a loving mother. Just as the
youths have responsibility towards the mother (the Church), the Church also has
responsibility towards the development of her youths. In addition to the role
of our youth, and their own relationship to the Church, we must of necessity examine
the role of parents and family as partners and helpers in the formulation of
that relationship. We will just mention a few. Training, Teaching and Guiding
the Youth The Church has the chief assignment of training, teaching and guiding
the youths. Parents and members of the Church must school the youths or they
will depart from the truth. The words in proverbs tell us that “train your
child in the way of the Lord so that he will not depart from it”. Most of the
causalities we suffer concerning the lost of our youths are based on the truism
that they were never trained conscientiously and diligently in the Catholic
doctrine by their parents. Supporting the Youth The Church must support her
youths. It is a must not a choice, why? The Youths can never stand alone
without elderly support. In guiding the young minds, parents, teachers and
pastors must support their children. This support may come financially,
materially, morally, spiritually, socially and the likes. The Church must come
to their rescue in times of difficulties. Organizing progressive Progams for
the Youth The elderly in the church must take it upon themselves to organize
progressive activities to educate and occupy the youngsters. Progressive,
fruitful programs such as: lectures, career talks, health lectures,
moral-teaching films and plays, vocational studies and sharing. Fora were
experiences could be shared on family life, marriage life, professional and
vocational life e.t.c.
THE 4TH TALK WAS ON THE YOUTH AND RELATIONSHIP:
God wants the best for us in every area of our lives. This includes relationships with boyfriends or girlfriends. We should date for fun, friendship, personality development and selection of a mate, not to be popular or for security. Don't allow peer pressure to force you into dating situations that are not appropriate. Realize that over 50% of girls and over 40% of guys never date in high school. The Bible gives us some very clear principles to guide us in making decisions about dating.
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Guard your heart.
The Bible tells us to be very careful about giving our affections, because our heart influences everything else in our life.
Above all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life (Proverbs 4:23).
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You are known by the company you keep.
We also tend to become like the company we keep. This principle is closely related to the first one and is just as important in friendships as in dating.
Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character (1 Corinthians 15:33).
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Is it really love?
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 defines real love. Ask yourself these questions:
- Are you patient with each other?
- Are you kind to each other?
- Are you never envious of each other?
- Do you never boast to or about each other?
- Is your relationship characterized by humility?
- Are you never rude to each other?
- Are you not self-seeking?
- Are you not easily angered with each other?
- Do you keep no record of wrongs?
- Are you truthful with each other?
- Do you protect each other?
- Do you trust each other?
CONCLUSION :
How can the young remain sinless?. We youths must
be close to the Church because we are at the centre and heart of the Church. We
must learn all the things we can learn when we can learn them. We must also
utilize the opportunity of having priests, seminarians, catechists in our midst
to better enhance ourselves in the Catholic faith and teachings. We are the
future of the Catholic Church, the future of tomorrow, the future of our
nation, how do you want this nation to look like in the nearest future? We must
remain steadfast in faith and Love. Youths listen to God, you are the leaders
of tomorrow, try and read your bibles and be of good reputation..
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