ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S WORLD

How many times have you blamed your teen's behavior, attitude or the way they dress on today's culture? I think at one time or another all parents have, but it is time we face the facts...gone are the days when Greg and Marcia Brady were the popular teen idols.

Teenagers today are flooded with messages from pop culture via television and  other  media. They see that sex and promiscuity are okay.  They are shown what the perfect body image looks like, and how the world will judge them if they do not abide by what the media considers to be the cultural “norm.” As a result, the US has the highest rate of teen drug use, eating disorder, and pregnancy.

In his book, ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S WORLD Become a Culturally Savvy Parent, Brian Housman will help you make sense of your teen's world, while showing you how to be a positive influence in your teen's life as you help them wade through this culture-obsessed world.

ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S LIFE is divided into three sections:

PART 1: Engaging Your Teen's Culture "deals with unhealthy approaches to teen culture that many of us experience as parents".

• When our teens make poor choices, we are quick to blame someone or something else - the music, video games, Hollywood, and our "parental pride" gets in the way:

"You've got the wrong kid."

"Not my child!"
"It's not my fault"

• "It is this pride that keeps you from taking responsibility as a parent."  ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S WORLD shows you how to get past your pride and to "own up" to your role in what is happening.

• Some parents close their eyes to their teen's problems. "We as parents have cultural blinders..." "...parents are unable to honestly address issues in teen culture because they still view their teens as the innocent children they once were."

"My son would never do drugs."

"My daughter is wearing a purity ring, so she is not going to have sex"

• "Your inability to believe that it could happen is partly how it happened." (Take it from someone with experience, it CAN happen to your teen. And my eyes were not closed.)

• If you follow my blog, then you know I am all for talking to your teen about everything that is going on in their life.  In his book, Brian Housman says, "if you don't think your son would drink and drive, what reason would you have to talk with him about it? If you can't conceive of your daughter having sex with her boyfriend, why would you ever bring up the subject?"

• He also refers to scripture throughout the book to demonstrate that what you are going through with your teen is what God had planned all along.

PART 2: Engaging Your Teen's Heart "takes you on a journey of discovery into who your teenager really is".

• In this section, Brian Housman helps you look for the value behind your teen's behavior.  When our children are young, we start teaching them our values and our beliefs, but "no matter where your teens are educated, who they hang out with or where they go to church, there are going to be other influences around them besides you".  (I believe I have said this same thing in one of my other posts.  I know  I took Hollie to church. I even switched her to a Christian school, but I think BOYS, and her wanting them to like her, were a bigger influence.)

• As a parent, "we worry about how our teen's behavior is going to reflect on us as parents, so we just try to fix the behavior". (There's that pride thing again.) 

A few values given in ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S WORLD include: 

               BEHAVIOR                                              VALUE

               Sexual Relationship                                 Need for love               

               Partying with the wrong crowd                  Need for community

Discovering the VALUE is key to helping change the BEHAVIOR.

PART 3: Engaging The World Together, "Once you understand healthy ways to respond to a teen's culture, and you understand who your teen is, then you are ready to move into the world together to love others."

• Engaging Your Teen's World helps you prepare your teen to live in the world by "understanding God's design for their life" and how to help them see the joy that comes in living within that design.

• He points out that Christians are not engaging the world and today's culture.  When Christians don't like something that is happening in their community, instead of helping to change the problem to how God intended, they just start their own little community, with  Christian schools, businesses, music, etc.

• You will learn ways  to teach your teen how to demonstrate the love of God by engaging  the community and neighborhood no matter how different the people are or what their beliefs are.

• ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S WORLD helps you understand that you don't have to have all the answers, and it is okay to tell your teen, "I don't know".

-ENGAGING YOUR TEEN'S WORLD Become A Culturally Savvy Parent will show you how to let go of those unhealthy ideas about today's culture and will guide you through those tough teenage years.
 

Below is a video of an interview with Brian Housman.

Click on any of the blue quotes above to be taken to Brian Housman's website, www.awaketolife.org

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Brian Housman. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”