Youth
#Trending: The Top 10 Topics Facing Today’s Youth; SLU Think Bigger Series
#1 PEER PRESSURE
The need to fit in and the temptation to live like the world especially sex, drugs and alcohol
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- “The new definition of normal is to drink and get drunk.”
- “The pressure to want to be loved overpowers us.”
- “Kids lose themselves and their faith to be popular.”
#2 CHRISTIAN MORALITY
Navigating grey areas such as modesty, music and language, and living how God wants us to live
- “It is hard to stand up for beliefs when they don’t know what they believe.”
#3 APOLOGETICS
How to defend and share their faith
- “Why do I believe what I believe?”
- “I want to be able to explain [the love of Christ] to people.”
#4 SELF‐CONFIDENCE & SELF‐IMAGE
The struggle with self-‐esteem and the desire to live boldly and true to oneself
- “I want to live as a child made in the image of God.”
#5 STRESS & TIME‐MANAGEMENT
Managing the pressures to succeed in every area of life
- “How do I do it all?”
- “We get so involved in clubs, work, church, etc. that we tend to leave out spending quiet time with our Creator.”
#6 THE STATUS QUO
Resisting the pressure to conform when being just “good enough” is considered cool
- “It’s not always cool to be a leader and step up.”
- “When nobody expects anything of us, where is the reason to try?”
#7 MEDIA, SOCIAL MEDIA & TECHNOLOGY
Finding truth, authenticity and focus in a saturated society
- “Technology is affecting our ability to interact with others.”
- “I need to focus before I can lead.”
#8 FAMILY ISSUE/BROKEN HOMES
Leading confidently despite broken and unstable homes
- [One of the greatest challenges currently facing students my age is] “having a relationship with family, especially when the family is separated by divorce or death.”
- “When my dad left, I went down a bad path…in fact, I hated God.”
#9 POLITICAL & SOCIAL ISSUES
Understanding homosexuality, abortion, creation and evolution, and social justice
- “I struggle with the idea that people are or are not born gay.”
#10 BEING IN, BUT NOT OF THE WORLD
Living with integrity while engaging in society
- “Filtering out the filth in life and staying focused on Godly things can be very hard for me.” [One of the greatest challenges currently facing students my age is] “knowing what’s socially acceptable and what’s biblically acceptable.”
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