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I was barely out of adolescence myself as a fledgling student minister when I had my first encounter with a teen in real trouble. A soft-spoken young lady whose parents were the ubiquitous “pillars of the church,” asked me if she could talk to me for a minute—even though her friends presently surrounded us, I sensed her urgency.
“Sure,” I offered.
We went around the corner to my office and she sat down. I tried to make small talk but she was in no mood. After a couple of awkward moments I finally asked, “Did you have something you wanted to tell me?” “Uh–huh,” she meekly muttered, lowering her head, “I think I’m pregnant.”
Fifteen years of age and on her way to parenthood. That would be the first of far too many encounters where young boys and girls would give me gut-wrenching news of pregnancies, STD’s, broken hearts, and families in crisis. It’s a legacy I have experienced repeatedly, as late as this very year.
Are we humans helpless, ignorant, or just plain stupid? Since the Garden of Eden, have we not yet found a way to control our passions and find authentic love?
Todd Lochner has written a powerful book for teens, young adults and those who care for them. He tackles the age-old question, “How Far Is Too Far?” From adolescents who really are hormones on two legs, to young single adults looking for love in all the wrong places, Todd pulls no punches. Yet his experience and advice are thoughtful and redemptive.
I have mentored Todd from the time he was just a puppy until full-blown responsible manhood. We have shared delirious joyful moments and times of great sadness and bitter tears. In one of life’s interesting turnabouts, Todd became the son who adopted a father and that father was me. It hasn’t always been easy, but I couldn’t be more proud of him. Against all odds and through the amazing forbearance of God the Father, Todd has overcome. Through his own painful and sometimes tragic past, Todd Lochner now courageously prepares people of all ages to face their weaknesses and provides an amazing game-plan for inevitable temptations.
If there is one crucial thing I have learned from those who came before me it is this: You must decide IN ADVANCE of any temptation how you will handle it when it comes—for it WILL come.
“How Far is Too Far?” is a pre-emptive strike in the area of runaway human sexuality as expressed by folks not nearly ready to experience it.
As Todd would say, he’s a person who shoots straight. You’ll find no varnish or candy-coating here. What you will find is a young man with boundless talent and one of the worst cases of potential I’ve ever encountered, who got his life together and is making a difference in the lives of others.
It’s not a “Do-As-I-Say-Do” book. Quite the contrary—it’s in your face! It’s practical. It’s doable. It will work in the lives of teens, singles or anyone struggling with the question “How Far Is Too Far?”
So fasten your seatbelts… Here are the answers you’ve been looking for, from a young man who found out the hard way.
Don Piper – May 2004
Associate Pastor, First Baptist Pasadena, Texas
Author of 90 Minutes In Heaven
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