To Save A Life!

So last Night we had 115 people from Springhill go to the movie "To Save A Life." It was a phenomenal movie that clearly portrayed a fairly typical life of most teenagers. The struggles and difficulties they face every day with peer pressure to drink, do drugs or even be accepted through the way they dress or tthe parties they attend. I had a number of thoughts throughout that I wanted to share.

First, the movie I believe portryed what the typical teenager faces and the struggles they face on a weekly and daily basis. It was full of scene's where each student seemed to be doing what they could just to be accepted by those around them. One statement I remember that stood out was when Amy Briggs says, I've worked my whole life to earn this reputation. How trueis that. Most of us could admit that we have done things to try to earn or build a reputation that we think others would be proud of. I look back and think how much of my life I wasted by trying to do this.

This movie was an exact replica of my life in high school. Friday's and saturday's were full of parties where I tried to earn people's respect based upon how much I could drink or what drinking games I could win. I strived for acceptance based upon other peoples standards of success and popularity rather than striving for pleasing God. One thing I will never forget is the difficulties faced in high school. I know many of those difficulties I faced are still there for teenagers today. That is why I love working with teenagers. I know the difficulties they face, and want to be there to help them work through these situations and difficulties.

Second, I wonder what is it going to take for students to change their mindset? I have always wondered what would have been different in school if instead of worrying about what everyone else thought about me, I showed others that I was there for them no matter what.

What would happen in your school, if you went out of your way to attempt to make friends with those who really need someone. You know, the type that are looked at differently or are considered to weird or dorky to hang around. I would love to hear your thoughts on this. I would love to also hear what you enjoyed in the movie, and what you learned or were challenged by.