Teenage Resolutions

At the close of my message on Sunday, I read "Teenage Resolutions in Honor of Mom and Dad" from John Piper's devotional, A Godward Life (Chapter 102). I promised that I would post them this week, so here they are:

1. Resolved: I will obey your instructions and do what I know you expect of me, even when it is not mentioned. I will not force you into repeated reminders, which I sometimes call nagging.
2. Resolved: I will not grumble or complain when I do my chores but remember what a great thing it is to have a family, a home, clothes, food, running water, electric lights, and central heating in a world where millions of teenagers have none of these.
3. Resolved: When I think your demands are unfair, I will move to do them first, and after showing an obedient attitude, I will ask if we can talk. Then I will explain my side and try to understand yours.
4. Resolved: I will not stonewall you and give you the silent treatment, which I dislike when my friends to do me. If I am depressed and want to be left alone, I will say, “I’m sorry, I don’t feel like talking now. Can we talk later? I’m not mad. I just need to be alone.”
5. Resolved: When I do something wrong and let you down, I will apologize sincerely with words that you can hear. Something like, “Mom, I’m sorry I didn’t pick up the pile of clothes.”
6. Resolved: I will call you be affectionate family titles like “Mommy,” “Daddy,” “Mom,” or “Dad.” I won’t let other kids pressure me into calling you nothing or calling you something disrespectful as though true affection were embarrassing or childish.
7. Resolved: I will say thank you again and again for the ordinary things you do for me. I will not take them for granted as though you were my slave.
8. Resolved: I will talk about my feelings. Both the positive ones (like happiness, pity, excitement, and sympathy) and the negative ones (like anger, fear, grief, loneliness, and discouragement). I will remember that unshared feelings lead to estrangement, coldness, and even more loneliness and discouragement.
9. Resolved: I will laugh with the family and not at the family. I will especially laugh when my little brother or sister tells a simple joke with expectant excitement.
10. Resolved: I will give two compliments for every criticism. And every criticism will aim to help someone improve, not just belittle or cut down.
11. Resolved: I will enter into family devotions and treat Bible reading and prayer with respect and do my part to help others in the family enjoy them. When I don’t feel spiritually strong, I will pray about this as a personal need rather than pouring it on others as a glass of cold water. I will remember that confessed weakness knit hearts together.
12. Resolved: I will not return evil for evil to try to justify my meanness because somebody treated me meanly first.
13. Resolved: I will read my Bible and pray every day, even if it is only a verse and a brief call for help. I know that teens cannot live by bread alone but by every word that comes out of the mouth of God.
14. Resolved: I will come home at the time we agreed on. If something happens to stop me, I will call and explain and ask your guidance.
15. Resolved: I will greet our guests with courtesy and respect and try to make them glad they came.
16. Resolved: I will always tell the truth so that you can trust me and give me more and more freedom as I get older.
17. Resolved: I will pray for you as long as I live, that we will be united in faith and love, not only in this world, but for all of eternity in the kingdom of God.