Tweets & Tears

I saw the saddest "tweet" on Twitter this morning.

Now, I know that most people read this and say, "Why would that make you sad?  Teen births are DOWN!" 

Yes, I see that teen BIRTHS are down... but what about teen PREGNANCY rates?  What about sexually active teen rates?  That is what I worried about.  That is why I am sad. 

Although there are not as many teen mothers right now, the number of teens who become sexually active without waiting for God's timing is NOT decreasing.  From what I see and hear, it is going up... daily. 

Between "Plan B," a morning-after pill (now available to girls, without a prescription at age 17), abortions, and homosexual couples, it does not surprise me at all that the teen birth rate is decreasing.  I am more surprised that people are surprised by this new statistic.

Approximately 6.7 million women become pregnant every year.
Of those 6 million, approximately 1 million are teenagers.
In 2003, it was estimated that 43% of women in the United States would have an abortion in their lifetime.
Every year, there are about 1.2 million babies who are aborted.
Since 1973, there have more than 50 million babies aborted in the U.S.

On average, girls become sexually active at age 17.  They do not get married until age 26.
By age 44, 95% of Americans will have had premarital sex.

(For more statistics, go to National Right to Life, LifeNews.com, Fox News, Guttmacher Institute.)

These numbers bring tears to my eyes.  I have trouble even being able to fathom that 95% of Americans think that premarital sex is OK. 

I began reading Lies Young Women Believe by Nancy Leigh DeMoss for the second time.  It is another one of my all time favorite books, and I highly recommend it to young and mature ladies alike.

A recent article in the New York Times observed the trend among today's teens to mix elements from many different faiths into their own concoction of belief.  One Christian leader quoted in the article expressed his concern that there will soon be a mass exodus from the Christian faith as teens who have grown up in Bible-believing homes and churches become adults.

We would like to prove them wrong!  And we believe you can, if you'll stop mindlessly absorbing any and every message that comes your way!  Let's start a movement that will buck and begin to change the current trend!  Let's start looking to the One and only source of Truth.

These words encourage me.  The numbers above are statistics.  They can change.  They are not set in stone.  43% of women do not have to make the decision to end a life yet unborn.  1.2 million lives do not have to be terminated this year.  95% of Americans do not have to have premarital sex. 

Song of Songs 2:7
Young women of Jerusalem, I charge you... do not stir up or awaken love until the appropriate time.

Ecclesiastes 3:11
He has made everything appropriate in its time.

The appropriate timing is God's timing.  This means a lifetime covenant commitment between a man and a woman - in other words, marriage.

Ladies, I petition you to wait for God's perfect timing.

If you have not waited, I remind you that God forgives all of us who come before Him.  He sent His One and Only Son to die for these sins.  Come to Him.  Start today with a pure heart, and resolve not to repeat mistakes of the past.  I assure you, His timing is best.