Reaching Teen Girls
Relating to young women in our churches and communities
Think back on your life as a teenager.
For some that will be a few years, for others a few decades. However long it’s been, however different the circumstances or variables, today’s teens face similar challenges, but with an intensity that has never been felt before. Everything in their lives is public thanks to social media and cell phones. The world is smaller today with more opportunities—and challenges—than ever before. Women’s Ministries can play a pivotal role in the lives of the teen girls in their churches and communities. The resources below are intended to be a starting point for incorporating teen ministry into your WM programs.
Resources
Adventist Learning Community Course
This course provides insights into the needs of teenage girls, helping you to be better equipped to mentor them during a transitional time in their life and learning tools to create a safe atmosphere in your church for youth.
gorgeous2god & A Rugged Journey
The G2G website and social media platforms offer a place for young women to ask tough questions anonymously and read encouraging and empowering articles to help them make healthy decisions. A Rugged Journey is the correlate for teen boys.
Getting Your Daughter (and you) Through the Teen Years
This document outlines helpful information for understanding the changes your teen girl is going through and ways you can support her.
REAL Series
Real Love, Real Me, Real Friends, and Real Beauty are four seminars geared specifically toward helping teenage girls discover that God loves them and desires the very best for their relationships, their understanding of self, their friendships, and how they develop internal and external beauty.
Recommended Reading for Mentors
Untangled:
Guiding Teenage Girls through the Seven Transitions into Adulthood
Lisa Damour, Ph.D.
Under Pressure:
Confronting the Epidemic of Stress and Anxiety in Girls
Lisa Damour, Ph.D.
The Power of Encouragement:
Determinations that Define Your Destiny
Deborah Hill, Adventist therapist
Queen Bees and Wannabes:
Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and the New Realities of Girl World
Rosalind Wiseman
Growing Young:
6 Essential Strategies to Help Young People Discover and Love Your Church
Fuller Youth Institute
You Lost Me:
Why Young Christians Are Leaving Church . . . and Rethinking Faith
David Kinnaman
Recommended Reading for Teens
Cherish:
Cultivating Relationships with Parents, Friends, Guys, and More
Vicki Courtney
Reflect:
Discovering the Beauty, Worth, and Wonderfulness of You
Vicki Courtney
Date or Soulmate:
How to Know if Someone is Worth Pursuing in Two Dates or Less
Neil Clark Warren
Me, Myself, and Lies:
What to Say When You Talk to Yourself
Jennifer Rothschild
Sex, Purity, and the Longings of a Girl’s Heart:
Discovering the Beauty and Freedom of God-Defined Sexuality
Kristen Clark & Bethany Beal