A 16-Year-Old Explains, “Why I’m Not Dating in High School”

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A 16-Year-Old Explains, “Why I’m Not Dating in High School”

Will ALL kids date in high school? Will ALL kids automatically have sex, get their hearts broken, or do things they regret afterwards?

No, I don’t think so at all. And it makes me sad when I hear parents say,

“well, I know they’re going to mess up, because all kids do.”

I’m in the middle of a week where we’re talking about how to encourage your kids to do the right thing and make good decisions. It all started when I saw some commenters on some old posts saying things like, “The quickest way to make your child do something is to tell them not to,” and then explain why they don’t expect their teens to do the right thing.

That made me sad, as it sounds so horribly defeatist.

But rather than arguing my self, I thought I’d let my daughters do it for me! On Thursday my 19-year-old will tell us why she believes she didn’t rebel–and why kids don’t necessarily rebel. Today I’m going to let my 16-year-old explain why she’s not dating in high school. These are her words, not mine, and her arguments, not mine. I show you just to encourage you that it IS possible to raise a teen who won’t want to date, and to tell those of you, especially those with younger kids, to encourage a super close relationship with your kids, teach them to love God, and then EXPECT them to do the right thing.

Here’s Katie:

Wondering how you can encourage your child to think like this? Barrett Johnson, who guest posted yesterday, has a great new book out about having the Talk(s) with your kids! It’s the best book I’ve read about how to talk to your kids about sex, dating, and relationships, and it’s my store here! Or you can order it in paperback here.