How are you spending your youth? Are you sleeping in late, looking for fun but feeling confused, and bouncing around from one odd job and casual relationship to another? Or are you getting up each day determined to go on whatever new adventure God has for you, no matter much commitment and responsibility that involves?

Embrace your role in God’s story and rise to your calling. God has given you a unique and important role to play in the great story of redemption that he is writing in the world. Don’t waste the early chapters of your life on the wrong story. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you start discovering and fulfilling God’s purposes for your life so you can live in the right story right now. Place your relationship with God at the center of your life, revolving everything else around your top priority of pursuing God.

Approach your life from an eternal perspective. Rather than using your time and energy on what doesn’t really matter, focus your attention on what has eternal value and impact. Pray for the wisdom you need to discern how best to invest your time and energy to accomplish what God wants you to do. Be willing to sacrifice pursuits that are enjoyable in the moment but don’t have any lasting value so you can maximize your contributions to God’s kingdom. Think carefully about how you can spend every moment of your life pursuing what truly matters most: loving God and loving people.

Participate in a church community. Get involved in a local church where you can grow spiritually, build friendships with other believers, and serve people in need.

Confess and repent of your sins regularly. Rather than trying to hide your sins from God and other people, be honest about them. Let God’s unconditional love for you motivate you to stop pretending to be perfect. Regularly confess your sins and turn away from them so you can keep growing spiritually.