Guest Post by Nicole O'Dell of Choose NOW Ministries

Celebrity Influence

4 questions parents ask about teens and celebrities...

1. Is it okay for teens to emulate a celeb?
2. Is gossip about celebrities really gossip?
3. What kind of celebrity focus should I allow in my home?
4. What about when I'm not around?

Being a parent of a teenager is has a range of responsibilities from simply keeping them safe from harm and teaching them to live a healthy, godly lifestyle. And not only teaching them how to do it, but also inspiring them to follow through for the long-term. In quick-fire answer to the questions above, I'd say: 1. Sure, it's okay for teens to emulate celebrities--but it depends which ones. If my teen wanted to be just like a Kardashian, I'd have to speak up. But if they wanted to be like Shawn Johnson (olympic gymnast with great values) or Danny Gokey (Christian American Idol alum), now that I could support. Use the issue of fan-dom as a way for you to discover the kinds of values that are important to your teen, and then make it a teaching opportunity.
2. Well, actually, yes. BUT. In my opinion, we still need to be careful about gossip and motive when it comes to dishing about celebs, but they do put themselves out there to be dissected, in many cases. But even more than that, I think we have a responsibility to use those opportunities to teach our kids about what's right. For example, is it gossip to talk about the woman at the well and speculate about what Jesus was writing in the sand? No, of course not. It's our attempt to teach and learn about truth and grace. The same can be true about looking into the lives of celebrities if it's done with that motivation. 3. As I mentioned above, healthy conversation about public actions and lifestyles is a good thing. Measure that against God's Word to discover what's good and what's unhealthy. Allow your teens ask questions and talk openly about the things they hear, see, or read. But put limits on access through media like reality television and magazines that get too personal and cross the line. 4. Here's where the real challenge comes in. How well have you taught your kids the reasons they want to limit their exposure to celebrities and all that comes with that lifestyle? If they haven't yet bought in to the reasons, and are only following orders, then you risk them struggling with and eventually giving in to temptation. You can avoid that by having frequent open discussions about their celebrity faves. I'm Nicole O'Dell, author, founder of Choose NOW Ministries, and mom of six. I believe that preparation is the number one thing when it comes to raising teens who will make good choices even when you're not looking. I and my team at Choose NOW Publishing have just launched an incredible set of resources that hits right in the heart of your need. Powerline365 is just the companion you need to prepare now to victoriously power through this next year and beyond.

Powerline365 Plugging Parents of Teens into the Source Powerline365 is a high-voltage, multi-format daily devotional to help parents raise Christian teens without losing connection. Tap into the power you need to lead your teens into a vibrant personal relationship with Jesus. Many teens, even those from Christian homes, fail to connect with Him on a personal level. They forge on alone, searching for identity as the enemy pelts them with temptations and doubts. As parents, we’re left reeling, wondering where we went wrong. Powerline365 offers daily insight to ground you in truth as you plug into the Source. It's time for you to power-parent from a place of confidence and surrender, believing God's Word is true, and His promises will never go unfulfilled. And I am certain that God, who began the good work within [your teenager], will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. (Philippians 1:6, NLT) Now for the fun part! Crowdfunding is a super-risky (for me!), but potentially awesome (for you!) way to make products available to the public. It allows Powerline365 users or those who believe in the project and want to support the raising up of a godly generation of teens to fund at various levels. And it means EARLY ACCESS for you! Would you pop over to our campaign page and see what we have going on? There's a lot of great opportunity and interesting things you'll only have access to through this campaign. Plus it's the ONLY way to get ahold of these resources now, in time for 2014. GIVEAWAY: And all who participate in the campaign and leave a comment here will be entered to win a Spark30 devotional subscription. We'll give away one for every ten participants. This can also be gifted!
My heartfelt prayer is that you'll find victory in your relationship with your teens as you lead them to good choices and a strong faith in Jesus. Nicole O'Dell is the founder of Choose NOW Ministries, bringing a message of hope for today's families through daily articles, weekly radio shows, and the printed word. A mother of six herself, she has authored 23 books for parents and teens, both fiction and nonfiction, all with the goal of helping the reader make good choices NOW.

Vision and vision boards

Catching the Vision God Has for Your Life

Many businesses include mission and vision statements on their websites and as a reminder the purpose and direction of the company. Our calling, our job assignment from God, is by no means any different. So today, I’m talking about creating a vision board.

(C) Jade DeGood 2012

•  Have you ever thought about going on a trip? 
• Did you just get in your car and drive with no set destination? 
•  Did you go to the airport and buy a ticket (oh, boy! The cost of airfare the day you want to leave!!) and tell the ticket agent you don’t know where you want to go, but you’ll trust his or her judgment for whatever destination the agent chooses? 
•  Did you start walking with no particular place to go? 

 For many of us, the answer is NO! More than likely you spent weeks, months or even years planning where you wanted to go, how you would get there, what you would do once you got to the destination and how much it would cost to take this trip.
 Habakkuk 2:2 says, “And then God answered: ‘Write this. Write what you see. Write it out in big block letters so that it can be read on the run (The Message).”
We need to constantly have a picture and reminder right in front of us, telling us where we believe the Lord has told us we are going. We can create vision boards, as Terri Savelle Foy (www.terri.com) has suggested, and we will remain focused on our overall goal for the Kingdom of God.

•  The Lord wants us to be prosperous. 
•  He wants us to enjoy nice things. 
•  He wants us to enjoy our lives. 

 What things do you desire? Put them on your vision board! What dreams has God given you? Put them on your vision board! Maybe it’s vacations, missions trips, to be debt free, to become an evangelist or to go to college…put those things on YOUR vision board!!
I’m posting mine as an example and would love to see yours…and as those things come to pass, please write and tell me!

Have a blessed week!

Love Finds You in Glacier Bay, Alaska--Book Review

A love story within a love story...that's what you'll find in Love Finds You in Glacier Bay, Alaska!!



Tricia Goyer and Ocieanna Fleiss doing an amazing job of capturing the feel, the scenery, the people of this remote area of Alaska due in part to a research trip the authors took there as well as their rare talent to weave reality into print!  It is easy to picture the people of this small town, the near by gas station and cafe, and the bay where the orcas feed in the summer.

Since I used to watch Sarah Palin's Alaska, I felt more connected to the scene where the main character could hear the black bear over the ridge or when the bush plane flew Ginny to Glacier Bay.  The author have definitely captured the real-life essence of the area!

This story also reminds us of our need to rely on the Lord in all areas of our lives.  The changes that occur within many of the characters--even that producer, Danny Kingston--instill a sense of hope, of happy endings, of the knowledge that God's plans may be different than our own, but are still better than our own, too! The story intertwines the past with the present giving hope for the future with situations the reader can relate to.  One of my favorite parts was when Clay's nephew rigged a pulley system to get Ellie to the outhouse without disturbing the Mama Moose...Well, you'll just have to read the book to understand part, but I can tell you, for me, that was funny!!

In the next few days, be sure to check back for interviews with Tricia Goyer and Ocieanna Fleiss as well as our first ever book GIVEAWAY at Super Mom the Illusion on January 8th!!  

To order Love Finds You in Glacier Bay, Alaska, visit:  Christianbook.com or Amazon.com!!  

Enjoy this wonderful addition to the Love Finds You series and be sure to check out Tricia and Ocieanna's other LFY books:  Love Finds You in Lonesome Prairie, Montana and  Love Finds You in Victory Heights, Washington