A Biblical Solution to Adolescent Angst

Saturday, March 1, 2003

A Biblical Solution to Adolescent Angst (NAPSA)—Surveys show that American youth are highly spiritual but biblically uninformed. Often, the most troubled young people don’t see God or God’s Word as the answerto their pain. . = But when the connection is made, the results can be miraculous. Through its “Reaching the Soul of America” campaign, the American Bible Society is asserting the importanceof biblical truth and values, especially for the young. A story, dramatized in a television documentary, Soul Survivors: Saving Kids In Crisis, demonstrates how the Bible can make an impact on a troubled youth by engaging them with the Godof the Bible. The documentary tells the story of Thalia Westphal. This 16year-old xas girl was depressed after her parents split up. She became absorbed in how suicide could provide relief for her pain. Hostile and angry, Thalia “slammed doors, was very obnoxious and didn’t want to be part of the family,” her mother, Georgie Grossman, says. “She fought us and madelife miserable.” Soon Thalia was sent to live with her father in Fort Worth, where her dad urged her to try out for the Easter pageant at Travis Avenue Baptist Church. Thalia landed a small role, expecting to be a disinterested observer of the other performers staging Many believe that the Bible can offer troubled teens the possibility of a newlife. what she considered to bea fictional story. During the musical, however, she experienced something unexpected. “They’re not acting,” she told her father about her fellow performers. Thebiblical story of Jesus had becomerealto her. For the first time in Thalia’s life, God’s Word came alive. What was only paper and ink before took on flesh and blood, breath andlife, as she watched the differ- ent roles played out. “T started listening to the words,” she says. A week after the pageant, she wasbaptized. “IT was the embodiment of Satan,” says Thalia. “But God gave me a chance to start over and live for him.” To learn more, visit the Web site at www.americanbible.org. Founded in 1816 and headquartered in New York City, the American Bible Society is a non-profit, interdenominational organization that works to transform lives, particularly among the young, by promoting personal engagement with the Holy Scriptures. Our mission is to provide the Scriptures to every person in a language and format each can readily understand and afford.

--- PHOTOS ---

File: 20190801-113138-20190801-113136-56026.pdf.jpg

--- FILES ---

File: 20190801-113136-56026.pdf