All rights reserved.At thirteen years old, I signed a contract, swearing to my parents I wouldn’t date until they decided I was ready. We pray that Jayson and Taylor will be lifetime friends who grow into men of godly character.Ĭopyright © 2005 by FamilyLife. We trust that the Lord used the Passport2Purity Weekend to build lasting convictions into two boys. You and your family will always hold a very special place in our lives. I’m so very thankful and blessed to have such positive male role models available. I know he enjoyed himself and that it made an impact. Thanks so much for including Taylor in your recent adolescent weekend. Tammy and I received a note from Taylor’s mom after the boys’ weekend adventure. Father power is just built into who we are as men-that’s the way God designed it. It’s so much harder for a single mom, like Robin. It’s hard enough today for a mom and a dad to raise a teenage boy together. I believe single moms would welcome their support and that it would go far in affirming a young man whose father is absent from his life. I think it would be great for men to look for God-given opportunities in their churches to mentor preteen boys who don’t have fathers at home. She was interested because a poll of our sixth grade Sunday school students revealed that their parents are still one of their most influential sources. I mentioned the Passport2Purity weekend to a Sunday school coordinator at my church. And I feel good knowing that Robin can review Taylor’s Passport2Purity workbook with him. I asked him to come to me with questions, or comments, or complaints, or whatever he has. And it showed Jayson the importance of engaging with someone else and giving away what you have.Īfter the weekend, I told Taylor that I wanted to be involved in his life-that I didn’t want him to think that our time together was just a one-time thing. It did me a lot of good to hear Jayson verbalize some things-to hear what my son understands about his faith. ![]() This drew Jayson in and let him know that he was an important part of the weekend. ![]() As he asked questions, I deferred them to Jayson to answer. Taylor was very inquisitive when I talked about his relationship with Jesus Christ. There were discussions about relationships with young ladies and how to treat them. We had a lot of conversation about choosing friends wisely, what good friends look like … and how to be a good friend. With all of this activity, we still had plenty of time to listen to the Passport2Purity messages (by Dennis and Barbara Rainey) and to talk about them. (Taylor was the only one who caught any fish!) We made some special memories as we walked down a hill to a donut shop, went swimming, played miniature golf, ate pizza while watching a football game on a widescreen TV, and went fishing. The boys’ weekend adventureĪ couple of months later, the boys and I were off on our one-night weekend adventure. Robin said that Taylor’s grandmother had a condo near Little Rock that we could use. Robin responded very enthusiastically to my invitation. I suggested taking Jayson along because I thought this would make Taylor more comfortable and that the boys would have a lot of fun together. I said that I would be happy to take Taylor on that same type of getaway if she thought it would be helpful. It is targeted for kids around 10, 11, or 12 years old-right before they hit the teen years. I explained that FamilyLife’s Passport2Purity kit is designed for a dad to take a son, or a mom to take a daughter, on a special weekend to talk about a variety of issues teenagers face, including sex. Passport2PurityĪs the paving stones started to take the form of a patio, I began telling Robin about the special father-son “ Passport2Purity weekend” I had just completed with Jayson. It was a great opportunity to help neighbors and to spend some time with the two boys. We discovered that they were making a patio and putting mulch on their flowerbeds. ![]() Curious, Jayson and I went over to see what was happening. The next day 12-year-old Taylor and his mom began taking the materials to the back of their house. Last spring, I noticed a load of mulch and a pile of paving stones sitting on Robin’s driveway. Taylor and our son, Jayson, are the same age, and they’re good friends. Unfortunately, his mom (Robin) and dad divorced four years ago. My wife, Tammy, and I moved to Little Rock about seven years ago, and we’ve lived the entire time across the street from 12-year-old Taylor’s family.
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