Get Help for Homosexuality

I read the article in “Hey Mike” about homosexuality [July]. I would like to share some tips with fellow readers who may be struggling with it, too. The first step to overcoming homosexuality is to get it out in the open. Talk with a trusted adult, maybe a youth pastor or church leader. He won’t think of you any different, and you’ll be glad you did. I found that the best way to do this is through e-mail; that’s much easier than telling someone face to face.

Second, meet frequently with that person and discuss the topic. Go to a park or grab a bite to eat, whatever works best. Finally, you should get some counseling. In order to do this, you’ll first have to talk with your parents. It’s great if the person who knows can sit down with you and help you tell them. And don’t forget to always keep praying.

—Name Withheld

Not Alone

Thank you so much for printing the article about struggling with homosexuality. I’ve been having problems with it for about a year. It’s very encouraging to hear tips on how to overcome it and that others are enduring the same thing. Keep up the good work, guys!

—Name Withheld

Wrestling With New Levels

As long as I can remember, my family has played video games. I remember playing computer games with my dad when I was real young. When I was in third grade, my family got a Nintendo 64. My eighth-grade Christmas, I got an Xbox, and one of the first games we got for it was Halo 2.

Recently I have begun to wonder if we should be playing violent games. You see, I both do and don’t want to play them. I don’t want to play because I’ve started to feel a little sick when I play. But more important, I’ve started wondering if God is pleased with my having fun by pretending to shoot people and blow up things. I’m not sure.

On the other side, I really enjoy playing video games, and I want maybe to design video games when I grow older. Also, video games are what my friends and I do together. I went online and did some research about how violent games can create problems by influencing teens. Everything influences something, but Christians are to be in the world but not of the world, correct? The Bible says, “Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation” (Mark 16:15). Well, how can we be in the world if we cannot relate to the world (such as my friends)? It seems that if I stop playing these games, I may end or harm my relationships with my friends. The Bible also says that “ ’everything is permissible for me’—but not everything is beneficial. ‘Everything is permissible for me’—but I will not be mastered by anything.” (1 Corinthians 6:12). Well, the games don’t seem to be mastering me, but I still am not sure if I should play them. I want to do what God wants me to do. I want to honor Him. And although I believe
that God can be honored by some games, I just don’t know.

—Philip, West Hills, Calif.

Stop Slavery—Now!

Recently, I’ve felt great heaviness in my heart regarding the pain that goes on in this world. I have incredible concern about the issue of human trafficking, especially of young women for the purposes of prostitution. It instills fear in me, causing me to realize what people are capable of doing to each other. It angers and disgusts me. I refuse to sit and wait any longer to do something. When I consider it, I become enraged toward those who instigate it and frustrated that there is little I can do. I am trying to get my youth group involved, and I would like to enlist your help, if only in a minor way. Can you provide the names of a few organizations that we could begin supporting? For Christ, and for the cause of the prevention of terror and pain in this dying world. . .

—Lyle, Troy, Mich.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Watch for an upcoming article on this important topic.

Subtle Influences

I read a question in the June “High Voltage” column about parents limiting media choices. I used to feel that what I watched or listened to didn’t matter because I didn’t repeat or imitate it. However, the other day in a conversation, I caught myself almost letting a word slip that I never use. It made me realize that media choices do affect me no matter how strong my faith might be.

—Alex, Marietta, Ga.