rebelling against low expectations
Nine times out of ten when our friend suffers, we ache to our core. In response to that burden, we search for ways to alleviate their pain, to give them comfort. I faced that kind of scenario recently. My friend, Eliza Downer—a worn-out warrior battling for joy and strength amid the weariness that comes from chronic illness—was about to restart “one hundred days of thankfulness” and...
Have you ever found yourself in a place where you don’t fit in? Being a Christian is like that. There are times when we can’t find ourselves being comfortable among our non-Christian friends, and don’t really fit into the ‘Christian crowd’ either. Being faithful to God can seem like one of life’s hardest challenges. Living in a way that pleases God is not easy. In fact, living a sin-free life is...
I am rebelling against low expectations. Breaking down the social “foundations”. Changing adolescent definitions, To be bold and strong and brave. Striving for excellence every day. Setting examples, promoting change. I am learning, I am growing I am reading more and knowing I am more than ever showing. I am seventeen and, yes, it’s scary, But I am a Rebelutionary. My fear has not been...
It started with two teenagers and a vision to see young people take a stand against low expectations. Then a blog was born. The rebelutionary movement caught fire, the blog turned into a book, and an army of young rebels raised their hands eager to do hard things one faithful step at a time. But the movement hasn’t survived on its own. We’ve been joined and rallied around by another army on the...
It’s time for a technological rebelution. The stats and facts are clear: more and more members of our generation are unable to manage technology use on their own– and are facing disastrous consequences. This is the problem: our generation is using technology as toys, not tools. So it’s time for us to rise up and be different. To refuse to settle for our culture’s low expectations of how we use...
We’ve all experienced pain. There have been times when people hurt us so badly–emotionally or physically–that we don’t see how we can forgive them. All we can think about is getting even with them. Today, I want to share with you three reasons why Christians need to forgive. 1. God Forgave Us First When we sin, we isolate ourselves from God. God cannot associate with sinners like us...
Last April, a group of five teens from tribal India did a teeny-tiny little hard thing. They summited Mount Everest. Okay, so maybe it was kind of a hard thing. The funny thing is, a year prior, they hadn’t even known the name of the highest summit (Everest). Now, according to the BBC, not only have they summited the giant, they’re ready to start working on another one (maybe Mount...
Studying to excel, obeying our parents, and doing ministry are only some of the hard things we need to do. We usually strive to do something that will impress others, but we often neglect one thing that will impact our lives first: eating healthy foods. In reality, this is a really hard thing, especially for teenagers and young people. This was an issue for me during my childhood and teen years...
Have you ever found yourself in the middle of a conversation which you absolutely hated, only to discover it was due to the other party’s constant whining about their circumstances? Have you ever been in a decent mood and dragged yourself downward by dwelling on all the things going wrong–or at least, not going right? Have you ever heard those dreaded words from the back of a car:...
Seventeen year old Emma Burkholder is facing a hard thing few teens ever have to face. Emma’s mom, Jennifer Burkholder–who is paralyzed from the waist down due to a car accident when she was 18–has recently been diagnosed with 2 types of breast cancer. This is obviously both a major emotional and financial toll on the family and in an effort to help out, Emma has chosen to...
rebelling against low expectations
