Get a Good Start

By Greg Laurie, Op-ed contributor Monday, June 27, 2005

Remember now your Creator in the days of your youth, before the difficult days come, and the years draw near when you say, "I have no pleasure in them." Ecclesiastes 12:1

In my 30 years of ministry I have seen that most people make a commitment to Christ before the age of 18. That is why it is so important to reach people when they are young. As John the apostle wrote, "I have no greater desire than to hear that my children walk in truth" (3 John 4). The decisions we make during our youth affect us for the rest of our lives. We sow the seeds of career and marriage, then reap their results in the years ahead.

When we are young, we are more flexible, more open to change, even embracing it. The one thing you hear from kids is "I'm bored!" (And this while they are watching TV, playing a video game, and talking on the phone—all at the same time.) In contrast, when you get older you find yourself liking a routine. You become more set in your ways. You go to the same restaurants and order the same things. You actually begin to take comfort in your routine.

Now, that is not necessarily a bad thing, if you have established good habits earlier. In the early years, the die is cast. The course charted. The path started. You decide what the evening of your life will be by the choices you make in the morning.

The stand you make today will determine what kind of stand you will make tomorrow. Solomon's conclusion was heartfelt: remember God when you are young. Don't throw your youth away. If you want to heed Solomon's wisdom, start good habits in your youth. Build a healthy foundation. Then you will have established something that will benefit you all your life.

—Greg Laurie, Losers and Winners, Saints and Sinners

Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Bible text from the New King James Version is not to be reproduced in copies or otherwise by any means except as permitted in writing by Thomas Nelson, Inc., Attn: Bible Rights and Permissions, P.O. Box 141000, Nashville, TN 37214-1000