Throngs of teenagers are floundering, feeling anxious, disengaged, and lonely, while spending swaths of time on phones and social media. Many wander aimlessly, without understanding their life’s true purpose.
Parents, does this ache sound familiar? If so, I encourage you to reflect upon question number one of the Westminster Shorter Catechism. The answer is beautifully biblical and succinct.
Question: What is man’s primary purpose?
Answer: Man’s primary purpose is to glorify God and enjoy him forever.
Although it may be tempting to offer your teen more of what the world promises with its bright slogans—“fun,” “exciting,” and “new”—God’s ancient paths are timeless and true, leading to everlasting life (Jer. 6:16). While I am not proposing that your teen become a Luddite, I am saying that the only way for anyone to live a purposeful, soul-satisfying life is to adore God above all. God does not desire our worship to be a drudgery, but a revelry, steeped in enjoyment. We were made for this: to glorify and enjoy God forever.
God said through the prophet Isaiah, “For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me” (Is. 46:9). When we, as mothers and fathers, grasp the power of this truth and bow before it wholeheartedly, a holy reverence will descend, quieting our own hearts—an exquisite billboard for our teens to witness. In order to embrace our highest purpose of glorifying and enjoying God, we must turn from worldliness and heed the Spirit’s call. This frees us to model truth for our children as we cherish the Bible, walk in joyful obedience to God, live a life of ongoing repentance, and practice the lifelong habit of self-denial.
Love His Word
The Bible is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path, breathed out by God to correct, teach, rebuke, and equip us for every good work (Ps. 119:105; 2 Tim. 3:16-17).
To love God and give him the highest glory, we must first know and delight in Scripture. Are you modeling a love of God’s Word to your teenagers? Not only as a duty, but as a delight? It is good and wise to create a home atmosphere of joy around the reading and discussion of God’s Word. As few as ten minutes of Bible reading and discussion as a family in the morning, and likewise at the dinner table, will prove profitable, spurring conversation, while bookending each busy day with a strong dose of truth. Remember this: God’s Word will never return empty (Is. 55:11).
Walk in Obedience
Jesus said, “By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples” (John 15:8). Knowing the Bible does not in and of itself bring glory to God. Even Satan knows some Scripture (Luke 4:9-11). To glorify and enjoy God, we must take hold of God’s written Word and walk in obedience to his precepts. A life aimed at the pursuit of holiness is a happy life bent on pleasing our Creator rather than succumbing to the world or gratifying ourselves. God is the Potter, and we are the clay, designed to honor him in every situation, for a lifetime (Is. 64:8).
Teenagers who grasp this will shed the aimless life and strive to run life’s race with purpose and conviction. Pursuing joyful obedience has a stunning ripple effect, as Jesus says, “In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Matt. 5:16). Part of walking in obedience is refusing to forsake the gathering—prioritizing church attendance each and every week as a family, unified under solid Bible teaching (Heb. 10:25).
Live in Repentance
How wise it is, as parents, to not only teach but model repentance before your children, bearing in mind that any person who lives in a state of unrepentant sin will remain unable to glorify and enjoy God (Acts 17:30). Have you modeled an open acknowledgment of your own indwelling sin, confessing wrongdoing to your children and verbally apologizing to God? How good to swing open the door of vulnerable conversation by speaking of your own temptations to sin. In doing so, we lead our children to biblical examples of God’s gracious pardon of repentant sinners, such as King David, the Apostle Paul, Peter, the adulterous woman, and the thief on the cross.
While we cannot repent on behalf of our teens, we can model humility in confession, turning away from wrongdoing, and running to God’s Word for help in temptation. If I had known as a young mother what I know now, I would have practiced daily repentance aloud with my young children during our bedtime prayers. This is an opporutnity to teach them the goodness of humility and tenderheartedness before the face of God, who is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us fully.
Cherish Christ by Denying Self
“And [Jesus] said to all, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me’” (Luke 9:23). I am not sure anything flies more in the face of modern culture than self-denial. Jesus’ words, recorded by Luke, serve as a winnowing fork, do they not? Our teenagers today are perpetually told: “You are enough. Follow your heart. Chase your goals and resume. Live the American dream.”
But Jesus’ voice, a clarion call, turns such phrases upside down: “If you want to be my disciple, deny yourself. If you want to be my disciple, take up your cross. If you want to be my disciple, follow me.” God’s ways seem topsy-turvy and have absolutely nothing to do with self-gratification, ascending the top rung of the popularity ladder, living to achieve personal bucket lists, or planning one’s entire life with the end game of retirement, waltzing into old age stuffed with wealth and selfishness.
Parents, do not follow the lusts of this world, but give your teens the gift of abandoning the selfish life in order to pick up your cross and follow Jesus. Your children are watching and learning the beauty and cost of discipleship. What might happen at dinner tonight if you led your family in a happy discussion about life’s primary purpose? The Westminster Shorter Catechism is an excellent way to begin a discussion that will prayerfully open your children’s eyes and set their feet on the narrow path heavenward.
God is with you in this magnificent and overwhelming task called parenting. How comforting to know that although we often feel like a bruised reed, God will not break us (Matt. 12:20). His mercies are new every morning. Through Christ, we have an unfading inheritance waiting for us in heaven, and when we fix our gaze on eternity, the Lord gives us the grace to glorify and enjoy him each day, alongside our children.
If you’re looking for other ways to help teenagers grow in God’s Word, we encourage you to pre-order Rooted’s newest book, God With You: A 52-Week Devotional Through the Whole Bible for Teenagers (Zondervan, 2026).
