Passport to Purity Weekend

As a parent, we get to look back at our childhood and choose those things we would do the same as
our parents... and those we would change.

I'm a product of the 80's.  My parents both worked like crazy to support our family and pay the tuition to send us to Christian schools.  They did the best they knew how to do.  We were a pretty typical middle class family, I guess.

One thing as a teenager, though, was that communication wasn't very open about certain important subjects.  Like sex.

I learned about the birds and bees from girlfriends and I knew that sex was an absolute no-no before marriage.  Bad...bad...bad.  That kind of attitude really can mess with a good Christian girl after she's married and it's supposed to be okay, even good, then.  It sure would have been nice if God would have installed a switch to flip inside of each one of us, ya know?  Off...  On...

Well, anyway, this was one of those areas I looked at and really wanted something different for my daughter and son.

A few years ago, a friend of mine was telling me about Dennis and Barbara Rainey's Passport to Purity.  It's a CD and workbook that goes over some really important topics like peer pressure, sex, and a plan for the teen to remain sexually pure until marriage.  Good stuff.

I've heard pros and cons about this particular "curriculum", but what I really wanted was to open the door to discussion, to make these topics available to be talked about.  I don't want my kiddos to feel like they can't discuss something with me because they feel that it is "taboo".  And that is something I am really trying to do better!  I also understand that this is not a one-shot deal.  We can't just do this "project" and expect a stellar outcome.

So, a few weekends ago, I had the opportunity to get away with my 12-year old daughter for our"Passport" weekend.  We didn't go far and it wasn't crazy expensive.  But, the door of discussion that opened is one that I will be working hard to keep open.  We had a wonderful time connecting in a way we never had before and the memories we created are priceless.


In a couple of years, my hubby and son will go off on their own adventure.

And prayerfully, the story of our children's youth will end triumphantly.

What are you doing to keep the lines of communication open with your tween- and teen-agers?