Have you taken a stand?

After much deliberation and several awesome entries for the 'Take A Stand' contest, we have chosen our winner! A student from Mt. Vernon High School poured her heart out and shared with us her courage in chaging her life and making a pledge to abstinence. Please take a moment to read her encouraging essay that shows it is never too late to start over!

How did you take a stand? : Well first off I would like to say that the young women who came to teach our class came in a very crucial time for me. See that past weekend I had broken up with my boyfriend. My friends had been urging me to end our relationship which almost tore me apart from the people who actually cared about me. My friends know that I have problems being a leader and saying no to opportunities I should pass up. I have finally stopped drinking alcohol and trying to get high of what ever I could. After having to get my stomach pumped I realized that life shouldn't be that way, and I was playing a game with my life that couldn't end well. I decided to come clean and stop all my negative behaviors, drugs, sex, and alcohol. I was clean for a very long time, but then I met him. My ex-boyfriend and I dated for a reasonable amount of time, and I felt that he was just amazing and I loved everything he did, at first. Later in the relationship I found out that he changed his ways, or stopped hiding them from me. He lied to me about his drug and alcohol use which didn't surprise me because I had gotten some really disturbing phone calls late at night from him several times and he got me started on my past problems, I felt like a failure. But I would do anything for him, and this is where I related to the lady who came to teach us about our decisions. She told a story like the situation I just got out of. Anyways one day my boyfriend had decided to pressure me into moving our relationship the 'next level' as he called it. I had already discussed this with him, I had told him before I was pressured into having sex. I told him that I was not going to do it again, and my decision was final. He seemed fine with that answer for a while. That time didn't last very long. He almost did everything to get me to have sexual intercourse with him. The weekend before I meet our Rel8 teacher was a very terrifying weekend for me. Friday he told his buddies that we had sex and somehow the whole school knew about it. Sense that was a false statement, I learned to ignore the looks I was getting in the hallways, but it still upset me. Saturday he was tired of asking I guess and decided to take matters into his own hands. He was done with me saying no, and tried to be cute about it when I caught him in the act of forcing me to do things again. I am not a strong person and I have tried and worked on that, but this time I stood my ground. I told him I didn?t like the way he disrespected the way I wanted to live my life. I told him no. He was very angry at first, then told me that he never even liked me, and he heard I would of 'put out'. That's when my middle school days come back to haunt me. I called my friends very upset and they surprisingly still cared. I thought they wouldn't want to talk to me, but they were there. I was glad I got out of that relationship, but I know next time I need to make better decisions when dealing with pressure. I really never loved him, what I felt was infatuation, which is something the ReL8 teacher told me. I have learned to stand up for my beliefs, and I will not be pressured again. I stood up for myself and I'm sticking to my decisions about premarital sex, drug use, and alcohol. I cant take back my past, and I wish I could, but I'm living my life differently now and couldn't be any more proud about it.

Fall 2007- Amaris Woodlard is a high school sophomore from Collinsville, IL.  She submitted her entry for the ‘Top 10 ways to avoid tempting situations with your boyfriend/girlfriend’ Contest in September and after careful consideration, was chosen as our first place winner! 

Take a look at her Top 10 List and pictures taken when Amaris was awarded with her iPod shuffle and iTunes giftcard.

 Amaris' Top 10 List:

1. Go out with another couple with the same standards that you do, like an accountability couple.

2. Discuss with your boyfriend or girlfriend what you are looking for in your relationship.

3. Have meetings with your parents so that they can be your covering.

4. Do activities that wouldn't be putting you in those tempting situations.

5. Stay in. Have a date at your house so your parents can be there to help you stay on track.

6. Don't enter into the physical area of touching your boyfriend or girlfriend in an inappropriate manner.

7. Maintain a brother-sister like relationship, treat him or her as you would a relative or a sibling.

8. Don't get into intimate emotional discussions to avoid the deep feelings that should be saved for your marriage partner.

9. To strengthen your resolve for purity, develop a stronger relationship with the Lord.

10. Don't watch movies or listen to music that encourages immoral behavior and premarital relations.