Protecting Purity, Guarding Innocence - A Message to the Next Generation

This month, I began teaching my teenagers about something the world no longer speaks about enough: sexual purity. Not from a place of fear, but from understanding, wisdom, and strength.

We started with open conversations. Real conversations. I told them purity isn’t just about avoiding something, it’s about protecting something. It’s not about rules, it’s about value.

We used the story of Amnon and Tamar in 2 Samuel 13. How Amnon had evil intentions, and how his so-called friend Jonadab gave him a wicked plan, to deceive the king, pretend to be sick, and lure Tamar to his room. Tamar, thinking she was talking to someone who had sense, tried to reason with Amnon. She spoke the truth, warned him about the consequences, and begged him not to violate her. But he didn’t listen. He raped her.

I told my teenagers, in any compromising or odd situation, always believe that you might be the only wise person there. Act accordingly. Think fast. Leave if you have to. Never stay just because everyone else is quiet.

We talked about Jonadab, the kind of friend who gives you advice that sounds clever but will ruin your life. I told them, avoid friends like Jonadab. Because when trouble comes, those friends disappear and leave you holding the mess. Worse, they’ll tell the story of what you did and leave out what they caused.

We ended that session with this: choose godly friends, the ones who protect your vision, not stain it.

Then I shared another story, this time of Joseph. A young man who also found himself in a compromising situation. His master’s wife tried to seduce him. He reasoned with her, tried to speak sense. When he saw it wasn’t working, he ran. He left his coat behind, but he kept his integrity.

And here’s the powerful part: the Bible says “Resist the devil and he will flee from you”, but when it comes to sexual temptation, we aren’t told to resist, we are told to flee. Run. Escape. Don’t try to negotiate sin. The Bible says, “Flee every appearance of evil.” If it starts to look like sin, run.

And then I mentioned something that still breaks me, how today, many children don’t just face danger from strangers, but from the very people they should be able to trust.

I showed them a skit by Gilmore: a boy and a girl talking late at night. The boy’s mother found them, punished them both, called the girl’s parents to inform them, and even requested that she be disciplined again when she got home. That was the kind of society many of us grew up in, a world where any adult could correct you, and correction came from love, not shame.

But today, that safety net is broken. We have irresponsible uncles and aunties who are now the danger. Children are being molested in homes, schools, and churches. Not just girls; boys too. And not just by strangers; sometimes by family.

I told my teenagers, no matter who it is, if it feels wrong, say something. Report it to your parents. Don’t keep quiet. Protect yourself. Your body is not a playground. It is sacred.

And to every parent reading this; please, listen to your children. Don’t dismiss their discomfort. Don’t say, “you’re exaggerating.” If your child says someone made them uncomfortable, believe them first. Investigate, listen, support.

We must teach our children not just morality, but self-defence, emotional, spiritual, and physical. Teach them how to speak up. Teach them how to say “no.” Teach them that silence is not maturity when something is wrong.

If we’re going to raise a generation of light in a dark world, then we must do more than pray; we must prepare them, equip them, teach them.

Because purity is not weakness, it is strength under control.

And while the world may try to shame them into silence, we will teach them how to walk tall, with conviction, with courage, and with Christ.

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