You’re Not as Think as You Awkward You Are {a letter to young teens}

Dear teen,

I want to tell you something not a lot of people will, but something you need to hear nonetheless –

You are not as awkward as you think you are.

Let me elaborate.

(But first let’s say it louder for those in the back …)

You are not as awkward as you think you are!

You see, a lot of teens I know are so. intensely. awkward. And that’s not their fault, really. You feel that way because, well, it’s tough being a teen (especially a young teen).

Peer pressure is huge, you want to be “cool,” you’re trying to be an adult, you have to work hard to maintain that image …

And in the end you fail because no one can keep up with all that pressure, no one can really be cool {because there’s no such thing}, teens aren’t adults quite yet, and the image isn’t worth the stress.

So … I am awkward? you say, a bit peeved.

Yeahhhh … and no. 😉

You see, a lot of that you put on yourself! And you need to stop. You need to calm down. Most importantly, you need to rest in the fact that you are not as awkward as you think you are.

There are some people who are jerks. Mean fellow teens, adults who won’t take you seriously, cruel people who don’t deserve an opinion. And they aren’t gonna help.

But they’re wrong! Jerks are almost always wrong. Because you’re awesome.

The other thing to consider: why do you feel so awkward? Instead of just accepting it and (often) hating yourself for it, get to the root. Is it because you feel out of control in situations? Because people say so? Perhaps because you’re trying too hard to be cool?

Look at you! You’re not weird or a goof or somehow unearthly (not in a bad way, anywho 😂). There’s no reason why you shouldn’t embrace who you are, fight for the confidence you need to get on in this world, and realize … you’re not as awkward as you think you are!

For me, I think it was overthinking.

(Not always, because I have this thing where I turn off my brain, and I can actually do this pretty effectively. It’s a great skill to have, the ability to bluff my way through anything. But I have to get myself in a certain mode for that.)

Basically, I’d worry about how I looked and how I acted and what I said until I wouldn’t move or say much. And sometimes I feel like I missed some fun times and opportunities from that! Also, it wasn’t fun.

Now, I’m still somewhat worried about this, but I’ve learned to turn on that “confidence in the face of whatever I’m facing” mode more and more often.

We all need confidence (good, healthy confidence!) if we’re ever going to get on with life, and we have to know who we are and what we’re about if we’re to obtain and retain it!

Who are we & what are we about?

I’ve got a couple Bible verses that might help.

“Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!” (1 John 3:1)

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

“Do you not know that you are the temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16)

“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7)

“Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,  nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:37-39)

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14:27)

Pretty powerful, huh? Nice that God would say such great things – promise such great things! If you won’t listen to me, you’ll listen to Him, right? 😝

But even so, it’s okay to be awkward, too!

Awkward is defined by Google as, “causing or feeling embarrassment or inconvenience” or “not smooth or graceful; ungainly.” I think we kind of use a mixture of those definitions when we refer to ourselves or other teens as awkward.

But hey – reality check. A bit of embarrassment and inconvenience and a lack of grace (as in smoothness) aren’t bad things, really! In fact, it’s super character building if you don’t become bogged down by it!

So thought I hold firmly that you are not as awkward as you think you are and you probably could stand to chill a bit more (in the knowledge that God’s got you & you can be great with His help), it’s okay to be awkward, too.

Well, that’s all I have for today. Hope this post was a little useful for you – or at least raised some questions in your mind!

TTFN!

~Kellyn Roth~

p.s.

Were you an awkward teen? (Gonna be super surprised if anyone wasn’t/isn’t.) Do you agree with what I had to say here? Do you have anything to add? Encouragement for teens, etc.? Did I miss any great Bible verses? (I just grabbed some of my faves, but I’d like to see some of the ones you love about our identity in Christ!)

Also, these next few days are the last push for Camp NaNo! Love Once Lost may be finished by the 31st! Or we can hope, at least! (Check out my WIP page if you haven’t heard about that story yet.)

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