Attitude, the youth division of Parents Inc, will be taking its message to Parachute with three seminars over the weekend.
Christchurch-based presenter James Beck will be talking to young people about the importance of reliance on God rather than possessions. “It’s such a treat to be speaking at Parachute again. In schools I feel like I have to be a ninja Christian but at Parachute I can say what I really think and believe,” he says. “I’m doing three seminars. One of them will involve a panel for young guys so we can talk about relationships and being a man.”
Mr Beck believes that the biggest contributor to young people’s problems is the belief that ‘stuff’ will make them happy. “They live for the feeling of getting a new phone or new shoes,” he says. “We consume everything that surrounds us. We even consume the church and Jesus; get what you can out of it and then move on.”
The main focus of the seminars will be to address what sustainable happiness might look like, being happy with who you are and where to find that happiness. “God is the only really sustainable way to find happiness. For young people it’s an endless mess that says I can make you happy, whether that’s friends, drugs, sex or sport. So much is short- term. Young people get sucked in and it’s hard for them to look to God for their needs,” he says.
“I want to encourage young people to keep trusting in God. He has got a better plan and his ideas will work out for us. Just really encouraging young people to think about who they want to be, what kind of a person they want to be and to start making decisions towards that now.”
Attitude exists to put together creative and informative programmes to help teenagers make life-enhancing choices. The programmes are designed to help prevent youth suicide, teen pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections, plus other problems faced by teenagers.
“What I like most about what I do is the moment when young people understand what I’m talking about, the moment when the penny drops and they link what that means for their lives,” says Mr Beck.
See the Parachute Festival programme for more details on seminar times.
By Gemma Margerison
