Dannah Gresh @ Pure Freedom

Did you tune into the Focus on the Family broadcast this morning? If you did, you got to listen in as Dannah had a candid conversation with Juli Slattery about the myths our culture feeds us about sexuality. We are bombarded with so many conflicting messages from all around that sometimes it is hard to figure out what is true, or we get so tired of discerning that we give up and give in.

Dannah covers a lot of sticky topics in this broadcast that are often avoided in our churches – such as lesbianism and masturbation – but need to be addressed. Do you struggle with questions of sexuality or know others who do and want to give the right answers? Listen in as Dannah speaks to these issues clearly, honestly, and Biblically.

Don’t worry if you missed the broadcast today! You can find it on the Focus on the Family broadcast website. Then tune in tomorrow as Dannah and Juli continue their conversation. On the broadcast page you can find other resources to help you talk through some of these tough issues and take the steps toward sexual healing.

If you’ve been tuning in and you are craving more information, check out Dannah’s book, What Are You Waiting For: The One Thing No One Ever Tells You About Sex. A lot of what she and Juli are talking about comes from this book; it is full of information and answers to those big questions.

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Hey ladies! Do you ever struggle with questions about same-sex attraction, oral sex, porn, or other related topics? Or do you ever have others asking you these tough questions? These can be tricky topics to tread on, but they are issues that need to be addressed!

Dannah recently partnered with Focus on the Family to record a radio series where she answers some of the toughest questions. You can hear the two day broadcast at Focus on the Family on February 15th and 16th.

To celebrate the broadcast we a running BOGO special the entire month of February on What Are You Waiting For: The One Thing No One Ever Tells You About Sex. Buy one copy for yourself and receive another one free that you can give to your mom, your daughter, or a friend. We will also include a hard copy of the discussion guide that Dannah wrote to go along with the book which includes questions and prompts to get conversation flowing.

These are tough topics, but we think they are important ones for you to consider and discuss, and this book and conversation guide are just the thing to get you started! Order your copies at Pure Freedom’s online store with the code HEART2HEART and make sure you tune into the Focus on the Family broadcast on February 15th and 16th!

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Have you ever struggled with the temptation to fantasize? How about the temptation to masturbate? These are two of the most difficult topics to tackle. They’re also two of the topics you ask about more than any other when you write to me. My friend Paula Hendricks, lead blogger for True Woman and contributor to Lies Young Women Believe dot com, presents one of the clearest and most transparent answers to your secret struggles in this video. Dare to embrace the hard core truth of Matthew 5:27-30.

To follow Paula’s blogs for teen girls visit liesyoungwomenbelieve.com.

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How long should I save that first kiss? That’s the question I asked in my last blog and I may have ruffled a few feathers suggesting that saving it until marriage might not be the only choice. I argued that the problem with kissing before marriage isn’t when we kiss, but in defining what a kiss is. Wikipedia offers this nice photo of a pair of kissing prairie dogs along with this definition for kissing: “the act of pressing one’s lips against the lips or body parts of another person or object.” Certainly, we can do better. After all, pressing my lips against your dog is surely not sensual and would therefore require no self-control or internal guidelines. But there are those kisses that can be too much too soon. How do we define kisses so that we make God-honoring internalized decisions about when and what kind of kisses to give our special guy.

Let’s start by taking a quiz. Which of these five kinds of kisses do you think are OK outside of marriage?

Read more…

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Some call it smooching. Others Frenching or playing tonsil-hockey. Very few go with the scientific term of philematology, but many of you are asking just how long you should save that first kiss. Amidst growing pressure for a Christian girl to save her first kiss for her wedding day, I see this decision becoming something of a fad. There’s even a Facebook page you can “like” to fuel you with self-control to save that first peck.

While each and every circumstance is different and I admire many who make that choice, I’m going to suggest that in most cases it’s not the best choice and can slowly grow into an unhealthy form of legalism and pride.

Let me explain.

Read more…

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THIS CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.

Thank you to everyone for your input! Be watching for Dannah’s new book when it comes out next year!  Congratulations to Chelsea, Ka, Cyndi, Kristel, and Emily (you five, check your email!) on snagging a copy of “What Are You Waiting For”!

Posted by Heather Laskin, Pure Freedom Team Member

“A girl has to get so lost in God that a guy has to seek Him to find her.”

Dannah has been sharing that poignant sentence when she speaks for a long time. She’s finally working on a new book that will teach you how to get so lost in God that you won’t obsess about a guy finding you. And when he does, it’ll be because he got lost in God, too!

The new book won’t be released for a year or so but we’re already brainstorming the title. We need women aged 13-22 and MOMS of daughters aged 13-22 to vote on the title. If you fall into one of those categories, we want to hear from you (and we’ve got prizes to say “thanks”)!

We need for you to answer two questions:

1.  Which title is your favorite and why?

2.  Which one is your least favorite title and why?

All you need to do is leave a comment with your name, your age (or just “mom”) and your feedback. Please be sure to let us know specifics of what you do and don’t like about the different titles. We want to know what you think!

By telling us your opinion on the titles, you will be entered into a random drawing to win one of five copies of What Are You Waiting For! Here are the title choices: Read more…

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Posted by Jacqueline Gardner, Secret Keeper Girl Lead Teacher

I’m supposed to be recruiting you for this summer’s Never The Same mission trip to Panama. But I really don’t know the best way to recruit for a missions trip. There’s the usual “you should travel internationally because…” tactic. Or the “there’ll be sun, fun, and life-changing mission work, what could be better?” approach.

Why not default to one of those strategies? Because I think that even when we’re convinced we’re supposed to go…we’re not sure how to pay for it. So we let money (well, the lack of money) make the decision for us and we stay home.

Let me challenge you. To believe that the God who has all the riches of heaven and earth at His disposal can provide the money you need to go. When you are faithful, God prompts others to be obedient, too. If God wants you to go to Panama this summer, He’ll tell you. And He’ll even foot the bill Himself.

Dannah and I are going, and we’d love for you to come along! Dates are July 2nd through the 15th, 2012. We’ll trek through the rainforest,  perform dramas in the streets, love on orphans, and share highlights every night during youth revival meetings just for the team. So we need lots of teenagers–guys and girls! We’re also looking for college aged Leaders-In-Training and adults to mentor and chaperone. If you’re interested, check out the details!

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Wow! Thank you to everyone for your input! We’ll take what you’ve said into consideration as we talk with the team. Can’t wait to show you all the final cover! And congratulations to Kristel Parrish on snagging a copy of Secret Keeper!

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The newest revision of Dannah’s bestselling book And the Bride Wore White is scheduled for release this summer, and we need your help to choose a new cover design! Since the book is targeted to teenage and college age young women, girls ages 13-22 and MOMS of girls ages 13-19 are eligible to vote. If you fall into one of those groups, we want to know your opinion!

Leave a comment with your name, your age/(or just “mom”), and the number of your favorite cover design. Feel free to let us know specifics of what you like/don’t like about the cover you chose (font, picture, design, etc.). By telling us your favorite cover, you’ll also be entered in a random drawing to win a free copy of Secret Keeper!

We’re so grateful for your help! Check out these cover candidates…:

Read more…

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Regardless of your New Year’s resolution, we hope you’ll start this new year committed to strengthening the “spiritual muscles” of the young women around you. To help you do that, we’re offering a special winter discount for group Bible studies. Order the group bundle for any of the studies listed below for a 15% discount! No coupon required. Each bundle includes resources for ten girls. This offer is good through the end of January. Not sure which one to choose? Here’s some info about each!

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Guest Blog by Jacqueline Gardner

I don’t usually make New Year resolutions. I even saw this TED talk on how sharing your goals makes you less likely to achieve them. Apparently the act of telling someone you plan to finish the P90X workout every day gives you the same satisfaction you’d feel if you had actually worked out…except you didn’t.

Anyway, I digress. Let’s just say that even if I were a resolution-making kind of girl, writing a guest blog on being single wouldn’t have made it to the top of the list.

But here I am typing away at my favorite Starbucks. I’d say I’m cozied in and sipping a hot latte, but my coffee is long since cold and I’m actually freezing because the AC is cranked. So this is me trying to write about being single while effectively evading the topic. I feel like we’re off to a great start, don’t you?

Read more…

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