[1]The Connors are Christian parents of three teenagers. They are faithful church members who have attended and supported their church for decades, serving their fellow members with loving hearts and smiling faces.
But behind their Sunday morning smiles, their hearts ache with emotional pain, confusion, fear and unanswered questions. Their 18-year-old son, Kyle — the child they raised in a Bible-believing, Christ-loving home — has strayed far from the values, faith and moral boundaries they taught him. His once-admirable behavior and belief in God have shifted almost overnight into angry rebellion, family withdrawal, parental disrespect, reckless decisions, risky choices and a rejection of his Christian faith.
The Connors feel a deep sorrow that robs their joy and causes them to question their parenting. They pray for Kyle and wonder where things went wrong. They worry about his spiritual, physical, mental and emotional health and safety. Kyle’s parents cling to the hope that God will gently lead their prodigal back home.
The Connors’ concerns mirror the current fears of countless Christian parents as increasing numbers of young people depart from their families’ Christian faith and values and journey to “the far country.”
According to the Pew Research Center, about half of U.S. teens say they share their parents’ religious beliefs, and nearly 10% say the differences create conflict at home. A majority of teens (61%) say it is not necessary to believe in God to be moral and have good values.
In Luke 15:11–32, Jesus tells the story of the prodigal son who demanded his father’s inheritance, traveled to a distant land and engaged in physical, emotional, moral and spiritual self-destruction. The world, and his own rebellion, broke him.
The current day “far country” is just as dangerous for our sons and daughters, and it is pulling many of today’s youth away from faith, family and safety. While major risks facing wayward youth are not surprising, the following five are important to consider (statistics pulled from various research agencies who follow the specific topics).
Risk factors
Premarital sex: Up to 95% of young adults in the U.S. engage in premarital sex by their early 20s. The average age of first premarital sexual experience is 17 years old.
Underage drinking: Young adults have the highest rate of binge drinking. Alcohol contributes to thousands of deaths of people under 21 each year — including car crashes, homicides, alcohol poisoning and suicides.
Illegal drug use: In 2023, 1.86 million adolescents ages 12 to 17 (7.2%) used drugs in the previous month. That same year, 5,926 Americans, ages 15 to 24 years old, died from an illicit drug overdoses.
Sexually transmitted infections (STIs): STIs are a growing epidemic, with adolescents and young adults (15–24) accounting for roughly half of new infections each year. In 2023, 2.4 million STIs were reported nationwide.
Mental health struggles: Teen mental health issues have surged. Youth face school shootings, bomb threats, cyber-bullying, digital addiction, academic pressure, identity confusion, depression, suicidal thoughts, dating violence, eating disorders and more. Suicide — one of the top three causes of death for ages 10 to 24 — has risen by 52% in recent years.
What the church can do
- Pray for the church’s prodigal children by name and need. Create a confidential prayer support system for parents who are hurting.
- Offer a parent support group. Provide a monthly gathering where parents can share burdens, be encouraged, receive prayer support and gain biblical guidance.
- Preach and teach openly about prodigals so that church families don’t feel isolated or ashamed.
- Ask mature mentors to reach out to and walk with struggling teens. A trusted, Christ-centered adult can often reach a teen when parents cannot.
- Offer workshops and seminars that teach parents how to keep communication open with their teens. Focus on developing listening skills, de-escalating conflict and establishing healthy boundaries.
- Teach Bible studies and build programs that strengthen youth discipleship and address identity, mental health, peer pressure and values from a biblical worldview. Answer their questions with honesty and biblical truth, and respond to their immature emotions with understanding and patience.
- Provide pastoral counseling for the whole family. Help them sort through guilt, fear, anger and spiritual confusion with grace and biblical truth.
- Involve teens in opportunities to serve in ministry. Service ministries often give youth a sense of purpose and belonging that keeps them in the church and draws them back when they drift.
- Stay connected with parents and youth. Never give up on them. Email, text, send a note, remember birthdays and keep the relational bridge open. Faithful persistence communicates the love of Christ.
When Jesus told the story of the prodigal son, he highlighted not the son’s rebellion but the father’s loving response: “But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him” (Luke 15:20). When the wayward boy finally “came to himself” and started home, the father embraced him, restored him and celebrated his return with joy and thanksgiving.
The loving father’s response can guide parents today in offering forgiveness, compassion and open arms to their returning prodigals. And the church can join them by welcoming, praying for, shepherding and loving the prodigal back to spiritual health.
If you are the parent of a prodigal
- Keep praying for your prodigal. See 1 Thessalonians 5:17 and James 5:16. God hears every prayer and works in ways you cannot see. While you have served — and are still serving — as the temporary caregiver, remember God is your prodigal’s ultimate Parent.
- Release the guilt. Even faithful, loving parents can have children who wander. You are not solely responsible for your child’s choices.
- Stay connected by reaching out with simple gestures — texts, notes or phone calls.
- Set healthy boundaries. Love your child deeply, but do not enable or tolerate destructive behavior or disrespect.
- Guard your marriage and other children. A prodigal’s bad choices can affect the whole family. Protect your family unity.
- Surround yourself with support from trusted friends, small groups and your pastor and church.
- Stay grounded in God’s Word, and let His promises reshape fear, worry, disappointment and discouragement.
- Remember and trust the Father’s heart (Prov. 3:5–6). Know God is actively pursuing your prodigal even now. Trust His timing, His power and His eternal love.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Names have been changed in this article.
This piece originally appeared in The Alabama Baptist.
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