Hello! Welcome, wishing you a lovely day in God's favor! Let's continue with Psalm 119 stanza 16, more of Proverbs 7, then, despite some delay, and as promised I will reveal the details regarding the CTC Corner theme for this week as presented on the last blogpost: FIFTEENAGERS: BECOMING RESPONSIBLE!

THU OCT 15: With warm wishes for a fine day, I'd like to make what should prove to be a truly practical and beneficial adjustment to the schedule for this blog: Doesn't it start first with our home? Many have anticipated the latest blog posting, but end up doing so while on the job, or getting to work. Why shouldn't most if not all rather look forward to finding the useful instruction in the late afternoon, before dinnertime perhaps, allowing for discussion with our family first, whether it is a youth desiring to share something s/he appreciated, or a parent finding delight in some helpful direction or insight from God's word. Also, I wish to begin keeping a running blogpost for the week, adding to it each day that is planned. I aim to do so in a way that will not make it difficult to find the new or latest information. So most of the planned information for this day should be presented by late afternoon today, and additional remarks regarding this week's CTC Corner theme on FIFTEENAGERS: BECOMING RESPONSIBLE! should also come then.

Proverbs 7:24-27

Here we find encouragement to avoid the trappings of immorality, including by groups promoting serious violations of godly integrity:

Earlier, God reveals the “great persuasiveness” an immoral woman may use to mislead a young man into her clutches. Sexual immorality is not true love, causing participants to stray from God’s loving, loyal, ways of faithfulness for an eternity of happiness with a loyal marriage partner. Therefore, God’s words to young men and women are vital to protect themselves from such seduction and immoral thinking. If we do not accept God’s instructions carefully, we could be easily deceived into a wrong path. Jesus said “Therefore, pay attention to how you listen...” (Luke 8:18).

"25 Do not let your heart turn aside to her ways. Do not stray onto her paths,"

Prove 7:25 We must protect our figurative heart, including our motives for acting, from corruption. Proverbs 4:23 says “23 Above all the things that you guard, safeguard your heart, For out of it are the sources of life.” Ideas may be presented to the mind, but we choose whether we stop up our ear, let it go in one ear and out the other, or we ponder, or meditate, upon the notion, which could allow it to penetrate our heart, stirring desire, and eventually prompting action. Thus we need to develop the discernment necessary to distinguish truth from falsehood, right from wrong, etc. to judge what we allow ourselves to ponder. It has been said that a bird might land on a person’s head, but what does he do about it—does he quickly shoo it away, or does he foolishly allow it to build a nest on his head?!? Shoo away wrong thoughts presented to us by others, and refuse to ponder wrong desires, as we learn to recognize and distinguish them. Rather, choose to ponder right thinking, protecting our hearts from leading us into sin.

"26 For she has caused many to fall down slain, And those she has killed are numerous. 27 Her house leads to the Grave; It goes down to the inner chambers of death.”

Prove 7:26-27 Such immorality can lead to spiritual death, great damage to our relationships with God and others. Without recovery, this is a sin that can bar one from God’s Kingdom and eternal life with a loyal marriage partner. Does this really make sense? (1Cori 6:9-11). For young ones, they should spend time preparing for adult, married life, learning to do the things that will please their spouse and contribute to the stability and happiness of their newfound family. Look to God in prayer to help you find the marriage partner that will truly make you happy—you needn’t worry excessively over missing the right one. Jehovah God has brought countless married couples together for a delightful relationship, both loving Him and each other. Cultivate first your relationship with God, learning to think wisely and make good, right decisions each day. Learn the personality of a true Christian, growing in your fondness for spiritual things, that will be a source of delightful conversation for an eternity.

Beginning a new Proverbs chapter, let's consider an important reminder that to truly benefit from examining spiritual matters even a brief prayer for God's blessing can go a long way in receiving His spirit and pondering properly to affect and safeguard our hearts before God with what we’re studying.

"1 Is not wisdom calling out? Is not discernment raising its voice? 2 On the heights along the road, It takes its position at the crossroads. 3 Next to the gates leading into the city, At the entrances of the doorways, It keeps crying out loudly: 4 “To you, O people, I am calling; I raise my voice to everyone. 5 You inexperienced ones, learn shrewdness; You “fools”, acquire an understanding heart."

Verses 1-4: Those with genuine love and wisdom, understanding God's word, want to help as many as possible respond to the message of truth, finding ways to 'cry out loudly' to those not walking straight before Jehovah, to inexperienced ones. God raises his "voice to everyone." Clearly God cares about every person, wanting all to love his ways and embrace the hope of endless life in true peace and happiness. 2Peter 3:9 confirms this, saying "Jehovah is not slow concerning his promise, as some people consider slowness, but he is patient with you because he does not desire anyone to be destroyed but desires all to attain to repentance." God is patiently loyal toward mankind--may all appreciate His patience and respond by seeking to understand His word more completely, finding out what's required to be pleasing Him, and offering heartfelt prayer for His mercy over past wrongdoing.

Verse 5: So inexperienced ones need foresighted shrewdness, or prudence--learning to look ahead and see the consequences of both good and bad decisions or actions, seeing the danger of a wrong course, coming to hate the bad accordingly, seeking to avoid it, and love the good, seeking to remain on the path of good people. Proverbs 2:20-22 says: "So follow the way of good people And stay on the paths of the righteous, 21 For only the upright will reside in the earth, And the blameless will remain in it. 22 As for the wicked, they will be cut off from the earth, And the treacherous will be torn away from it." It would be foolish to really know right but choose not to do it. Such a person needs to acquire an "understanding heart." This involves seeing the big picture regarding God's will and purpose, putting divine knowledge together, seeing how the pieces fit in the puzzle of God's word, to make the beautiful complete picture of God's purpose. Qualities of the heart, such as patience and kindness should be appreciated and understood. Jesus's teachings are also vital to apply, especially his direct commands. The Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5-7 is an excellent starting point, containing much of all that's required of true Christians.

Study Shows Older Americans Are Coping Best During the Pandemic

If you think older Americans have struggled to cope through the pandemic, think again. According to new research by financial services firm Edward Jones, they have actually been faring far better than their younger counterparts.

The Edward Jones and Age Wave Study focused exclusively on how different generations have held up emotionally and financially in the months since the lockdowns began, and some of its findings are at least as startling as how quickly even 70-year-olds came to love Zoom.

“COVID-19’s impact forever changed the reality of many Americans, yet we’ve observed a resilience among U.S. retirees in contrast to younger generations,” says Ken Dychtwald, Ph.D., the founder and CEO of Age Wave, a leading research think tank on aging, retirement and longevity issues.

While acknowledging upfront that the virus itself disproportionately struck aging adults, the five-generational sampling of 9,000 people, age 18 and over, reveals more than a few surprises. Among them:

• While 37 percent of Gen Zers, 27 percent of Millennials, and 25 percent of Gen Xers say they’d suffered “mental health declines” since the virus hit, only 15 percent of Baby Boomers responded likewise.

• Faring the best were those 75 and over – the Silent Generation that followed the so-called “Greatest Generation” – with a mere 8 percent of those respondents reporting any mental health deterioration. That would seem to run counter, as does the results for Boomers (age 56 to 74), to early warnings that prolonged social isolation made older adults especially vulnerable to depression, anxiety and cognitive decline.

• Nearly 68 million Americans have altered the timing of their retirement due to the pandemic, and 20 million have stopped making regular retirement savings contributions.

Dychtwald attributes the two older generations’ resilience to having “a greater perspective on life.”

“They’ve seen wars and other major disruptions before,” he says, “and they know that this, too, will pass. Younger generations feel like, ‘What happened to my life? I mean, I was supposed to go to college or I was starting a new job, and now everything has changed.’”

Most retired Boomers and Silent Gens also had monthly Social Security checks to fall back on. Which explains why – though the pandemic has significantly reduced the financial security of a quarter of Americans – younger generations were slammed the hardest: Nearly one-third of Millennial and Gen Z respondents characterize the impact as “very or extremely negative,” compared to 16 percent of Boomers and 6 percent of Silent Gens who admitted to similar hardship.

Looking for any silver lining that’s come out of the COVID-19 crisis?

Well, 67 percent of respondents did say it’s brought their families closer together.

“The pandemic has certainly thrown into sharp relief what matters most in our lives,” says Ken Cella, Edward Jones’s client services group principal. “And important discussions have taken place about planning earlier for retirement, saving more for emergencies, and even talking through end-of-life plans and long-term care costs.”

And with the study also showing that an overwhelming percentage of retirees yearn for more ways to use their talents to benefit society, financial services firm Edward Jones believes it’s time to redefine retirement more “holistically” to encompass what it calls “the four pillars” of health, family, purpose and finance.

Successfully addressing most of those pillars admittedly takes more financial savvy than many of us have, though, especially given ever-rising costs. But a financial advisor, such as a local one at Edward Jones, has the perspective, experience and empathy to help.

SUBJECT: FIFTEENAGERS BECOMING RESPONSIBLE!

Revelation 21:5: "And the One seated on the throne said: “Look! I am making all things new.” Also he says: “Write, for these words are faithful and true.”

Philippians 1:9-11: "And this is what I continue praying, that your love may abound still more and more with accurate knowledge and full discernment; 10 that you may make sure of the more important things , so that you may be flawless and not stumbling others up to the day of Christ; 11 and that you may be filled with righteous fruit , which is through Jesus Christ, to God’s glory and praise."

RESPONSIBLE LIVING. There comes a time in the course of a teenager working toward adulthood with its many blessings and privileges before Jehovah God that a major step must be taken to assist the acquiring of a more thorough sense of responsibility that is essential to becoming truly prepared to face life as a genuine man or woman. Some serious steps must be taken, with full faith and trust in God, in order to be ready to properly handle such things as qualifying for and finding work to support oneself and eventually one's wife and family, proving that one can maintain living responsibly on one's own, trusting God, and becoming prepared for driving safely and responsibly. How can this be achieved in a way that allows both parents and their growing children to remain close while eventually being a bit further apart than a tent in the backyard?

FIRST THINGS FIRST. At 15, youths are nearing the time for learning to operate a motor vehicle responsibly, and they certainly want to do so in a way that will not endanger the lives of others! Surely under God’s Kingdom, there must be a way that they can develop a proper sense of responsibility while maintaining or even growing the close bond they have with their godly parents and family members. It will be entirely advantageous if these youths find suitable employment during the summer prior to their initial high school year, to enable saving up for the expenses of the new dwelling at the start of the coming school year. Such youths, who prove themselves willing to demonstrate genuine reverence for Jehovah God, could demonstrate to others that an arrangement for living with a same-gender friend approved by the parents of both individuals, in an apartment located not far from home, elsewhere in the same city or nearby town or well-established community, could improve the ability of such young ones to acquire this proper responsible quality. Having been students of God’s word, and supporters of the true worship of Jehovah along with others in the community, such as among one of several Protestant Christian denominations, they could with parental guidance and assistance, locate a peaceful dwelling that may be considered a CLEAN, HOLY EXTENSION OF EACH ONE'S PARENTAL HOME. Under such conditions, they may each continue their school and personal study habits, perhaps even with less distraction as may be found elsewhere. Their love for the inspired word of God should be a hallmark of such a place, as it will be vital to maintain each one’s personal relationship with Jehovah and the purity and sanctity of the new environment.

AGREEMENTS AND OBLIGATIONS. Of course, such a dwelling will usually require some agreement with the owner or landlord of the apartment. It is strongly recommended that a 2-year lease term be established, preferably during the summer working season, well before the selected or assigned high school year for this dwelling, with provision in extreme circumstances to return home after 1-year. The students themselves, as they take on this responsibility, may certainly have parental assistance to determine how best to suitably pay for any associated expenses. In this initial year, the parents may certainly help guide their youths as needed to acquire the necessary services for the dwelling, and these two students together may use inexpensive public transportation to acquire needs or meet parents or approved godly associates for an occasional meal, or to transport to their job location. Altogether, the process of acquiring work, the handling of assigned duties there, acquiring and practicing other skills needed to live responsibly, such as delightful cooking and thorough cleaning, organizing and tidiness, and the insight gained in the extension of home by what may be studied in preparation for life's privileges, all can contribute greatly to acquiring the sense of responsibility vital for life in the new world.Certainly these more youthful ones need quality neighborhoods to dwell in at this particular time in their growth.

OTHER HELPFUL STUDIES. Regarding what is to be studied in this godly setting, there are several beneficial matters worthy of consideration. First and foremost should be a more thorough examination of God's word the Holy Bible, life's genuine instruction manual. In the life of these youths, it's law and wisdom have already proven to be a beneficial guide for them in many difficult situations, and they have likely come to see it's value in their course of activity. There is one provision that would be an excellent start to strengthening one's relationship with God and acquiring vital insight into the godly Christian personality that will prove to enable abundant peace to prevail in the new world of God's making: It is a publication produced by the worldwide congregation of Jehovah's Witnesses, entitled "Draw Close to Jehovah." This publication is available for download in the app "JW Library."