Last week I had the privilege of addressing an 8th grade class. Over the weekend, one of the students emailed me that she had decided to remain abstinent until she is married. She even gave me her reasoning behind her decision. I reminded her that she was just at the beginning of a very long road and if she was ever questioning her decision, or felt like she was the only one to make that choice to feel free to contact me. It is not enough to say in the 8th grade that you will wait until you are married and then think that is the end of it.
Choosing abstinence must be done time and time again. As you mature, your reasons for abstaining will change. It is your job to remember to recommit to your decision. I have heard all about: purity rings, signing abstinence pledges, there are even dances where you wear a big beautiful gown and promise your daddy you will wait until you are married. None of these ideas will work if you think it is a one time decision. I have heard the other side tear each of these ideas apart. Honestly some of them make me raise an eyebrow as well. But if putting on a gown and going to a dance with your father is the motivation you need to save yourself from regretful decisions later, then by all means buy the dress! Just know that attending this dance may not hold the same meaning for you a few years down the road.
My reasons for abstaining in high school were not the same reasons in college. The same goes for the years following college until I married my wonderful husband. The only thing that did not change was my commitment to abstinence, and now I can look back on the decision and say with all certainty that I have no regrets about it.
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