Dear Parents,

I hope that this 49 minute talk speaks to your heart and to the heart of your 7th or 8th grader. The purpose of this talk is to ground the notion of human sexuality firmly within the love of God and the saving mercy of Jesus Christ. There is the DISCUSSION STARTER document above that can help you explore the content better and talk about it with your child.

Pornography is a difficult topic to cover with our kids. It is the last thing they want to talk about with their parents, but in middle school it is a huge issue. The average age of expose to hardcore porn (not softcore, hardcore) is 11 years old, for both boys and girls. This talk was given at a Catholic school to 7th and 8th graders. In it, I try to balance telling the truth with preserving their innocence. You will not here any details about pornography because I'm trying to safeguard their chastity and their natural curiosity.

I situate the idea of porn within the wider view of love vs. use, just as I situate the idea of sex within the wider view of healthy relationships. I hope this approach is positive and leads to ongoing conversations between you and your child, putting Jesus Christ and His mercy at the forefront of any conversation.

This is called Discussion Starter because we need desperately to get away from "THE TALK" and start moving towards "THE DISCUSSION", as in, it needs to be ongoing with our children. One awkward talk is not enough. After all, the culture is talking about this stuff every day, and probably not in a way that agrees with your values, perspectives and faith.

If you are not a committed follower of Jesus Christ, please email me and we can talk about this particular area of your life together. As you will hear, nothing is worth more than receiving the love of God in Christ into our hearts and returning that love to Him. I want to help you not just be a believer in Jesus, but a follower.