Don't waist your time sitting around feeling sorry for your self or feeling angry. Use your time wisely so your stay will be a positive experience.

Here are some ideas to help you so your time at Juvenile Hall is worthwhile.

1. PRAY -Throw yourself out of bed and get down on your knees and pray. If you can't do this, because your room companion may not understand, say your prayer before you get out of bed. Pray together if you can. Ask God to help your attitude and show you what you should be doing that day. Make a plan. Try to be excited about the things you can accomplish that day.
2. READ THE SCRIPTURES - Get to know your Father-in-Heaven, then you won't feel so alone. You will know God loves you. He will comfort you and give you hope.
3. MAKE YOUR BED - Clean your room. Organize your things. Care for your things. Teach yourself good habits you can take home with you. You will feel better if your room is in order.

4. EXERCISE - Walk - Run- Dance - Do Push ups - be creative in your small home. Get your body moving and work up a sweat. At night exercise until you are tired so you will sleep well. When you feel lazy, get your body moving. This will help you feel better about yourself and your situation.

5. WORK ON YOUR ATTITUDE- Write down or think of your many blessings. When you have a negative thought squash it! Replace it with a positive thought. Memorize scriptures, hymns, uplifting poems or positive songs and bring those to your memory. You can't think of two things at once so make sure you your mind is wrapped up in positive things. Learn to control your thoughts. Be helpful and work toward being an 80 worker, if you are able.

6. LEARN THINGS AND GROW MENTALLY

1. Take school seriously.
2. Finish high school.
3. Get your GED, if you have no other way.
4. Start a tradition for your future, Get all the education you can get.
5. Read as many good books as you can and educate yourself.
6. Study.
7. Work hard on your homework.
8. Think of your hobbies and what you can do to work on them.
9. Be creative in your thoughts and think of new, positive and worthwhile things to do.
10. Create stores, in your mind, which you can write down or share with others.

5. WRITE LETTERS:

1. To your loved ones and tell them you love them.
2. To whomever you have hurt and ask for forgiveness.
3. To your brothers and sisters to help them stay straight, so they know you love them.
4. To other young people, you can influence for the good. Help them know what you have learned to save them from the pain you have experienced.
5. If you have a child or are expecting a child write a letter to them and share what you have learned so you can help them in the future. Then give them the letter when they get older.
6. To your boy friend or girl friend to help them know your are sorry for your mistakes and that you are going to change your life and that you want to help them have a good life too.
7. To people who can help you learn things you want to know.
8. To check out schools and colleges

6. DO ART WORK

1. If you already have a talent, work on developing it. If not, draw anyway. Find out if you enjoy it or have a talent for art.

6. DO CREATIVE WRITING.

b. Keep a journal. Everyday write down what you are doing and what you are thinking and what you are learning. Keep a record so you will remember and remind yourself of what it was like here. You can share this with other kids when you get out. Your journal could become a book.

8. ENJOY MUSIC

Sing or write music, memorize words to songs, Choose uplifting music, not music that encourages you to think evil thoughts or do evil things.

9. IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY

10. SOLVE YOUR PROBLEMS

11. MAKE GOALS FOR YOUR FUTURE

Look in your heart and try to think about what good things you want to do with your life. Make plans and get excited about discovering your life's purpose and your life's mission. Make plans for your education and for your life's work. Plan how you will get an education and what you will do to get a job. Have some plans, in place, for when you go home. Write all these things down so you have them to motivate you when you leave.

12. LEARN OBEDIENCE, DISCIPLINE, RESPECT AND COOPERATION

Choose to be obedient to the coaches and other people in Juvenile Hall. Learn discipline. This is a great place to start practicing the things you should be doing on the outside. Learn respect for others and for yourself. Learn to be cooperative and helpful. Learn tolerance of others and be a good example to the other kids. Get rid of contention and get along with your roommates and the other kids.

13. HELP THE OTHER KIDS IN JUVENILE HALL

You have already learned a lot from this experience. Help the other kids make good choices also. Talk to them, when you know the things you have to say will help them. They need your help as much as you need their help. Together find ways you can make this a positive experience and decide what you will do when you get out so you never come back to Juvenile hall. Support each other. 

14. MAKE POSTIVE AND GOOD CHOICES FOR YOUR FUTURE

Start new positive and healthy habits for your future. Work on your attitude. Start new habits of love, caring, striving, working hard, and doing good, learning and growing. Make some commitments, while you are here, so when you get out you already know what to do. For example: make commitments to quit drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes and using drugs. Make a promise to yourself and to God, right here, right now so that when you get out and someone asks you to do these things you already know the answer. No! 

15. MAKE YOUR TIME A SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE

1. Go to Church
2. Read the Scriptures
3. Get clean with God
4. Confess your mistakes and sins to God
5. Ask for forgiveness
6. Choose to make right what you can
7. Make a decision, from now on, to Choose the Right (CTR)
8. Dedicate your life to using the bad things, which have happened so far as motivation to choose a better life. Also use your experiences to help others avoid your mistakes and the consequences you are now facing. Learn from others mistakes too.
9. Help your roommate choose a better life too. Share together what you have learned and help each other endure and survive this experience positively.
10. Pray together
11. Talk together about positive things
12. Help make positive plans for the future together for when you get out so you will have a good, happy and successful life and avoid anything which will bring you back to Juvenile Hall.
13. Help your roommate be a better person. Both of you plan to be better people when you leave Juvenile Hall than you when you came in. Think of how you can make this experience have value. 

16. AT NIGHT REVIEW YOUR DAY

Write down what you accomplished and how your feel. Be aware of what you could have done differently. Pat yourself on the back for the good things you did that day. Write them down. 

17. SAY YOUR NIGHT TIME PRAYERS

Thank God for anything good that happened that day and anything good you learned. Ask him to forgive you for the things you did wrong and ask him to help overcome these things. Pray for others kids who need God's help and for your family and friends and loved ones. Thank God for you're many blessings and ask Him to bless you. 

18. MAKE YOUR PLAN FOR TOMORROW

Prepare for tomorrow by thinking about what you want to accomplish and write it down. If you can't write it down make a list in your mind. Choose to have a positive attitude and hang onto hope for anything good, which can happen, and what you can do. You can be a Winner in Life!

1. You pray, Ask God to help you and to give you strength, wisdom and knowledge and understanding of what is going on. Ask him to separate you mentally from what is happening. Ask Him to help you learn forgiveness by learning compassion for the sick abuser and not to let that disturbed person destroy you. Try to understand the abuser, maybe they were abused as a child. This doesn't make it right but it helps you understand why they do what they do. For some abusers - there is no reason - they are controlled by evil. They have an evil spirit. Ask God to show you how this evil experience can lead you to doing something good in the future. Discover what you can learn from it and how you should use it in a helpful way, in the future for someone else.
2. You talk to someone. You never keep the abuse a secret. Talk to a teacher or a minister or a friend or a friends parent or the police.
3. You recognize the truth! The truth is that the abuser is sick or possessed with an evil spirit. They are taking their own pain out on you. They are mentally ill. You must keep in control of your own life and thoughts. Viktor Frankl wrote a book "Man's Search for Meaning." He was a prisoner, in a Nazi prison camp, for 3 years and observed some of the men there going through horrible abuse but still shared their last piece of bread with others and cared for others. He learned this truth - the one truth you must believe and adopt into your life - We all have one freedom that can never be taken away from us - The Freedom to Choose our Own Attitude in Any Given Circumstance. "You Can Choose How You Will Feel About the Abuse and How It Will Affect You and What You Will Do With It!
4. CHOOSE TO USE THE ABUSE AS MOTIVATION TO HAVE A BETTER LIFE.

1. Learn to love others and give them what you didn't have.
2. Learn to love yourself.
3. Understand that this abuse can be the reason you will end up with a better life because it can motive you toward your potential and toward making a good difference in the world, if you choose.
4. Share your experiences with others that are abused and help them survive. Be a good example of someone that overcame and found success in his or her life, in spite of the abuse.
5. NEVER, EVER PASS ON THE ABUSE. - Let the abuse stop with you. YOU stop the destroying cycle and start a new healthy cycle for yourself and your family. You be the example of what goodness and caring and kindness is. You be the one who saves others from abuse by helping them. Make this a positive experience for your future by learning and growing from it so you can have a good life yourself and help others, and even find a way to stop this kind of abuse.

One of the most comforting things you can do while you are here in Juvenile Hall is to learn to pray. When you understand that you are not alone, that you have a Father-In-Heaven whom loves you, whom you can talk to, you will feel much better and have more hope.

Maybe you were taught by your parents to believe in God and if so, then you need to get back to feeling his spirit and have a closeness with him.

If you never knew God, then you must find him, because if you live your life without him you will never have a reason to make correct choices for a happy life. God has good plans for you; you need to know what they are.

I was sent to church when I was young. In fact my parents each belonged to a different church. They sent me and my brother to both churches each Sunday but very seldom attended themselves. I am grateful I found God at an early age, because my prayers and closeness to him were what helped me survive a horrible childhood with an alcoholic father and emotionally disturbed mother.

Unfortunately, when I was a teenager, I needed friends and began to do things with them, like drinking alcohol, which led me to walk away from My Father-in-Heaven, for a few years. I discovered when you are doing bad things; it is very hard to be close to God.

Thankfully, after my Dad died, I knew I needed to find God again so I went on a search for him. I went to many churches and read his words in the bible and found a church which felt right for me. Attending church each week and being involved with the wonderful people there has brought me such happiness. If you want to be good, associate with good people!

It has been many years since I invited God back into my life and I have been so blessed because of it. My life is really wonderful and I haven't destroyed my life, like my parents did theirs.

I encourage you too, to go on your own journey to find your Father-In-Heaven, which loves you and a church where you belong and can be happy.

One of the things I had to learn, again, was to pray. I remember the first time I got down on my knees and prayed, it was very uncomfortable, because I hadn't prayed for a long time and I felt guilty because I knew I had done things I wasn't proud of. It felt so good to know that all I needed to do was talk to him and he would be there for me. You see, God never forces himself on us. He lets us make the choice whether we want him in our life or not. He is always waiting for us to come to him and when we do, he welcomes us with open arms.

It takes time to understand this and it takes time to learn to pray and really feel like there is someone listening. It is important that you read his words, in his scriptures, so you can get to know him. Go to church while you're here in Juvenile Hall and try to learn all you can about him and his teachings.

The other thing about prayer, that God expects of us, is we must be sorry for the things we know we have done wrong. He wants us to confess our sins to him and ask forgiveness and then do all we can to make the wrong right and do all we can to make up for the mistakes we have made. If we have a pure heart and good intent, he will then forgive us and we can feel clean again. When we feel clean we can really feel his spirit. I had to do this and it has made all the difference in how I feel about myself, and how my life turned out.

The reason I know God loves me and prayer works is because most of my prayers have been answered. Not always in the way I think they should be but always in a way that was best for me.

When you talk to God it's really important for you to have a humble heart and a desire to try to be a good person. He loves you, no matter what, but he wants you to be good. If being good is hard, then he is there to help you be good, if you ask him.

He is your Father. He loves you and knows what is best for you. You just need to have faith in him.

 I encourage you to pray. If you can get down on your knees and talk to him, do it. It is very humbling. If not, talk to him in your bed before you get up and again before you go to sleep. Also talk to him throughout the day. He is always there to hear you. I talk to him all the time. I talk to him every time I have a problem or have something I am troubled with. I also thank him for all my many blessings and for all of his help.

Praying is not hard. Just talk to God as you would your best friend. Because that is what he is.

I really encourage you to learn to pray. I know praying will make your stay here easier and you will find ways to cope and receive inspiration for what to do with your future.

Remember you are a Child of God.

When you do crime you are only thinking of yourself. You are not concerned with the hurt you are causing another person.

If you are selfish you will never be happy. Wickedness never brings happiness!

Happiness only comes from doing good with your life and being good to others.

Pleasure is different than happiness. Pleasure is temporary and a poor substitute for real happiness and joy.

Crime may bring temporary pleasure but never happiness. Hurting others only hurts you.

Disobedience is selfish also. You are only thinking of yourself. It hurts you and others and makes you a bad-mean person so you are not happy.

Letting money be your God - Living only to get money for your own please will bring unhappiness, whereas, working for money to improve yourself, provide for your family and do some good in the world will bring you satisfaction and happiness.

If you want to be happy you must do good with your life.

3:3 Prepare yet the way of the Lord

4:4 Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every work that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

4:10 Get thee hense Satan: for it is written thou shalt worship the Lord they God, and him only shalt

thou serve.

5:3 Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theres is the kingdom of heaven.

5:4 Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.

5: 5 Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.

5:6 Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after righteousness: for shall be filled.

5:7 Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.

5:8 Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God.

5:9 Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God

5:10 Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness; sake; for theirs is the kingdom of

Heaven.

5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil

against you falsely, for my sake.

5:12 Rejoice and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the

prophets which were before you.

5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth.

5:14 Ye are the light of the world.

5:16 Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your.

Father which is in heaven.

5:22 Whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgement.

5:25 Agree with thine adversary quickly.

5:34 Swear not at all.

5:39 Whosoever shall smite thee on they right cheek, turn to him the other also.

5:41 Whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain

5:44 Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for

them which despitefully use you, and persecute you.

5:48 Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

 ANGER AND HATRED

Anger is evil and will destroy you. Satan wants you to be angry so he can control you. If you are angry, it is not useful. Get rid of it!

Anger takes away our thinking and self-control. Alcohol and drugs can bring our anger out, and we end up fighting with others.

We can feel anger when other people hurt us or don't do what we think they should.

Satan wants you to have hatred, another part of anger. Hatred is evil and controlling and causes people to do evil things, for which they pay a big price. Often a prison sentence. Hatred and anger also destroy relationships.

Anger comes from our thoughts and feelings when something happens to us we don't like. Other times it comes from our selfishness, when we don't get what we want.

Sometimes our anger stems from our childhood and how parents or caregivers treated us. Anger often becomes a bad habit learned from someone we know and how he or she handles life.

Sometimes someone else influences us. People who belong to a gang often take on the anger and hatred of the gang rather than use their own reasoning and intelligence. They don't think for themselves. This is wrong and foolish and is exactly what Satan wants. When you have anger, you play right into his hands.

Satan wants you to think you have enemies. To hate even strangers. In reality, if you were to get to know those you feel anger toward, you may find they are no different than you. They have the same needs and desires for life that you have. If you took the chance to get to know them, you may even find out you like them. Remember you are a child of God and so are they. They are your brothers and sisters.

War is a terrible thing--people killing other people they don't even know because of hatred. If you are filled with hatred, you can bring war to your own life.

We need to learn to control our anger. When we feel anger, we must give ourselves a time out! Step back. Walk away, count to yourself, but never react. We must be in control and use our "consequence thinking." The use of drugs and alcohol has the potential to fill us with anger and lets Satan control us. If we allow ourselves to get out of control, we take the risk of doing something, which can destroy our lives.

We must get help for our anger. There are excellent books on the subject, and you can get professional help. You can ask God to help you. You can make changes in your thinking. You can make commitments. Forgiveness and love are the best way to overcome anger.

It makes me sad to hear these young people allowing such terrible words come to out of their mouths. It shows me they are hurting inside. They aren't even aware that the bad language is hurting them the most.

Today, bad language is so common. When I talk to kids, one on one, they sometimes talk to me using terrible words. They are not even aware of what they are saying. Their bad language has become so gross and such a bad habit that they aren't even aware they are saying them. Lots of times they use vulgarity just to be noticed or to try to hurt someone else. Bad language is a sign of ignorance and of low self-esteem. Filthy words are really evil.

I encourage each of you to be very aware of what comes out of your mouth. Make it a new habit to try to replace the bad words with proper words. I know it will not be easy but it is possible. If you do, you will like yourself better, others will like you more and you will be a good example to others. With better language, when you get out of the Hall, you will have an easier chance getting a job, others will respect you more, and you'll have more success in your life.

I challenge each one of you to be conscious of the words, which come out of your mouth and try not to swear. I especially ask you to be careful of the words you use around me because I don't use those bad words, my family doesn't use those awful words and we get along just find and are happy using good language when we talk.

Here are a few things said by others about swearing:

How you speak says much about who you are. Clean and intelligent language is evidence of a bright and wholesome mind. Use language that uplifts, encourages, and compliments others. Do not insult others or put them down, even in joking. Speak kindly and positively about others.

Foul language harms your spirit and degrades you. Do not let others influence you to use it.

Choose friends who use good language. Help others around you use clean language by your example and by good-naturedly encouraging them to choose other words. Politely walk away or change the subject when others around you use bad language.

If you have developed the habit of swearing, you can break it. Begin by making a decision to change. Pray for help. If you start to use words you know are wrong, keep quiet and say what you have to say in a different way.

Profanity is filthiness. A person is known as much by his language as he is by the company he keeps...Filthiness, in any form is degrading and soul-destroying, and should be avoided.

Stay out of the gutter in your conversation. Foul talk defiles the man who speaks it...Don't swear, don't profane. Avoid so-called dirty jokes. Stay away from conversation that is sprinkled with foul and filthy words. You will be happier if you do so, and your example will give strength to others.

Swearing is a vice that bespeaks a low standard of breeding.

The nature and extent of profanity and vulgarity in our society is a measure of its deterioration.

Though we are sure no boy can tell us any advantage that can arise from the abuse of God's holy name, yet we can tell him many evils that arise there from. To begin, it is unnecessary and consequently foolish; it lessens our respect for holy things and leads us into the society of the wicked; it brings upon the disrespect of the good who avoid us; it leads us to other sins, for he who is willing to abuse his Creator is not ashamed to defraud his fellow man; and also by so doing we directly and knowingly break one of the most direct of God's commandments.

We should never lower our dignity by lowering our language.

**********RESPECT YOURSELF AND USE DECENT LANGUAGE*********

I have lived long enough to see the consequences of peoples' choices.

1. They have given their life over to God, their higher power. They pray.
2. They obey his commandments and they choose a moral life.
3. They do not use alcohol or drugs
4. They take education seriously and continue to educate themselves.
5. They have dreams and goals and pursue them.
6. They care for others. They are not self centered or selfish. They are kind.
7. They are honest. They have peace.
8. They have found a way to overcome their past. They use the bad things of their life as motivation to have a better life.
9. They care for their children and their families.
10. They use consequence thinking. They make good choices.
11. Whatever bad was done to them they only let good come out of them.
12. They learned to endure abuse and not pass it on.

13. They are hard workers.

Real life is similar to a game. I call it, "The Game of Life." We are all born into this game of life. We could call this game, "The Game of War". Why? Because there are two sides: good and evil. The captains of our game are God and Satan.

There are rules to the game. The rules are given by God. They are found in his scriptures and are his commandments.

We, are all players in the game, and each of us has the right to choose which side we want to be on. Any time during our lifetime we can chose to be on either team.

To be on God's side, we must be obedient to the rules or the commandments of the game.

To be on Satan's side we just need to be disobedient to the rules or commandments of the game.

While we are playing the game, our captains, God or Satan, (good or evil) is trying to influence us, through our thoughts, inspiration, and our experiences and through other people. Each captain is trying to get us on their side. We each have our free agency to choose which side we want to be on, we are never forced on either side.

There is a purpose to the game; to test us to see which captain we will follow. We are given free agency so we can choose which side we want to be on and who will win the game, God or Satan, (good or evil). The choice is up to us. We will either become winners or losers depending on how we play the game, how we follow the rules and whom we follow, depending on the side we choose.

There are consequences to the choices we make. The final winners of the game will be the ones, who are still on God's team when they die. The loser are on Satan's team at the their time of death.

The problem with the game is that whether you know the rules to the game, or not, the outcome is the same. If you follow God's rules (commandments) you are a winner, if you choose not to follow the rules you are a loser. In order to win the game you must know the rules and obey them.

Where do you find the rules? In God's scriptures. You must read them and know them and then follow them to know how to play the game, if you want to be a winner. Some of the other players on God's side can also help you know the rules.

God's wants you to win so you can be happy, so he not only gives you the rules (his scriptures) he also provides other players who know the rules who can help you learn them. (Prophets, good families and righteous people who are about you and any others who want you to win.)

Satan wants you to lose the game so he will mix up the rules so you don't understand them and he has players too, on his team, who will blind you with lies and influence you in bad ways, so you won't follow the commandments or believe them.

The game has two consequences. The first is whether you will enjoy the game while you are playing it or whether you will be miserable while you are playing this game of life. The only way to be happy playing the game is to obey the rules by being on the right side, God's side. The way to be miserable, while you play the game is to disobey the rules. Even though being on Satan's side might bring temporary pleasure, it is not lasting. Only God's happiness and joy is lasting. It's that simple.

The second outcome is that when the game is over, which is death, all of the points will be tallied up by the two captains, God and Satan, and whoever has the most points gets you on his team in the next life.

If you were obedient and on God's team, when you died, you will be a winner and your prize will be eternal life, You will live with God, your Heavenly Father and his Son, your Savior Jesus Christ (who atoned for the mistakes you made, while you were playing the game, on the wrong side, but eventually chose the right side). You will live forever in a state of happiness after you die.

If you were disobedient to the rules of the game and died while still on Satan's side you will lose the game. Your consequence will be that you will not be able to live with your Father in Heaven or His son Jesus Christ and your existence will be forever in a state of misery with Satan. You will know you made the wrong choice and choose the wrong captain and the game has ended and you can't go back and change it.

The good thing about the game of life is that at any time, up until death, you can choose to be on the winning team and follow God. The way to do this is to repent of the evil things you did while you were on the wrong team and start obeying the rules, the commandments. God will automatically accept you on his winning team. All of the mistakes, which you made while playing on the losing side, will be forgotten and forgiven, if you repent.

The problem is that you never know when your game of life will end. You never know when you will die, so always choose to be on the good side, God's side and be a winner in your game of life.

1. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF
2. USE CONSEQUENCE THINKING
3. BE OBJECTIVE WITH YOUR LIFE
4. PUT YOUR LIFE INTO TRUE PERSPECTIVE
5. HAVE A DREAM
6. BE PERSISTENT
7. HAVE LOVE IN YOUR HEART.

1. Believe in yourself

You must believe that you are a child of God, that you were born with gifts, talents, abilities, a life purpose and a life mission.

2. Use Consequence Thinking

1. You must have a dream. You must see in your mind your many possibilities in life and you must go for your dream. You must have goals and work toward them until you reach your potential.
2. You must be persistent. You must not let anything or anyone, especially yourself, stop you from reaching your goals. If you have made mistakes you must believe that mistakes are ok if you learn from them. You must not be lazy. You need to make every moment of your life count in a positive way. Which means you must take all the opportunities life offers. Education is essential.
3. You must fill your heart with love. If you reach your potential and lack love you will not be happy. You must first love God, then yourself and finally you must learn to love others. You must love God because he is your Father and gave you your potential and will help your reach it. He knows what you are capable of and he is counting of you. You must love yourself because you are his child and you can do great things with your life. You must love others. No one is in this life alone. We were sent here to fulfill a mission. First to reach our own potential and secondly to discover our life's purpose (which is always for someone else's benefit) and finally to fulfill our mission. None of this can be accomplished without love in our hearts.

************BE A WINNER IN LIFE **********

I hated what alcohol did to him and what he did to our family while he was under the influence but when I became a teenager I fell into the same trap and started to drink also. Why? Because it was all I knew and because I needed friends. It was easy to do what they did.

I was headed down the same alcoholic path my grandfather and father were on. But fortunately something happened to which opened my eyes and made me want to stop my destructive destination.

I had children! I realized that if I didn't break the alcohol chain I might give my children the life I had and end up like my Dad.

I already was living the life style. Going to the bars each weekend with my husband. Which became our weekend entertainment. Having parties at our house with alcohol as the focal point.

One after another wasted night at the bar, when my husband took the baby sitter home I reflected on my life and realized it wasn't going anywhere but to the same life I had as a kid and if I didn't make some changes my kids would live a repeat of my life.

It was then when I got down on my knees and asked God to help me quit drinking. Fortunately all I needed to do was make a commitment to stop and I was able to do that. I believe it was because I never got to like drinking and never drank much it just became a social habit, which luckily I easily broke.

From that point I never tasted alcohol and my life totally changed. My kids did not end up with the life I had as a child and I didn't end up with the life my Dad and Grandfather ended up with.

My children are well-adjusted kids who are successful. I am still married after 43 years to the same man and we have an alcohol free, happy life.

What did I do? I found truth and lived it and now have the happy consequences.

1. Found God
2. Repented
3. Tried to make up for my mistakes - Learned to be honest
4. Was obedient to his commandments
5. Learned to love
6. Discovered and developed my talents and gifts and work toward my potential

Serve Others - Do Good

1. The #1 reason kids come back to Juvenile Hall?

Break probation

Family Problems

Go back to same area and same friends

Didn't learn to say no.

2. What are the biggest problems you face when you get out and how to overcome?

Finding jobs

Getting their education

Using Drugs

Being in the Gangs

Going back to the same environment

3. What things would help you so you won't come back?

Go to Church

Help from family

Get a job

4. How can families help when they get out?

Encourage them

Be honest

Support them

5. How can others help?

A good girl friend or boy friend to encourage them a help make good choices

A person to talk to

6. What should you do so you won't come back?

Give up drugs and alcohol

Go to school

Work hard

Have some goals

Obey the law

Be smart - don't break probation

7. What pitfalls do you need to be aware of when you get out that will send you back to

Juvenile Hall?

Friends

Doing the same stuff

7. What would you tell 1^st time kids when they get out that would help them stay out?

1. What was the first mistake you made which lead to you being in Juvenile Hall?

Using drugs, Being a follower

Having a temper, Choosing bad friends

Breaking curfew

Getting into the gangs

Losing an interest in school

1. How did your family affect your reason for being here?

A bad example, Using them as an excuse

Drinking alcohol, Not listening to them

Using drugs

No love or support

Abuse

Already in prison

2. How did your friends influence you so you ended up here?

Peer pressure

Get you drunk

Get you selling drugs

3. What is the biggest reason you are here?

Violence, Breaking the law

Gangs, Did crime

Drugs

Guns

Trying to figure out who you are

4. What would you do differently if you could go back in time?

Go to Church I wouldn't do crime

Care more for their family, Stay home

Spend more time with their family

Go to school

Get an education

5. What would you say to kids who are not locked up to keep them out of Juvenile Hall?

1. Decisions determine destination.
2. We must be true to our ideals, for ideals are like the stars: you can't touch them with your hands, but by following them you reach your destination.
3. Courage is required to think right, choose right, and do right, for such a course will rarely, if ever, be the easiest to follow.
4. Let us plant our feet upon the highway that leads to happiness, by CTR - Choosing the Right, and stay on the Lords side.
5. Four tested virtues, which bring happiness: 1. An attitude of gratitude

2. A longing for learning

3. A devotion to disciplines

4. A willingness to work

6. If we go into the devils territory...we will be unhappy and that unhappiness will increase as the years go by, unless we repent of our sins and turn to the Lord.
7. We live in a world of so much filth. It is everywhere. It is on the street. It is on television. It is in books and magazines.. It is like a great flood, ugly and dirty and mean, engulfing the world. We have got to stand above it. The way to happiness lies in a return to strong family life and the observance of moral standards.
8. God gave each one of us the power to think and to reason and decide. With such power, self-discipline becomes a necessity.
9. Do you know how to pray? We get on our knees in an attitude of humility before God. We thank him for his blessings, such as our health, our friends, and our food. We ask him to bless those in need. We do it all in the name of His Beloved Son, The Lord Jesus Christ, concluding with 'amen.'
10. Each of us brings light to the earth.
11. Children need sunlight. They need happiness. They need love and nurture.
12. All of the things, which happen in your life, good or bad, are for your experience and can be for your good, if you look for the good.
13. The way we face our personal trials will determine our future.
14. Out of our adversity we might seek our greatest trumpets and the day may come that from our challenges we will understand, that they were for our good.
15. Develop discipline of self so that, more and more, you do not have to decide and redecide what you will do when your are confronted with the same temptation time and time again. You need only to decide some things once.
16. If you are willing to pay the price for success, good things, even great things, can happen to you, even beyond your fondest dreams and expectations.
17. Our natural abilities may be limited but with God's help our potential is greatly increased. You need help from a power beyond your own to do something extraordinarily useful.

I remember thinking that way, when I was young. It seemed like the kids who were having the most fun were drinking alcohol. They would laugh and act silly and always be with lots of other kids. There were lots of parties where kids drank alcohol, and if you weren't drinking too, it seemed like you we're having any fun.

It's so easy to get caught up in the fantasy of what we call FUN because we all want to have fun. The fun we see others having, while drinking alcohol or possibly using drugs, is often the fun we see on the outside of that person, their behavior. We don't see what's going on in the inside of that person, or what problems the alcohol or drugs is causing to their personal life. We definitely don't see what problems their alcohol and drug use will cause in the future.

It's true that when we first drink alcohol or possibly use drugs (drugs I have never used, so I don't really know), we get a high feeling of enjoyment, even of having fun, like they say. But we have to be smart and very aware of what is really happening to us. The truth is, our mind is being drugged from the alcohol or drugs causing temporary feelings that feel good. These feelings blind us to what is really happening to us. We aren't aware that the use of alcohol and drugs stops us from developing our own natural abilities and intelligence to find happiness. An evil force is stopping our personal growth through the use of these substances.

The truth is that when we start to use and rely on alcohol and drugs to find fun and feel happy we have just put a stop to our abilities to find fun and happiness within ourselves. The feelings we are experiencing are temporary. The worst part is, for the rest of our lives; we will need to have alcohol or drugs to have those feelings. We have just stopped our growth in areas of happiness, by relying on a temporary substance that creates those feelings for us.

That's why you see some people, in their older years, still hanging out in the bars, looking for the fun they felt, when they drank their first drink of alcohol. The sad part is these people are not happy. They never developed the talent to find happiness within themselves. They are still relying on a substance to do that for them. The consequence is, they have not personally grown, in most areas of their lives, because they were blinded to the truth. The truth is, if they had stopped the alcohol and drugs and used their own intelligence, they would have found the fun, happiness, joy and even success they were looking for.

The terrible consequences of looking for fun in a drink or a drug is that you become addicted and are never free. In most cases you never reach you potential. The alcohol and drugs often cause you to do bad things. They can make you lazy or be mean and hurtful. You are never contented or satisfied and never know peace. Most people who use alcohol or drugs are troubled people but not really aware of how the alcohol or drugs has changed them. Other people see it, but they are usually blinded to how these substances have affected them.

Some of the kids at Juvenile Hall say, "my parents don't drink much. They're not addicted", or "I don't drink much, so it doesn't matter." It does matter! Even one so-called social drink can become an addiction. Besides that, "one drink", is taking away your natural ability to do for yourself what that one drink seems to be doing, like relaxing you or giving you that temporary feeling of having fun. You can do those things yourself. You don't need a drink or a drug to do it for you. You are cheating yourself if you think you do. It's foolishness! In life its good to be smart but you must be sensible!

As I see it, there is an evil force in life intent on destroying us. This evil force, as I know it, is Satan. His greatest weapons are to get you addicted to alcohol or drugs and then when he has you where he wants you, it's as if he puts a chain around you neck, and pulls you down to hell. I see kids in Juvenile Hall or people locked up in this condition. I also recognize it in the stories they tell me about their parents, who are addicted. Their lives are a living hell. I saw it in my own home with my alcoholic father. Believe me, there is no fun, no enjoyment in being controlled by alcohol or drugs! 

All I can tell you is what I learned myself. Don't drink alcohol or use drugs. You don't need them! I tried alcohol when I was young and I'm so grateful I discovered the truths I am sharing with you, and stopped drinking at an early age. Thankfully, I didn't end up like my dad and I didn't give my children the terrible life our dad gave us. Instead, I've had a happy life. I discovered this truth by living it myself. "You don't need a drink to have fun." I know how to have fun on my own.

In life you must not be a sheep that follows what everyone else is doing. You must be smarter than that. You must have your eyes open and see what is going on and use your intelligence to make smart choices and decisions. You must always have your eyes and ears open for the lessons of life and then live them.

It's easy to be like everyone else, but the successful people don't follow the crowd, they look for the truths in life. God didn't intend for you to destroy your life with alcohol and drugs. He planned for you to be a leader, not a follower. He wants you reach your potential.

Allow your own abilities to grow so you can become the great person God intended you to be. Don't cloud your mind and future with alcohol and drugs. YOU DON'T NEED THEM! Instead, develop the natural gifts and talents God blessed you with and become a WINNER!

DON'T BREAK PROBATION

If you don't want to come back to Juvenile Hall, when you get out, DON'T BREAK PROBABION! Kids come back here for the dumbest reasons. They drink alcohol and use drugs; they don't go to school. They go out at night when they should be at home, etc.

When they end up back in Juvenile Hall, they are very upset with themselves because those seemingly "little things", weren't little, they were big enough to get themselves locked up again.

When you go home, you must learn to be obedient. You have to learn to be patient. To be smart. You must to be honest. You have to learn to be away from your friends (even your girl friend or boyfriend), or do things you don't want to do. You have to obey your parents and follow the rules.

If you don't, you will just mess up your life more and waist more of your time, in Juvenile Hall.

You can't be sneaky and think you won't get caught, because you will. It's just not worth it.

Think of how it feels now to be in Juvenile Hall, and how excited you are to get out and go home. Then think of how it will feel if you have to come back, because you did something stupid!

Your first mistake was doing something wrong, and ending up in the system. Now you are in the system, you have to be doubly careful, because you will be watched more carefully. You have so much more against you now, because you have a record, and it's so much easier to get locked up, again because of your history.

You have to use your brains and think before you do things. If you are just foolish, thinking nothing will happen to you - it will - and, before you know it, you'll be back in the navy blue sweats locked in a room again. I see kids here time and time again!

Be smart! Make some goals while you are here so you will know what you will do, and what you won't do, when you get out.

If you are foolish and end up back in here you can't blame anyone but yourself, because you know better!

Be a Winner in Life! Eva Fry

The following article is a reprint from one of my Church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, magazines. I have included it because I feel it is profound and it's council can bring peace and happiness to those who are hurting.

TO BE FREE OF HEAVY BURDENS

By Elder Richard G. Scott

Many of you suffer needlessly from carrying heavy burdens because you do not open your hearts to the healing power of the Lord. May this message encourage you to feel the prompting of the Holy Ghost to make those changes that will lead you to be free of oppressive burdens. The Savior has promised. "I will...ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that...you cannot feel them...and this will I do that I, that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions."

I will first speak to you who suffer because of your own wrong choices, then I will give suggestions for you that anguish for what others have done to you.

Seated across from me was a despondent man, head buried in hands, sobbing from the inevitable consequences of repeated violations of commandments of God. He anguished. " I don't know what to do. Every thing is pressing in on me. I'm tired of running. There is no peace, no happiness. When I pray, no one is listening. What's the use?"

I have known him for along time. His parents and others have tried to give him guidance with little success. Because of his choices, he has become separated from the truths that would help him. He has not cultivated faith in the Master nor in the power of prayer. His decisions are centered on what could quickly satisfy his cravings. He either ignores problems or lies about them. He has manipulated the generosity of parents and friends to attempt a quick fix to challenges. He does not evaluate the consequences of today's decisions on tomorrow's life.

As my heart sorrowed for him, I realized he does not see the world as it really is--a place of joy and happiness, of true friendships where faith in Jesus Christ and obedience to His teachings invite the Holy Ghost to prompt correct decisions. He lives in an environment dominated by the influence of Satan. He has not followed sound counsel, because in his world he cannot see how it would possibly work for him. This distorted view of life is reality to him. It was forged as he succumbed to the subtle temptations of "Go ahead. Try it. Nobody will ever know. It's your life. Live it the way you want to. They can't force you. You have your moral agency."

The promptings and the allure of the forbidden led him down a path that seemed fascinatingly attractive. He was carried on the crest of the wave of appetite and passion, oblivious to the consequences until the inevitable crushing encounter with the laws of God occurred. That produced pain, remorse, and regret. Then Satan provided other direction: "There is no way back. You might as well keep doing what you've been doing. It's hopeless to try to change." Because of his sins, he cannot see a way out of his failures, He will not see the tools needed for a new life in his current environment. His tragic, confining world has been created by the violation of eternal law, motivated by desire for a quick response.

Do you find yourself in a similar circumstance? Have you done things that you wish you had not done? Is it difficult for you to see any way to solve your problems? Does there seem to be an oppressive, crushing weight that's always there no matter how you seek to shake it? Under the influence of powerful emotions or stimulants you may have periods where there seems to be relief. Yet in the quiet moments of reflection that inevitably come, you realize that your life is not what you want it to be. You may publicly complain that your friends and even the Lord have abandoned you, but in times of sober reflection you realize it is you that have abandoned them.

Oh, please decide now to find the way back to the refreshing peace and joy that can replace the fleeting pleasures of sin and the subsequent agony and emptiness. You have confirmed what the scriptures teach: "wickedness never was happiness." Earn enduring joy now from a clean and purposeful life.

I know that you can escape the controlling influence of the evil one and the repressive chains that bind your life. That relief will require you to accept a solution that s likely foreign to your current personal experience. It will require you to exercise faith in a Father in heaven who loves you. While you may not understand why now, you must trust that the Savior has given His life so that you can make the required changes in your life, changes that will bring peace and the illusive success that always seem beyond your reach. Believe that you can overcome the depressing environment in which you live by trusting that there is a better way. You must seek the help of others who understand and live that better way, even though you cannot see it now. This will require you to learn and obey the teachings of the Lord. Once you have fully committed yourself to that change, you will find that it is not as difficult as it now may seem.

The painful consequences of sin were purposely put in His plan of happiness by a compassionate Father in Heaven so that you need not follow that tragic path in life. A sinner will not only suffer in this life, but sins that have not been forgiven through true repentance will cause anguish beyond the veil.

Satan strives to convince one that sins can be hidden from others, yet it is he that causes them to be revealed in the most compromising circumstances. His objective is the enslavement of God's children. All of his enticing alluring temptations have as their root the destruction of the individual. In fact, each of us needs consistently to repent and obey so that the gift of the Savior will satisfy the demands of justice for even our small errors of commission or omission.

The Savior will take upon Himself the consequences of your sins as you repent now. If that is not done, in time you will have to suffer for them yourself.

Seek out your bishop. He will show you how to repent and will help you do it. As you pray and act, you will be led to others who will support you. Repentance is a process of cleansing. It is difficult, but it has an end, a glorious end with peace and refreshing forgiveness and the miracle of a new beginning. Confession of improper acts is an important step but that is not full repentance. Your bishop will carefully explain what you must do. I will mention two aspects of repentance that bring great healing power. One is found in this declaration of the Master: "For I the Lord cannot look upon sin with the least degree of allowance; Nevertheless, he that repents and does the commandments of the Lord shall be forgiven."

That scripture emphasizes that the Lord cannot abide sin but He will forgive the repentant sinner because of His perfect love. It also teaches that not only is it important to keep a commandment you have broken, but by obeying all of the commandments you will obtain additional power and support in the process of repentance.

Another vital aspect of repentance is to recognize the role of the Savior through His Atonement. Indeed, it is that very Atonement that makes repentance even possible. As you pray and ponder the role of Jesus Christ as your Savior and Redeemer, you will acquire great motivation and encouragement to help you repent. Follow this example of Alma: I was...in the most bitter pain and anguish of soul and never, until I did cry out unto the Lord Jesus Christ for mercy, did I receive a remission of my sins. But behold, I did cry unto him and I did find peace to my soul.

"...I have told you this that ye may learn wisdom, that ye may learn...that there is no other way or means whereby man can be saved, only in and through Christ. Behold, he is the life and the light of the world."

You will be helped by studying the magnificent explanation of the need for repentance and how it can be obtained, as Alma counseled his wayward son, Corianton, in the Book of Mormon. Through trust in the plan of happiness and the capacity of the Savior to realize His promises, the darkness of sin can be swept away and the joy of a worthy life returned with the trust of loved ones, when earned the Lord's way. Do not blame others for your mistakes. Humbly repent, for it is written, "He offereth himself a sacrifice for sin, to answer the ends of the law, unto all those who have a broken heart and a contrite spirit" and unto none else can the ends of the law be answered`." Please, decide to repent, now.

You may be carrying a heavy burden of feeling injured by another who has seriously offended you. Your response to that offense may have distorted your understanding so that you feel justified in waiting for that individual to ask forgiveness so that the pain can leave. The Savior dispelled any such thought when he commanded:

"Wherefore, I say unto you, that ye ought to forgive one another, for he that forgiveth not his brother his trespasses standeth condemned before the Lord' for there remaineth in him the greater sin.

"I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men."

Don't carry the burden of offense any longer, Genuinely ask forgiveness of one that has offended you, even when you consider you have done no wrong. That effort will assuredly bring you peace and will likely begin the healing of serious misunderstandings. If you are free of serious sin yourself, don't suffer needlessly the consequences of another's sins. As a wife, husband, parent, or loved you, you can feel compassion for one who is in the gall of bitterness from sin. Yet you should not take upon yourself a feeling of responsibility for those acts.

When you have done what is reasonable to help one you love, lay the burden at the feel of the Savior. He has invited you to do that so that you can be free from pointless worry and depression. As you so act, not only will you find peace but will demonstrate your faith in the power of the Savior to life the burden of sin from a loved one through his repentance and obedience.

Now to you who have been scarred by the ugly sin of abuse. Mental, Physical, or sexual abuse can cause serious enduring consequences unless healed by the Lord. That may include fear, depression, guilt, self-hatred, and a deepening lack of trust in others that becomes a barrier to healing. Your abuse results from another's unrighteous attack on your moral agency against your will. In justice, the Lord has proved a way for you to overcome the destructive consequences of abuse. That relief can begin with the counsel of parents, priesthood leaders, and, when needed, the help of competent professionals. Yet you need not experience a lifetime of counseling. Complete healing will come through your faith in Jesus Christ and His power and capacity, through His Atonement, to heal the scars of that which is unjust and undeserved. You may find that hard to believe with your current feelings. I have witnessed how the Savior has healed aggravate cases of abuse in that way. Ponder the power of the Atonement. Pray to understand how it can heal you. Seek the aid of your bishop so that the Lord can free you of a burden you did not originate.

In closing, if you have felt impressions to be free of burden caused by yourself or others, those promptings are an invitation from the Redeemer. Act upon them now. He loves you. He gave His life that you may be free of needless burdens. He will help you do it. I know that He has the power to heal you. Begin now. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.

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