Each year on the first of January, people decide make new year’s resolutions to better their lives.

Some common ones are to eat healthier, exercise more or curse less. Most people don’t follow these decisions after a couple of months.

In high school, it’s tough keeping yourself on track and staying out of bad habits.

Why not resolve to work on your relationship with God, while having fun with friends?

Young Life is a free, weekly evening program that is for high school students who want to strengthen their religious beliefs in a safe environment.

Open to everyone, Young Life is a non-denominational Christian organization that helps teach teens about Jesus Christ in understandable ways through personal relationships between leaders and teens.

I joined in September, at the beginning of the school year and have had a great time making new friends and learning more about Jesus Christ and how he means so much to be in our every day lives.

Josh Watson, Class of 2018, has been going to Young Life since the beginning of his freshman year when his older brother invited him to go.

He said, “The reason I’ve been going for the past two years is all the crazy stuff we do and the great atmosphere.”

Young Life has weekly club meetings and fall and summer camps to attend.

There is also a more Bible-focused group of Young Life that you could attend called Campaigners.

Local club meetings are free and are held on Monday nights at 7:30 pm in students’ homes Mt. Airy. The specific location is sometimes different, so you can find that out on Twitter if you follow their page @LinganoreYL.

There are three leaders who run Young Life in Mt. Airy; Katie Shoemaker and Katie and Chris Eckard.

They are positive role models for teens and are dedicated to building lasting friendships with us and helping us prepare for our futures.

At the beginning of the club meeting, we play a group game, have an activity, sing songs, or act out skits.

During club, the leaders take turns reading a Bible script and add in a real life story that connects to that.

After that, we have announcements where we are told where the next meeting will be held, when Campaigners meet, and when camps are to sign up for in the fall and summer.

I have found the leaders to be good listeners if I ever needed someone to talk to or if I had more questions that go deeper into the Bible lesson we discussed.

We end club with prayer and then meet up at a local restaurant to grab a bite to eat and talk to friends. (The restaurant costs money, but it’s optional.)

Young Life has opened me to making friendships with people who I might not have talked to before.

“I like having these people to talk to because I know that I can trust them and I won’t be judged.” said Class of 2020 member, Braden Weinel who participates in Young Life.

I really enjoy listening to Katie Shoemaker speak because she talks about her experiences as a young adult, and there are a lot of things that I can relate to, so I know how God can make a difference in my life if He helped her in hard times.

Chris and Katie Eckard and Katie Shoemaker strive to help teach us to make choices based upon God’s love for us and that He can make a difference to our futures.

They will listen to your stories, problems, questions, and will help you with anything.

If you’re thinking about making a life change for the beginning of the 2017 year, give Young Life a chance and let God become a part of your life.

Even if it’s big or small, He will make a difference.

To learn more about what Young Life is about and its goals for teens click here, and for more Linganore Young Life information click here.