Vertical Thought magazine
https://lifehopeandtruth.com/authors/david-treybig/
By: Kelvin Oliver
T4JYM: Would you please share your background as a Christian?
DT: Although I grew up in a Christian family, it wasn’t until I was about age fourteen that I began seriously considering how I wanted to live my life and whether I would also be a Christian. At this time I attended a church-sponsored summer camp where I was encouraged to develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Responding to this invitation, I began praying on a regular basis and studying the Bible. I also began taking note of the types of lives led by Christians and non-Christians alike.
Over the next few years, I became more deeply convicted that becoming a follower of Jesus Christ was what I wanted to do-that this was the best way to live life. Three months after leaving home for college I was baptized, entering into a covenant relationship with my Lord and Savior. Since that time I have had a special interest in helping young people understand God’s invitation to respond to Him.
T4JYM: What is the main focus of Vertical Thought?
DT: Our printed publication and Web site (http://www.verticalthought.org) focus on challenging and inspiring young people to think on things from above-that is, on God and His instructions on how we can live to glorify Him and receive the blessings He wants to give us. We are trying to apply the instruction given to us in Colossians 3:1-2: “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.”
T4JYM: What does Vertical Thought offer as a magazine or e-zine?
DT: Vertical Thought: a magazine of understanding for tomorrow’s leaders (as our full masthead reads) inspires vertical (godly) thinking in young people via articles, news items and Q and A. Tackling issues such as morality, biblical understanding, education and career planning, our free magazine is published quarterly and our Web site is updated monthly. For subscriptions, fill out the form on our Web site: http://www.verticalthought.org. On our Web site we also have an index of biblical answers to often asked questions. For those who have specific questions, we are pleased to provide personal answers to all e-mail questions.
T4JYM: What is the last book you read? Did you read it for research purposes or for pleasure?
DT: I most recently read Family Matters: How Schools Can Cope With the Crisis in Childrearing by Robert Evans. I was especially interested in the first half of this book for research purposes for a booklet I am writing on marriage and family.
T4JYM: Are you involved in your own home church? What role do you have there?
DT: Yes. You could say that I’m definitely involved in my own home churches since I pastor congregations of the United Church of God in Tampa and St. Petersburg, Florida.
T4JYM: Are you involved in any other ministries?
DT: I also serve as an editorial reviewer for The Good News magazine (http://www.goodnews.org).
T4JYM: How long have you been Managing Editor and what is your job duty?
DT: I’ve served as the managing editor of Vertical Thought magazine and its predecessor, Youth United, for four and a half years. My responsibilities include issue planning, making article assignments and editing all editorial content for our printed magazine and our Web site. I’m pleased to have the assistance of an editorial staff of five additional people who assist me in these duties. Although our staff is scattered across the United States, from Florida to California, we teleconference on a regular basis and use the Internet to exchange materials.
T4JYM: If you had the opportunity to reach all teens and young adults, what message would you send?
DT: I would explain that Christianity is the best choice for a good life now, here on earth, as well as for the future. This perspective comes from (1 Timothy 4:8) which says, “…godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come.” I would also encourage young people to live moral lives by not engaging in sex prior to marriage because this approach not only pleases God, it also gives us the best opportunity to enjoy happy and lasting marriages without emotional baggage from failed relationships or sexually transmitted diseases.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the number of high school students who are having sex has declined over the past decade. Sometimes Christian youth get discouraged, thinking they are out of step with the large majority of other youth when they really aren’t. According to the CDC, about half of all high school students now graduate without having had sex. It is encouraging to see this percentage growing, and it would be even nicer to see it become the standard for all. Maintaining one’s virginity prior to marriage is an honorable, intelligent choice of vertical thinkers-people who love God and follow His instructions.
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