Author of Sticking up for What I Believe
By Trisha Bleau Smith
T4JYM: Being involved with youth online we are often faced with tough questions and even tougher responses to the answers. Where did the idea for the book come from?
GMD: My husband, Ed, and I have four sons. As they approached their teen years they began to ask the same questions about Christianity that I had raised as a teenager. Unfortunately no one in my family or church had been able to satisfy my curiosity, and when I left for college, I was completely confused. My Ivy League education taught me that Christianity is merely a crutch for people who are weak. I accepted that explanation, and for several years I wandered far from the faith I had been brought up in. However, after meeting some people with a dynamic faith and solid biblical answers I began to investigate Christianity again and found that it really was definable and defensible. So when my own sons started to ask the questions that I had asked as a teenager, I was determined to give them answers in terms that they would understand and with stories they could relate to. That’s how the book came about. I began to write my answers down (so that I wouldn’t have to do the research all over again for each kid!) and soon there was this book, of sorts, that my friends began to borrow to help them answer their teenagers’ questions. One day NavPress got hold of it, made it into a real book, and… now you have it, too!
T4JYM: What kinds of questions are teens asking about their faith?
GMD: Because they are being raised in a culture that prides itself in being inclusive and tolerant and open-minded, the #1 question that seems to be bothering teenagers today is: “Isn’t it narrow-minded to say that Jesus is the only way to God?” It is important to point out to teens that, contrary to what our culture teaches, narrowness does not make something wrong. (I’m sure you’d be pretty narrow-minded about who you would allow to operate on you if you needed your tonsils out, right? And would you let just anyone pilot a plane that was taking you to Peoria? I think not!) Teens must also understand that truth is always narrow. (Just try to convince an algebra teacher that 1+1 equals anything else but 2.) But answering this question for teenagers also requires us to have answers to questions concerning the existence of God and the reliability of the Bible as His Word. These are just three of the issues teenagers need answers to if they are going to embrace Christianity. They also want to know what happens to those who never hear about Jesus, and if miracles can really happen, and if God is good why there is so much suffering. These are the types of questions I deal with in this book.
T4JYM: How has this book been received by the general public? Has there been positive feedback? Any negative feedback? Do you get a lot of feedback from the public? Do you respond to the people who contact you about your works?
GMD: The feedback has been exciting – almost overwhelming. I’ve been asked to do a lot of radio interviews and have begun to speak at teen forums and retreats. I love doing this. But more exciting to me is when I hear how other people have taken the book and used it to help the teenagers in their lives stick up for their faith. One dad wrote and told me how he had decided to go through the book with his two teenagers. When he gave them each a book, they asked if they could have copies for their friends who were struggling with the same questions. So they started a once-a-week cookout and discussion group. Every week they decided to discuss a different chapter. By the second week, more than thirty kids were coming! Wow! I’ve heard that several Christian schools are using the book in their curriculums. Black Forest Academy in Germany is incorporating it into a class for all their seniors. I love to hear how God is using this book, and, yes, I will respond if you share how He is using it in your life. I am overwhelmed with wonder at how God can use the answers to my kids’ questions to impact so many other lives.
T4JYM: How much time did you spend preparing for this book? How much research did you have to do? Did you have help? How much time do you normally spend researching any writing you do?
GMD: As I have mentioned, I never really intended for this to become a book. It was originally meant to be only for my own sons (and perhaps their children some day). So the research took place over the course of several years. I love to do research, so I spent a lot of time on each chapter individually. I had several great resources that I consistently used. Books by David DeWitt, Paul Little, and Josh McDowell are totally dog-eared on my shelves. Another wonderful source was a book by Ken Boa and Larry Moody titled I’m Glad You Asked. It deals with almost the same questions in a much more in-depth, technical way. It was a great help to me. Plus, my husband is a graduate of Dallas Theological Seminary, and he helped keep me on track when I had deep theological questions.
T4JYM: What are your next plans for writing? Do you plan to do any more books along the same lines as this book? Will you move on to new writing?
GMD: There are going to be three books in this series for teenagers. The second book, Sticking Up For What is Right, will be published in October (2002). I am very excited about the impact it could have in light of the culture our teens are being raised in. In it I try to give very clear biblical guidelines for the moral dilemmas teenagers face. That will be followed by Sticking Up For Who I Am (Spring 2003) which deals with the emotional issues teenagers raise. After that – I’m not sure. I would love to write some more if that is what God wants me to do. I have a deep desire to reach teenagers and young moms for Christ and then encourage and excite them to live their lives according to God’s Word rather than the world’s standards. I have already written two books for moms titled The Adventures of Mighty Mom: Here She Comes to Save the Day If only She Can Find the Keys and Mighty Mom’s Secrets for Raising Super Kids. They are filled with humor (as you can probably tell) as well as God’s truth and love.
T4JYM: What advice would you give to someone interested in pursuing writing as a career?
GMD: Regardless of what you are doing, do it all for God then give it all to God. It’s amazing what can happen when you allow Him to work out the details. And if He chooses not to use your work in other people’s lives, that’s okay, as long as you have let Him use it in yours.
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