In my earlier years of serving in youth ministry, when a student had something to share, there wasn’t much that a trip to McDonald’s and a boba milk tea couldn’t fix. Looking back, I can see that might not always have been the best approach—I didn’t have the tools to know how to truly help. Times have changed. In Teenagers and Mental Health, Monica Kim and Danny Kwon provide a valuable handbook for parents, pastors, and youth leaders.
Partner with Parents and Pastors
The book is divided into two parts. Part 1 presents foundational principles and practices for ministering to teenagers and families dealing with mental health issues. Sin and suffering are identified as the root of the Christian teenager’s mental health struggles. Both teens and their caretakers must look to Christ as we wait for our final deliverance. In the meantime, we have the help of the Holy Spirit and the common grace of counseling to work through the challenges of mental health. This is solid theology, laid out with special care and sensitivity with mental health in mind.
What I was most pleased to read was a pastoral approach that encourages a family-centric, intergenerational partnership with parents and families. Conversation and education are recommended. While my children are not yet in youth ministry, I can already anticipate wanting to be involved and informed about their spiritual and mental health. The book also acknowledges that there are situations beyond the church’s scope, and it will require humility, sober judgment, and faith for discernment. Kim and Kwon are careful and wise in their approach
Guarding Hearts and Minds
The specific mental health struggles covered in Part 2 include anxiety and stress, depression, body image issues and eating disorders, substance use issues, trauma, and more. What interested me most was the section on teenagers struggling with excessive screen use. Taking cues from Proverbs 4:23 and Philippians 4:8, the book encourages us to guard our hearts and minds, filling them with what is beneficial rather than harmful. I take this to heart as a content creator, knowing that what we do and produce online has real-life implications.
Kim and Kwon champion the church throughout the book, specifically stating that when games and social media attempt to fill our hearts, we can remind teenagers that Christ and the church offer lasting and soul-satisfying alternatives. The church can help by establishing technology guidelines and offering meaningful alternatives to persistent screen use. I’ve seen this support in my own church, as I’m grateful that the budget for our church’s youth ministry allowed us to purchase physical study Bibles for the students to use in our Sunday School class.
Hope in God
As a preacher and teacher to the youth at our church, this book empowered and exhorted me to speak and apply the truths found in the Word of God when it comes to mental health. I am challenged to thoughtfully address mental health issues in my sermons and lessons. While this book is firmly grounded in Scripture, it also engages with research and evidence. Covering a wide range of topics with gospel clarity, Teenagers and Mental Health will be a blessing to the church and to the next generation as they learn to put their hope in God.
I received a media copy of Teenagers and Mental Health and this is my honest review.Our Book and Reviews page focuses on Asian American authors and issues. For more, check out our YouTube Author Interviews.