One of the great things about getting a little older and writing a devotional book for younger women is that it provides an opportunity to pass along some of the lessons from my occasionally awkward teenage years. Granted, not all of those lessons are serious ones, but if they can help someone who relates, I’m oh-so-happy to share.

Here are a few.

Stirrup pants were super-popular in the early 90s. Sure, they were comfortable. Sure, they were stretchy, and stretchy can be such a positive attribute in a fabric, especially after the wearer of said fabric has consumed a two-piece fried chicken dinner at Popeye’s. Sure, they were trendy. We thought we were so cute with our stirrup pants and our crispy bangs and our oversized shirts from The Limited, but the reality is that we were all walking through the mall looking like we’d attached some upside-down clothespins to our waists. It was a fashion low.

Sometimes it almost feels exciting when people disagree or get angry with one another or decide it’s high-time to publicly confront So-And-So about such-and-such. We can feed off the conflict, feed off the attention, and occasionally even feed off casting ourselves in the role of victim. But here’s the thing: conflict and drama don’t have to go hand in hand. In fact, anytime drama enters into conflict, it’s because somebody makes a conscious decision to invite it to the party. On top of that, if someone is constantly causing drama in your friendship, then that’s a pretty good sign that the friendship isn’t healthy. That can be a bummer for sure, but it’s better to name the dysfunction and move on than to sit in it and condition yourself to believe it’s okay. Drama is a waste of time, energy, and emotion, and it rarely solves anything. Be wise.

This is really the biggest lesson of all, isn’t it? I mean, not that my epiphany about stirrup pants wasn’t super important, but if I could hop in a time machine, travel back to the late 80s, and look my teenage self in the eyes, I would tell her this:

Jesus loves you more than you know.

You can trust Him with every single part of your life.

He will never let you down.

And if you and I were sitting across a table from each other right now, I’d say the exact same thing to you. Because as much as we sometimes feel like we need to manage and control and strategize and plan, the fact of the matter is that Jesus works all things for good (Romans 8:28). So if you mess up, He’s with you. If you make a bad choice, He has your back. If you’re upset, He’s your comforter. If you’re worried, He’s your peace.

Hopefully young women won’t face the same struggles with stirrup pants that I did. But in the middle of whatever comes their way – no matter how difficult it is – I pray they’ll know and trust the sufficiency of Christ. I pray they’ll seek Him, trust Him, and follow Him as He leads them to wholeness and freedom. He is faithful. He will do it.

And if He is all we have, we have all we need. He is our All in all.

Sophie Hudson loves to laugh more than just about anything. Through her books and her popular blog, BooMama.net, she offers encouragement and hope in the everyday, joy-filled moments of life. A devoted fan of pajama pants, Sophie loves cheering like crazy at college football games and watching entire seasons of TV shows in record time. She lives with her husband and son in Birmingham, Alabama.