This year has brought several clients into RETA to participate in our Risks & Boundaries program. The Risks & Boundaries program discusses sexual risk avoidance and promotes abstinence until marriage as the best strategy for avoiding the results and consequences of sex outside of marriage.
RETA has a team that goes into local schools to teach Risks & Boundaries for 2 days, as well as other staff and volunteers who meet with young men and women individually to teach and discuss Risks & Boundaries in depth over 8 sessions.
While RETA has had this program available for many years, this was the first year I have had the privilege to be involved in meeting with a few of those girls one-on-one. Some are court-ordered to participate in the program, and others come because they are wanting to become better equipped to make healthier choices for their future. We discuss possible consequences of sex outside of marriage, such having STIs (sexually transmitted infections), unplanned pregnancy, as well as social and emotional struggles. The difference between reducing verses avoiding your risk for these consequences is also talked about, as well as the importance of being proactive in setting healthy sexual and relational boundaries with others. Participants are encouraged to explore what their values are and are equipped to establish their boundaries for positive outcomes in their future.
Lilah* found out about the Risks & Boundaries program after receiving other services at RETA. She felt guilty about choices she had made in the past and didn’t want to continue to make similar mistakes. Throughout the weeks that I met with her, I could see a change in her as she accepted God’s forgiveness for her choices and embraced the truth about sexuality and continued in a deeper relationship with God. During the sessions she talked about examples of practical ways she had applied what she was learning and said that her confidence in setting healthy boundaries had grown.
When Felicia* began Risks & Boundaries, she had seen the consequences of poor decisions from the people around her and did not want to be in a similar situation. We talked about what practical steps to take to avoid those risks and encouraged her to say “no” or “not yet” to things in the present so she could say yes to better choices and rewards in the future. Felicia expressed how it was important for her to take responsibility of her own actions and to feel comfortable speaking up for herself in sticky situations.
Risks & Boundaries is a vital part of RETA because it educates our young people and helps them achieve better outcomes for their future. It provides an opportunity for them to hear truth and facts about sexual integrity that the culture around us does not promote.
- Melody Ellis
*Names changed for client confidentiality.