The Young Man in the Mirror: A Rite of Passage for Men in High School
The Young Man in the Mirror: A Rite of Passage for Men in High School
You’re figuring out who you are—and who you’re going to become.
Most guys don’t get much help with that. Or they get it too late.
I’ve spent my life helping men sort out the stuff that really matters—identity, purpose, relationships, faith. And over and over, I hear the same thing: “I wish I had learned this earlier.”
That’s why I wrote The Young Man in the Mirror—for you.
This isn’t a lecture. It’s a guide to help you get a few really important things right from the start: what it actually means to be a man, how to build strong relationships with your family and friends, how to treat girls with respect, how to handle sexual pressure, and how to figure out what God wants for your life.
No fluff. No pretending life is easy. Just honest help for real situations you’re already dealing with.
Think of this as a shortcut—so you don’t have to learn everything the hard way.
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Men’s author Patrick Morley gathered fifteen young men (mostly high schoolers) one Saturday morning to identify the issues that mattered most to them. Together, they agreed that 15 issues towered over a long list of 56 potential topics. Those 15 issues became the chapters for The Young Man in the Mirror.
Issues like:
- Making good decisions
- Finding direction
- Dating
- Sex
- Family relationships
- Secret thoughts
- Suffering
If you are in high school, over the next few years you will make many most of the decisions that will define the course of your life. For example, whether and where to go to college, what kind of work you like, where you want to live, getting married, starting a family, and purchasing a home. Ironically, you’ll make most of those decisions when you have the least amount of experience and wisdom to make them.
Let’s level the playing field, shall we? If you read The Young Man in the Mirror then you will:
- Understand what it means to be a godly man
- Understand the major choices you will face and the consequences of those decisions
- Be equipped to make the major decisions you face wisely
- Be inspired to make a difference with your life
- Be challenged to live for Jesus Christ
The purpose of The Young Man in the Mirror is to initiate you into manhood. You can read it by yourself, but you can make it even better by asking an adult to mentor you one-on-one or with a few other young men in a group.