Feels Like Teen Spirit

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Tristan's personal encounter also gave him the confidence to challenge family members on some aspects of their faith. He thinks gay people were made that way by God, but his dad thinks it's a choice. Tristan believes that practicing his guitar glorifies God, while his parents wish he would do more homework. He's slowly making his own decisions about right and wrong. It's a skill that will keep him safe, he says, from the myriad temptations that will bedevil him between middle school and marriage.

Back at Grace Chapel, the middle school worship band is finishing its set. Tristan plays effortlessly through the chords and stops on a dime for an a cappella finale. A hundred kids in shorts and flip-flops shift their weight from side to side and sing, "Holy, holy, holy ..." Youth pastor Dietz smiles at his band. "Sounds good," he says. "I think God loves this." --With reporting by Adam Pitluk/Plano