It’s pretty evident that our country has been going through some challenging times here recently. A lot of pain, heartbreak, and devastation to say the least. One thing that has been breaking my heart specifically is the effects that we are seeing within our youth, adolescents, and next generation. For countless reasons including the crumbling of the home, traumatic events, and so much more, kids are being predisposed to experiencing mental health struggles and challenges such as issues with self-esteem, anger, emotion regulation, fear of abandonment, and we’re even seeing a staggering uptick in anxiety, depression, addiction, and suicidality as well. Thankfully, today’s Built Different Guest is someone who has been on the frontlines for quite some time as he has a strong heart and passion to help impact and influence our next generation, Dr. Jay Strack. Dr. Strack is the President and Founder of Student Leadership University (SLU), and he has had the opportunity of speaking and sharing within countless high schools, colleges, universities, companies, organizations, and professional sports teams across the world. Having experienced an incredibly difficult upbringing himself filled with abuse, broken homes, juvenile detention centers, and more, Jay wants people to understand that they are capable, seen, and pursued by a God who still has a plan for their lives. Your past, mistakes, challenges, and adversity do not define you. God fully knows you and fully loves you. Just be sure that you’re not wasting your sorrows!