Question:
How can we stand up to friends and peers?

Answer:
We are instructed to “Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest” (Joshua 1:9). See also Psalm 31:24 and Philippians 4:13. We have nothing to be ashamed of, and the Lord will take care of us if we are doing what He wants (Matthew 10:28-31). God has given us the spirit of power and love (2 Timothy 1:7).

It is important that we let the Lord take over in our lives. We can always pray to God arrow prayers like Nehemiah did while he was talking to the king (Nehemiah 2:4). Our life is a matter of obedience. Who are we going to obey? Satan or the Lord? Our testimony should be compatible with where we are. Example: Can we go to a worldly function like a dance, and witness to others about Christ?
We have to have a purpose in our heart to stand for Jesus (Acts 11:23), and then He will give us the strength we need. We should have no wishy-washy feelings for the Lord. We have to stand fast, and keep our ground, and we need purpose of heart to do this (Philippians 1:27, 28). We have no strength in ourselves but the indwelling Spirit will give us the strength if we yield to Him. We need to know the Scriptures, and if we depend on the Lord like we should, He will help us remember these Scriptures to combat the enemy.
The main thought as to standing for Christ is to purpose this in our hearts like Daniel did. The Lord honored him for that (Daniel 1:8), and the Lord will protect us in every situation as well for the power is there in the Lord (Matthew 6:26, 34). Daniel had the right PRIORITY—God first; he PURPOSED in his heart to please God; PURITY—he didn’t want to defile himself; PROVED—God was first and foremost; and he PROGRESSED—in his Christian life.
Young people have many temptations to take a “little peak” at the evils, but the evils are vacuums that suck us in. Let us concentrate on the things that are profitable to the Lord (Philippians 4:8). We are not under law, but we should want to strive to be taken up with, and do those things that are really profitable (1 Corinthians 6:12). What’s profitable to the Lord, are things that are going to last in heaven forever! Much too often we might trade things of heaven for a pleasurable season of sin. We’ll be in heaven much longer than on this earth. If we set out hearts on the Lord he’ll fill the void that we think we have for being a Christian. We need to focus on Jesus in heaven–this fills the void and makes our life beautiful.
If you have friends, introduce them to Jesus. If they don’t want H find a new friend (James 4:4).