Difficult Faith

 

    Living out your faith is not always easy.  Life has a lot of distraction: people, activities, difficulties, and more.  The goal is to stay in tune with Jesus no matter the problem or difficulty.  Face your questions by digging into the Bible for answers.  Seek guidance from mature Christians, but do not rely on their understanding.  Allow the Holy Spirit reveal personal aspects to you.  

    Each challenge is unique.  Find a mentor and become a mentor to keep yourself sharp and focused.  Prayerfully work through your questions, so you will be prepared on day when it comes up.  There is normally a lot of down time in Christianity, so you have time to study, pray, meditate, discuss, and work on your faith.  You can be prepared for anything you may face with God backing you.

    You will have people in your life that do not believe in the Bible or God.  Maybe they do believe in God, but never feel like they need them or reject them because they choose their sin over Him.  You need to know how to love those people without judging them.  God loves them.  He is pursuing them.  You need to be intune with God enough to know when to speak and when not to discuss Him.  Sometimes if you push the situation you can cause more harm than good.

    Live out your faith trying to love people the way God does.  It is His job to judge.  It is your job to be a living testimony.  You can't expect nonbelievers to act like Christians.  It is unfair to them and you.  Get to know them where they are and find your common points.  Trust that God will work through you as you are a friend, college, or associate with the people.

    Learn a little about science, archeology, prophecy, and history of the church.  It will strengthen your faith and give you interesting discussion points.  It will only be beneficial to understand the people of the Bible and find points that apply to life today.  

    When you are being intentional and want to have a Christian discussion it may be best to mute or turn off your phone to eliminate distractions.  Turn off background noise: tv, music, radio, or anything that you are able to get rid.  If the person has something time sensitive coming up, then it may not be the best time to start a deep conversation or discussion.  

    When you eliminate all the distractions that you can be prepared for push back and for a heart response.  If a person gets mean or aggressive remember that it is not about you.  It is their problem and their response to God.  Remember how Jesus handled those people.  You will never have a response that will suit them, so ask them questions and leave it at that.  Let them think through their own answers.  

    Jesus always honored the people that saw the value in God.  He stayed focused on his message.  He used every situation to teach.  He began with his inner circle and then spread out to other people.  He led people to self-examination because it is their choice.  His power and God's message changes lives, but only if a person allows it.  Jesus entrusted people with salvation and discipling.  

    Jesus showed the way to handle all types of people.  It is your job to live blamelessly so that people do not have a valid reason to reject Jesus as you introduce them.  Know what is happening in the world, so you are prepared to communicate with people where they are.  Be prepared to share your faith and defend it at all times.  Be patient and remember it is not about you.  It is about Jesus.  God is working on them, so all you need to do is be faithful and pray.

Psalm 23, 46:1-3, Isaiah 41:8-10, Romans 8:26-30, 2 Corinthians 12:8-10, & Hebrew 4:14-16