As a Christian, one of the biggest challenges I face in this world...is the world. I believe it is our human nature to adapt. If someone moves to a country they are unfamiliar with, they adapt by learning the language, becoming accustomed to the food and partaking in the traditional practices of the land. In school, I went from an atmosphere of very hands-on teachers who sent progress reports and had parent-teacher conferences to a very large university where none of my professors knew my name. With this new environment, I learned to adapt. It is a feature of human nature that we can do well. But Christ is not calling us to adapt to THIS world. The earth was created by the Lord. Yes, this is true. But Satan was cast down to the earth and is now the ruler of this world (2 Corinthians 4.4, John12.31). He is formulating it to be the way he wants it. Thus, there is a spiritual battle over humans: the Lord is trying to get us to be righteous and to behave as sons and daughters of the Heavenly Kingdom (our home) while Satan is urgently persuading us to conform to his worldly and sinful ways. He was able to persuade one-third of the angels (Rev 12.4,9), no wonder he ends up so successful with us.
To this day, I struggle with understanding how to be a good example of how Christ lived in this day and age. Some people have mean things to say about pastors who drive nice cars. Apparently, they are suppose to be on buses. This is also said about Christians who dress nice and may have some expensive items. The world encourages us to be beautiful, have the latest fashion and know all the current music. Can one partake in these things and still be a good Christian? Or is that contradiction at its best? It is something, no doubt, I need to keep on my prayer list. But I believe the Lord wants what's best for his children. If we are blessed with very successful businesses and profits, we can wear designer clothing humbly and dedicate much of our funds to ministry. I believe giving is a spiritual gift. It is important however to not let money get the best of us and become our sole goal in life. As long as we keep our eyes on Jesus and store our riches in Heaven, I believe we will be following a good example of Christ.
I didn't grow up in a church so many things I learned about Christianity came from questions I would ask my friends, movies and books. In the movies, there were always a few people in an upper room, alone, praising God. They looked cheerful and happy but they also looked like they were suffering. In many Bible stories, the people who are mentioned in the books are the ones who went through suffering for the Kingdom. My brother often asks me "Why do Christians always have to suffer". His image of a Christian is one who has torn garments, scruffy face, eats leaves and walks around shouting praises to the Lord. These were the images he and I saw in the movies. We'd also read about Christians who were being beaten and killed in other countries for professing their faith. As a new believer, who lived in this world with nice clothes, a car and went to parties to have a good time, I felt like I wasn't being a good Christian when doing such things. I felt like I needed to endure suffering to be on the right track. Jesus says in Matthew 11.29-30 "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light." (NKJ). The Lord is calling us to take up this burden (defined as "that which is borne with difficulty") but He promises that it is light. As Christians, there are some things we will suffer with. It may be sacrificing friends, giving up certain jobs or posessions we worked hard to obtain. We might be called to endure even harsher suffering such as the early Christians who were stoned and crucified for Christ. But the Lord will never put more on us than we can bare. He knows our strengths and weaknesses and He has built us to be able to withstand that which He has planned for us to go through. Take up Christ's yoke, follow Him and do not conform to the unrightenous of Satan's world. The world looks pretty and easy to live in. But this world will soon pass. Don't let Satan make you think that following the Lord is just about suffering and loss. Jesus says you will find rest for your soul through Him and who couldn't use a little rest?
Blessings
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