When we are suffering the most, it often seems like God has abandoned us. Some things about Christianity are hard to accept. Many people have trouble reconciling the Old and New Testaments, accepting that we are all equal to the newest members, or that there is a literal Hell (even if it is not literally a lake of fire).
One of the things that sets God apart from anyone else is that God cannot lie. All the things we think are so awful about life that upset us are devastating, but He has not promised we will be safe from these in this world.
We spend a lot of time and effort trying to explain things we cannot fully understand. Maybe this is not as helpful to unbelievers and new Christians as we think. Maybe this does not resolve the reasons why some people have not been reconciled or at peace with God.
There are many things Christians do not want to admit. We still struggle with sin, we don’t understand every passage of Scripture as well as we would like, and we too sometimes have doubts about our faith. What non Christians and many Christians fail to emotionally accept is that Christianity makes your life harder, in many ways.
We become a living breathing target for the devil. We stir up anger and isolation from others, when they realize the implications of what the Bible says. We are held to a much higher moral standard. We cannot read the Bible without being forced to decide moral questions and be changed emotionally. People will no longer like us, because they think we are no longer fun to be around. We have to be willing to give everything up for God.
Like many competitions, amongst anyone like businesses or charities, when you get new competition willing to work harder than you, don’t try to compete with them in the same way. Do not just make or do something somewhat better than them.
Offer a completely different way of solving the same problem. Do not play by their rules. Make your own rules. Be the best at what you are good at and play to your strengths.
When I was in high school, I was always frustrated. I got involved in so many activities that I was not good at, to get better at them. This was a big mistake, because I began to feel like a failure.
The Church should not be competing with Internet distractions. We should not change fundamentals just to appeal to people and in turn embrace the world’s values. God says friendship with Him means we are enemies of the world.
The Church offers things you cannot get anywhere else. We should focus on these. Christianity offers so much more than everlasting life. We have a network of organizations all around the world that is like a giant family called the Church. God’s Spirit lives inside Christians, but never forces us to do anything we do not want to do. God helps make us better people over time, if we cooperate.
Christianity is a very hard way to live, but it is very worth it. In many ways, it is also the easiest belief system to be part of.