If I could wish a much-needed gift upon my brethren, it would be that of resilience.
Though life’s misfortunes and setbacks afflict all humans, they take on new levels of intensity for the believer.
Christians find themselves ever caught in a dilemma. Though godly wisdom teaches them to avoid many of the pitfalls of an ungodly lifestyle, it also teaches them that their new godly ways can get them into trouble.
A man who used to use bad language, got drunk, often got angry, and ignored his poor ethical standards, is no longer the same person. Calling yourself a Christian is not a rebrand, it is a paradigm shift. If your friends do not feel the difference, then there probably isn’t one.
But it is easy to talk about such things. Making the lifetime changes is hard.
That’s where resilience comes in. That ability to adapt to the setbacks and misfortunes that are unique to the Christian life.
The pressure to conform to the world’s standard can get intense. Christians cringe at blasphemy and abhor abortion and euthanasia. They object to their children being taught that the god of the big bang is real, but the God of the Bible is a myth.
However, even those things can be overlooked as mere religious eccentricities. Try suggesting that anything beyond mum, dad and the kids is unnatural, and you might find yourself in hot water.
Resilience makes us bounce back when knocked down by temptation and persecution. It is that quality cemented in the hope of heaven to come.
Seeking to be holy as our Heavenly Father is holy is to want salvation and goodness for everyone. That pure motive alone will make you resilient in the fight against evil.
Seeking to be holy, is seeking to be like Jesus – make that your passion!
“For consider Him [Jesus] who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (Hebrews 12:3).
John Staiger
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