We live in a world today where everybody wants things to be easy. I mean, who doesn't like it when they don’t have to work as hard for something, but sometimes it becomes a bad thing. Sometimes we get comfortable just going through the motions and making all the easy choices, but what happens when something disrupts our comfort? We then have a choice to make. We have the choice of just moving on and suppressing the memory, hoping things will go back to normal, or we can make a significant change in our lives. This change is accepting Jesus into your life. By accepting Christ into your life, you're making a statement that you're done living for yourself and you're going to live for Christ. Some people like to think that if they accept Christ then things are going to be easy for them and they won't have any worries, but this isn't exactly the case.
Many people believe that if they become followers of Christ, everything's going to just disappear. They think that Jesus is a "security blanket" that's going to make their lives easier. They're sort of right. Jesus is going to always be watching over us and will never leave us, but having a relationship with Christ doesn’t make life easier for us. If we have a true relationship with Christ, He's going to challenge us and help us grow in many ways. He does this by putting us in difficult situations and seeing if we'll trust in Him. If you're listening to God, He'll call you to leave your comfort zone and do things that you may not be used to. On top of God calling us out of our comfort zones, we aren’t going to have any support from the world. Jesus says in the book of Matthew, that He sends out unto the world, like a sheep among wolves and then a few verses later, Jesus also says we will be hated by everyone because of Him. That doesn't sound like it'll be easy following Christ, but that's just it, it isn't supposed to be.
16 “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves." (Matthew 10:16, NIV)
22"You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved." (Matthew 10:22, NIV)
If following Christ was easy then more people would do it, but some people are scared. Some people are afraid to completely turn their life over and change their lives. Having a relationship with Christ will cause you to do things differently and have a different mindset about things, but it's all for the better. If you are a follower and things are difficult for you, I promise things will get better, just continue to trust God and put all your faith in Him. It isn't going to be easy by any means, but God doesn't promise easy, He promises to walk with us through it. Now, if you aren't a Christian, it's okay. I understand that there's a fear there of giving up everything you're so accustomed to doing or you just simply don’t believe that there could be a God that could live up to all the hype people give, but I promise that God is worth it. God does live up to the hype and more. God is so much better than anything this world could ever offer.
I know you may have thought that it would be easy being a Christian. You thought that everything would be simpler and you could just coast through life with no worries, but that's not how God works. Like I said earlier, God doesn't promise easy, He promises to walk through it with us and give us the strength to overcome things that get in our way.
9"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9, NIV)
