How to Live a Christian Life When Faced With Difficulty.

How to Live a Christian Life.
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Whether you're newly baptised into the church or have been in the church since birth there is bound to be times in which you wonder to yourself if you are living a Christian life or can you do better. Sometimes a person can feel overwhelmed by all the things in their life they feel can be better in relation to living the way Christ calls us to live. Trying to react to each problem that arises related to conflicts between what the Bible says to do and what we are doing can be spiritually, mentally, and physically exhausting. At some point in time each person trying to follow the teachings of Christ will be faced with difficulty in their spiritual journey. This essay will cover some things I feel will be useful to most, if not all, Christians in their quest to live a Christian life.

What does it mean to live a Christian life? It means a person who believes in Jesus Christ as savior and son of God, has professed their faith, and has entered into fellowship with the church is actively seeking to follow the will of God through the example set for us by, and the teachings of, Jesus as told in the Bible. The level of difficulty in living a Christian life varies by how a person tries to follow Christ. A person trying to learn and follow Christ in a manner independent from the fellowship of the church has a much harder time and more challenges than some one actively participating in the fellowship of the church.

What is the fellowship of the church and why is it important to living a Christian life? The fellowship of the church is when two or more Christians gather in order to worship, learn about, work for, or talk about God. "15"If your brother sins against you,[b] go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. 16But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that 'every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.'[c] 17If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.
18"I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be[d]bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be[e] loosed in heaven.

19"Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. 20For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." -- Matthew 18:15-20 This passage describes how the fellowship is used to resolve problems among Christians, but more imporantly for this essay Jesus tells us that it only takes two or three of us to form a Christian fellowship.

Knowing what a constitutes a fellowship, why is one necessary for living a Christian life? Because, it is within the fellowship that Christians gather together to share their experiences, knowledge, faith, and guide one another in their journey to follow the will of God and the teachings of Christ. On your own it is far more difficult to assess your own progress in living the Christian life. It is within the fellowship of the Church that a person finds all the resources, support, and help they many need to live a Christian life.

Once in the fellowship of the church, a person begins to do many different things in order to learn how to live a Christian life. Without dedicating a good amount of time and energy within the fellowship it can become very confusing and overwhelming for an individual to study the Bible, understand the scriptures, try to follow the will of God as written in those scriptures, and to actively contribute to the fellowship of the church. Though many efforts are made to make navigating all the areas of the church fellowship easier and there are many church members who dedicate themselves in service to guiding christians to the areas of the fellowship that can serve their needs the best there are still many obstacles and barriers that can dismay a person in identifying what they need and where to find it within the fellowship.

The barriers and obstacles include (as just a few examples) lack of communication among the church members, difficulty in discerning areas within an individual that need work, an overstimulating number of choices in activities, and many other issues that will be discussed in other essays. While it's easy to get confused, feel lost and discouraged, and become disconnected from the fellowship there is still a desire to seek and follow God's will in the hearts of all Christians. For those who are finding their journey difficult, frustrating, and hard to direct there is a way to recenter and refocus in order to reconnect with the fellowship and find the resources needed to start making progress in one's spiritual journey.

Out of all the lessons in the Bible and all the commands relating to following God's will, there is one passage that will be the foundation to which all Christians may focus on and return to a place of equilibrium in which to rest and recover their bearings before attempting to again move forward in their spiritual growth. This passage is Matthew 22:34-40, "34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.'[b] 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'[c] 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."

In that passage, the Pharisee expert on the biblical Law of God found in the scriptures of the jews (mostly found in the Old Testament of the Bible) attempts to confound Jesus by making him commit to one Law as greater than another and then trap Jesus in some conflicting error of interpretation that the expert would be able to construct. Jesus quotes from the Judaic Law and then explains his two quotes are the entire essence of God's will for the people, for us. We can know these two Laws refer to fufilling the will of God because the Law is what God gave the Israelites to guide them in following his will and the Prophets were the comissioned speakers of God's will through direct communication from God Himself. Jesus's statement was true and there was no rebuttle or argument against it from the Pharisee.

How is this important to a Christian struggling with their efforts to live a Christian life? It's important because whenever a struggling Christian is overwhelmed, confused, discouraged, or facing difficulties in their progress they may pause and focus entirely on the lesson Jesus taught in this passage. They can focus on Loving God with all their heart, their soul and their mind through whatever media that best helps them do this whether it be worship, study, service, or any other activity. And they can focus on Loving their neighbors, serving others within the fellowship and the community. By doing both these things they can take time to recharge, recover, and still be actively pursuing a Christian life without trying to decide how to prioritize the areas of their lives that need attention or work for growth.

Worship of God and loving service to others within the fellowship will take the focus off your own difficulties, reduce the stress of being overwhelmed, and will reduce all the aspects of living the Christian life to the two most important scriptural concepts for a Christian in the entire Bible. During this time of rejuvination, avoid trying to learn new scriptures or starting new works. Just focus on prayer, fellowship, worship, and service. You will know when you are ready to go back to work on progress in your spiritual journey as long as you pray and meditate regarding what the next step should be and when you should take it.

It is okay to take a rest when walking in the Christian life as long as you start the next step when everything regains balance in your life and you can once again see the road ahead of you.