One of the most painful things as a minister and, more simply, a follower of Christ, is to see people who have fallen in behind Christ, pledged their lives to Him, and yet turn aside when the relational bliss fades and life gets tough. How is it that someone who has been delivered from a death of hopelessness to a life of abundance ever “gives up” on their faith? I think the answer lies in the popular misconception that now that I am a follower of Christ, all is well in the world…bring on the green pastures for me to lie down in.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, too many miss that other part in Psalm 23: “Though I walk through the valley of the shadow death…” Difficulties do come and for many, it is a blind-sided attack they never see coming. I am convinced that many so-called “discipled” Christians who have been Christians for many years can come under the same attack and end up in disillusionment and, eventually, abandonment of the beliefs they once held dear.<\/p>\n
In <\/a>Spurgeon’s reading this morning<\/a>, he addresses the core problem of this idea in explaining that sometimes the light of God is eclipsed, leaving us walking in darkness. Some determine, as Spurgeon explains, that “Surely, if I were a child of God, this would not happen.” I know I have personally gone through such doubts and confess that even now those thoughts sometimes cross my mind. Surely, THIS<\/em> would not come my way as a child of God. What is the “THIS”? It doesn’t really matter because the reality is, anything <\/em>can come our way, Christ-follower or not. I should never <\/em>be surprised when attacked from any number of directions. Christians are never immune from anything the rest of the world is attacked with<\/em>. What I must ask is, “what am I going to do with it?” How am I going to process this?<\/p>\n Religious people will either turn away or adopt some strange method of denial, simply holding tighter to their religious “blanky” without ever questioning the irrationality of their position. The former expect a one, two, three step answer to their problems (which must, of course, be minor at best) and if they do not get them…if they’ve been following a religion made up of a system that is behaviorally focused, they will walk away, realizing that this religion-thing doesn’t work. Man, how right they are. The latter will struggle through the challenges of their lives and attend church on Sundays to get some shallow sentimental fix.<\/p>\n
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