Every new Christian faces obstacles. And of course, every older Christian faces obstacles as well. These difficulties never go away. There never comes a moment when you reach some spiritual plateau. There is never a time when you don't need to grow in the Lord. In fact, the moment you relax your grip or try to put your Christian experience into cruise control or rest on your laurels, that will be the beginning of your downfall.
The Christian life is one of constant growth, constant learning, and constant transformation. While the conversion process is instantaneous, becoming more like Jesus takes a lifetime. I don't have anything better in which to invest my life than that. Do you?
Yet some people say, "Oh, I tried the whole Christianity thing. It didn't work for me." But my question is did they do their part? There are many things the Bible tells us we should do as a result of truly being converted.
For example, did they begin to study and memorize Scripture? The Bible tells us that we should hide God's word in our hearts (see Deuteronomy 11:18; Psalm 119:11; Colossians 3:16). Did they make time to be a regular part of a body of believers by becoming actively and consistently involved in a church? Did they turn from all known sin? Did they get baptized? Did they develop a prayer life? Did they attempt to keep the commandments of God? The Bible says, "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked" (1 John 2:6).
New Christian or old, the way we face obstacles is to keep moving forward and to keep on growing.
