The Better Way

The other day, I was speaking with a friend who attended a high school in a different area.


We found ourselves reminiscing about those days.

He told me a story about someone with whom he went to school.

It seems that his English class was assigned a book report.

When the assignment was due, one of his classmates simply copied down the summary from the inside flap of the book’s jacket and turned that in.

I broke out into laughter.

I laughed because I remembered a time when one of my classmates had done the exact same thing.

We both laughed at that and we concluded that this is probably a common occurrence in many high schools.

What is really amusing is that there is probably not one single teacher who would fall for such an attempt.

There are a number of possible reasons as to why a student would try something like this.

I suspect that one of the most common reasons involves taking what seems like the easier path.

Rather than read the book and write their own report, some would opt not to read the book and simply rely on the work someone else had already done.

In the Sunday School class that I teach, we are currently studying Pilgrim’s Progress.

In it, there is a part of that book that cautions us about trying to take an easier path.

At one point in this narrative the main character named Christian had just spoken to Evangelist who put him on the straight, narrow and only path that leads to heaven.

Shortly afterward, Christian encountered another character aptly named Worldly Wiseman.

This man told Christian that the way in which he traveled was filled with difficulty.

He then falsely convinced Christian that he knew of a much easier way.

Christian decided to ignore the truthful instruction of Evangelist and followed the path that Worldly Wiseman recommended.

In almost no time, Christian realized that this "easier path" does not lead to heaven.

This path led ultimately to death.

Fortunately for Christian, Evangelist found him, corrected him and guided him back to the one true path that led to heaven.

Christian followed that path to heaven even though he encountered difficulties along the way.

That is the way it is in reality, as well.

Christians will encounter difficulties in this world.

When we do, it is certainly not because He does not love us.

It is in times of difficulty that we learn to rely less on ourselves and more on Him.

It is through enduring and overcoming difficulty that we are refined.

There are some that teach that when you become a Christian, all your problems will be solved and that nothing but prosperity will come your way.

I could not disagree more.

I have known many faithful Christians that were anything but financially prosperous.

And, speaking for myself, I can assure that my life became far more complicated when I dedicated my life to Him.

That said, Jesus was clear about this.

Mark 8:34 (NET) - Then Jesus called the crowd, along with his disciples, and said to them. "If anyone wants to become my follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross and follow me."

Life may not be free from difficulty when you decide to follow Jesus, but there is one thing of which I can assure you.

Life is far better with Him than without Him.

This is especially true when you encounter difficulty.

It is then that you realize that you do not bear it alone.

You realize that He is right there with you every step of the way.


Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
Look for me at http://faithfulfeetteam.blogspot.com/ on Friday, November 23, 2012.
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I’ll be back here on Friday, November 30, 2012.
Schedule subject to change.