Greetings in Christ,
To be a Christian or not to be a Christian. This is the question. There are some misconceptions about waiting to become a Christian. People have the tendency to put off becoming a Christian because they feel they have all the time in the world to live life the way they want. People also believe once they become a Christian their lives will be perfect. These two misconceptions are the farthest from the truth to what being a Christian is all about.
In the waiting to become a Christian, people live their lives doing what they feel they need to do, but they do not realize it is leading them to form habits or traits which may be hard to break, and those habits can haunt them later as regrets. It is easy to say I can do what I want, but to break those habits or traits becomes hard to overcome later once a person tries to quit. Those habits become so embedded in their lifestyle it becomes common place and their hearts become numb.
The flip side to becoming a Christian, people feel once they commit to Jesus their lives will be dramatically changed by having a perfect life. People feel God will answer all their prayers and no trouble will come their way. Life will be rosy, and things will go perfectly. This is the farthest thing from the truth. Being a Christian does not mean life will be void of any troubles or trials, and those past habits can be a way for Satan to haunt them and create doubts in their minds.
Saul/Paul was one of those people who did what he wanted before becoming a Christian. He believed in God and the law, but he refused to listen to the words of those who knew Jesus. He chose to ignore what was being said and took a stand to eliminate those who believed in Jesus Christ. Many of us know Jesus had a different agenda for Saul/Paul. Saul/Paul is an example of one who refused to listen, but when he did listen, he was to suffer for the cause of Jesus.
Saul before becoming Paul had a real moment when he came to know Jesus. It took Jesus bringing Saul to his knees before Saul would recognize Jesus as Lord, but then he turned to Jesus and accepted Him with no reservation. There was a learning curve for Paul to overcome before he could go and reach those who he was called to reach for Jesus.
Paul retreated to the desert for three years to retrain his heart and mind. He had to overcome those habits he had learned. He had to recognize the habits which led him down the wrong path, and to look for new ideas/habits which lead him to Jesus, but his life would certainly be far from being perfect even when he learned new habits.
Paul suffered many trials and tribulations in his ministry and regretted doing the things he did before becoming a Christian. He was beaten, stoned, went hungry, went without clothing, and had more jail time than most criminals. Paul even prayed for relief from his suffering, but Jesus told him His grace was sufficient. Paul went on to plant many churches and wrote over half of the New Testament in the Bible we have today. Despite his suffering, Paul was able to encourage many in his time, later after his death, and even today. He words have helped many live a Holy Spirit filled life here on earth.
Many believe they have plenty enough time to live their lives here on earth, but the truth is life here on earth is very short in comparison to eternity and becoming a Christian does not mean everything will be perfect in life.
It takes some time to overcome the past when we do not live a Christian life early in life. It takes time and dedication to want to overcome, but more important it is having faith in Jesus to forgive those past sins to never be remembered any more. Living a Christian life is a process of growing and maturing which takes a lifetime to achieve, and there is no way to speed up the process. The best way is to start early in life not waiting till later, for life here on earth happens very quickly. The decision to become a Christian does not mean your life will be perfect once you accept Jesus, but it will be rewarding if you have faith God will deliver on His promises.
A Christian life is a relationship with Jesus and God our creators. It is a lifestyle which is to be filled with joy and companionship with Jesus and God, but it also has its hardships. A Christian life will not be perfect. It will have its trials and tribulations. Being a Christian is a lifelong journey which will stretch us and mold us to look like Jesus. It takes those trials and tribulations to stretch us and mold us, and for us to be a witness to those who need to hear our story of how we trust in Jesus and God to bring us through those trials and tribulations. When we trust and have hope God will fulfill His promises, we give encouragement to those who need the encouragement. In a way we are writing our history for others to see and read. We must never forget God is faithful to keep His promises!
“The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and His ears are open to their cry. The face of the Lord is against evildoers, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken. Evil shall slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.”
Lord may we live a life worthy to be called a Christian, and may we remain faithful to You no matter the trials and tribulations which may come our way. Amen
Blessings,