During my sophomore year of college, being a Christian was very difficult for me.  Ever felt that way?  See, I was doing my best to follow God's commands, but no matter how hard I tried to get it right, I always messed up!

After a particularly bad night, I ended up at a friend's house completed frustrated about my inability to live up to God's standard of righteousness.  I was venting to my friend because I was done.  I was ready to give up on this whole Christian thing.  My vent went something like this:

“God's standards are completely impossible to keep.  The more I work, the more I read, the more things I find I am doing wrong.  It's exhausting, it's frustrating, it's impossible!!!!  I can never get closer...   there is no way I am ever going to live up to this!  Why should I even Bother?”

Without me realizing it, my friend had gotten up and left the room.  I was lying on the couch with my eyes closed talking to an empty room.  Ha ha.  Just after saying “Why should I even Bother?” I opened my eyes to find that my friend had gone into her room and pulled a poster off her wall.  She was holding the poster above me so it was in my line of sight.  The poster was of Jesus hanging on a cross, and I opened my eyes to find this poster filling my view.  My friend said: “I thought you might need to be reminded of this.”  And my perspective changed forever.

Sometimes being a Christian is difficult...  it may even seem downright impossible.  But years before your struggle began, Jesus came to this world to suffer along side you, for the cause of something Beautiful.  That night, I learned we don't struggle because we are bad Christians.  We struggle because the cause we believe in is worthy of our struggle.  In the book of John, chapter 10, Jesus discusses “life to the full.”  If we are to follow in Christ's footsteps, this “life to the full” probably includes some struggle. 

If you ever have moments when you share in this struggle, remember the image of Jesus on the cross – as my friend helped me to do...  just in case you need to be reminded also.