Picture this: Life is debilitating. It’s not that one specifically tragic thing happened, but rather a combination of complex circumstances. You don’t fully know where you belong or if you even do belong. You’re scared of vulnerability, so you don’t open up to anyone. Instead, you bottle up your emotions and hope they don’t bubble over. But inevitably, they do.
Everything starts to come out, and boy, it’s not pretty. Well-intentioned people input into your life, but everyone seems to be saying the same thing. It’s almost robotic: “God is good.” I know He is. “God has a plan for your life.” I know He does. “There’s purpose in your trials.” Of course there is.
None of these statements are inherently untrue, and there’s value in reminding people of these realities, but when you numbly repeat and repeat and repeat them to someone who’s going through difficult times, they almost lose their meaning. There’s no authenticity behind your words; it seems disingenuine.
I’m guilty of doing this. I’m content to settle with telling a friend some Christian cliche that I read on an Instagram post, hoping that I can now wipe my hands and move on. But is that really fulfilling the commandment of Romans 12:15, which says, “Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn?”
Digging deeper
The truth is, we tend to have much more head knowledge than we do heart knowledge. Intellectually, we may know a lot of biblical facts that we can pass on to someone else, but unless we’re willing to wrestle with Scripture and figure out what it means in relation to different situations in our lives, we’re not going to be as effective of witnesses to others as we could be.
This is why peoples’ testimonies are so powerful. We can hear the struggle in their voices as they retell their story of how they came to know Christ. We can hear that they weren’t satisfied with merely accepting statements that a pastor or mentor told them. The Holy Spirit softened their hearts, and they dug into God’s Word for themselves. They have real-life experience in trying seasons, and we’re able to see that God enabled and equipped them to come out on the other side, stronger and more Christ-like than they were before.
This is one reason why we must move on from the elementary teachings of God’s Word. How can we passionately share our faith with others if we haven’t truly grappled with it ourselves? This doesn’t mean our Sunday school knowledge is no longer true, but rather, it should become our foundation for even more complex teachings. This concept is clearly demonstrated in math. As we age and go through the grades, we don’t continue to do basic calculations. Yes, one plus one still equals two, but we can now use that information as a basis to solve even harder problems.
Hebrews 6:1-3 talks about this exact thing. It says, “Therefore, let us leave the elementary teaching about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, faith in God, teaching about ritual washings, laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And we will do this if God permits.”
The last sentence in that passage is the key to maturing in our faith. We can’t accomplish anything without God’s assistance. Philippians 2:13 reminds us, “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.”
Surrender
God started the work in our lives, and He will finish it if we surrender to Him. He wants us to be complete, not lacking anything (James 1:4), but we do have a part to play. God cannot build our character without our cooperation. If we want to make our witness to others as strong and convincing as possible, we need to actively and intentionally study God’s Word. We must allow Him to use all the seasons in our lives as opportunities for Christian growth and maturity. Then we can come before others in their difficult seasons and truthfully say, “I know to some degree what you’re going through. I can see you struggle, and I’ve been there. I don’t have all the answers, and I can’t make your situation better. However, I know Who can. He strengthened me amid my trials and allowed them to be resources that I can now use to encourage other people. God can and will do the same thing for you if only you let Him.”
Philippians 1:6 wraps this up extremely well. It says, “And I am sure of this, that He who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”