What it means to be a Christian, part 2

In my last post, I wrote about how salvation is not a ticket to heaven but an entryway into a new way of life, where we do things that lead to eternal life. I pointed out that life is hard, with or without God. The difference for a Christian is that suffering goes hand-in-hand with hope, because we know that our troubles are temporary and that we don't have to depend on our own strength to get us through:

"The Lord directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the Lord holds them by the hand" (Psalm 37:23-24).

This is the important point I left out of my last post... Salvation is not about our efforts. It's about our acknowledgment of and reliance on God's strength and goodness, like a child holding onto a parent's hand, depending on their guidance and protection. The most important lesson we can learn from our sufferings is that we are frail, like jars of clay, and in need of a power greater than our own...

"We have this treasure [the Good News of Jesus] in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body" (2 Corinthians 4:7-10).

This song came on my Pandora station while I was typing, and I thought it very appropriate: