rebelling against low expectations

Do Hard Things Is Not New

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Brett and I have always said that “do hard things” isn’t new. We’re not out to invent truth, we just want to help our generation rediscover what has always been true. Because of that, we’re always thrilled to stumble across quotes from great men and women of the past, who say, in their own words: Do Hard Things.

A few days ago we received an email from fellow rebelutionary Brian Jones with this entry from Oswald Chamber’s classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest:

ALL NOBLE THINGS ARE DIFFICULT — JULY 7

“Enter ye in at the straight gate…
because straight is the gate,
and narrow is the way…”
~ Matthew 7:13-14

If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all noble things are difficult. The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but the difficulty of it does not make us faint and cave in, it rouses us up to overcome. Do we appreciate the marvelous salvation of Jesus Christ that we are our utmost for His highest?

God saves men by His sovereign grace through the Atonement of Jesus. He works in us to will and to do His good pleasure; but we have to work out that salvation in practical living. If once we start on the basis of His Redemption to do what He commands, we find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not practiced. The crisis will reveal whether we have been practicing or not. If we obey the spirit of God and practice in our physical life what God has put in us by His Spirit, then when the crisis comes, we shall find that our own nature as well as the grace of God will stand by us.

Thank God He does give us difficult things to do! His salvation is a glad thing, but it is also a heroic, holy thing. It tests us for all we are worth. Jesus is bringing many “sons” unto glory, and God will not shield us from the requirements of a son. God’s grace turns out men and women with a strong family likeness to Jesus Christ, not milksops. It takes a tremendous amount of discipline to live the noble life of a disciple of Jesus in actual things. It is always necessary to make an effort to be noble.

Updated language editions render “our utmost for His highest” as “our best for His glory” — and replace the word “milksops” in the final paragraph with “pampered, spoiled weaklings.” Both editions proclaim: “Thank God that He does give us difficult things to do!” Thank God that He calls us to “do hard things” for His glory!

Give us your reaction to Chamber’s words in the comments section — and share your favorite non-Rebelution “do hard things” quote. We’d love to hear it.

+ Daily Readings from Oswald Chambers +

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About the author

Alex and Brett Harris

are the co-founders of TheRebelution.com and co-authors of Do Hard Things and Start Here. They have a passion for God and for their generation. Their personal interests include politics, filmmaking, music, and basketball. They are both graduates of Patrick Henry College in Purcellville, Virginia.

42 comments

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  • I like how in the book you guys definitely point out how before there were teenagers, young people were expected more of. Low expectation is totally a modern epidemic. mp

  • Wow, amazing insight! I studied My Utmost for His Highest awhile ago and every entry was this lovingly critical.

    “If once we start on the basis of His Redemption to do what He commands, we find that we can do it. If we fail, it is because we have not practiced.”

    This brings a new meaning to the verse, “With man it is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” It is our duty but it is ultimately God who allows our training to produce godliness. Praise God that He enables us to do hard things!

  • hey guys i am REALLY trying to get closer to God i mean i have been a christian pratically all my life but do you guys have any good scriptures that could help me on my walk with God…

  • This was just what I needed to hear today. I especially enjoyed this passage:
    “If we are going to live as disciples of Jesus, we have to remember that all noble things are difficult. The Christian life is gloriously difficult, but the difficulty of it does not make us faint and cave in, it rouses us up to overcome.”

    That is so true, and gloriously well put. 🙂

  • I’m currently reading through “My Utmost for His Highest” and I’m so blessed my the way Oswald Chambers delivers the truths found in God’s Word.

    By the way, Thank you Alex and Brett for being obedient. Your obedience has encouraged many students in my city to take stands and unite. We are having a rally (“The Gathering”) to come together to pray and seek the Lord.

    God is at work. Praise Yahweh!

  • I love the way Oswald Chamber’s puts it, “My utmost for His highest”. What a beautiful sounding group of words, and the meaning is so powerful. I have been struggling lately with some “small hard things”, and this is encouraging. Thank you!

    Gabriella, here are a couple verses that have always been meaningful to me in my spiritual walk. They are in the New King James version below.

    Hebrews 12:1-2
    Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

    1 John 3:1-3
    Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure.

    “Walking in the shadow of the Almighty”,
    God bless!

  • That’s neat how so many people have the same ideas. As they say, “Great minds think alike”. I’ve had some hard things recently and I have thanked God for them and it’s kept my attitude good. Thx!

  • That was a really great reading! Thanks for sharing! As for my favorite non-Rebelution “do hard things” quote, I thin it would have to be this one:
    “The greatest want of the world is the want of men [and women]– men who will not be bought or sold, men who in their inmost souls are true and honest, men who do not fear to call sin by its right name, men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole, men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.”

  • “Get your head full of doctrine, your heart full of grace, and your hands full of toil.” -Gideon Blackburn, a frontier preacher who wrote his sermons from behind a plow.

    (cum grano salis… I heard this forever ago, and cannot say I have the wording precisely correct or whether this is paraphrase.)

  • I love reading Oswald Chambers! His devotionals are so deep and powerful – reaching right into hearts, past stone walls and defense mechanisms. One quote that comes to mind is by Hellen Keller.

    “Never consent to crawl when you have an inclination to soar.”

  • WHOA. This is so freaky! Last Sunday (July 7th) was my youth group’s official launch of Famine Fighters, a series of fundraisers for the hunger relief program at Samaritan’s Purse. I was getting very frustrated…people weren’t responding to the fundraisers as I had hoped, and I was going through a tough thought battle filled with doubts. Then I decided to open up My Utmost For His Highest to see what that day’s devotion was. Imagine my utter shock when reading the title: All Noble Things Are Difficult. WOW. That devotion has stuck with me since, and has definitely edged me out of many doubt battles. I’ve been repeating it to other people too! Whenever I get discouraged, I use this devotion. Then I go onto the Rebelution site, and there it is! God is DEFINITELY trying to tell me something. 🙂 Thank you for posting this.

  • One more thing: if I was asked what was the one thing that I’ve learned from leading Famine Fighters Fundraisers, I would have to say that it is the importance of constantly placing everything and everyone into Christ’s hands. I had no idea how incredibly important and difficult faith and belief are. I have to regularly and CONSCIOUSLY yield myself and surrender everything over to Him. That’s why I like this Oswald quote so much:
    “I must will to believe, and this can never be done without a violent effort on my part to disassociate myself from my old ways of looking at things, and by putting myself right over on to Him.” -Oswald Chambers

    I need to believe that God will provide; I need to trust.

  • A quote I call to mind when the stuff of life gets tough is this one: “Anyone can give up. Giving up is the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that is true strength.” Thank God that He is the “hold” in our “hold it together”.

  • Another great quote that challenges me (and should challenge us all) to get out of my comfort zone, challenge myself and do hard things is: “A ship in harbor is safe, but that is not what ships are built for.” (John Augustus Shedd, “Salt from My Attic”, The Mosher Press, Portland, ME, 1928). God gave us amazingly capable and sturdy ships – our own bodies and minds – but we all to often are content staying anchored in our harbors (at home on the couch, in front of the TV, hanging out, wasting our lives…) rather than heading out to sea and finding out just how able and capable God built us to be, and just how well and how far we can sail beyond the horizon.

  • My family has always enjoyed My Upmost for His Highest, though I myself have never read it. It does have a powerful message, and I agree that the Do Hard Things concept is far from new!

    I had a couple of questions that I posted in an older blog post that a few other people expressed interest in hearing from others about it too. So I’m going to post it again here so people have more of a chance to read and respond to it. (Beware, it’s long)

    I have two questions for Alex and Brett and anyone else who’s dealt with this sort of situation. This is not meant to be condemning in any way to the Harrises, please take it as an honest question as it is meant. How do you handle using yourselves as examples when writing and talking to people without giving people the impression that you’re better than them? I know politicians can be VERY good at talking and sounding as humble as can be but underneath it all they really enjoy talking about themselves. I never want to give someone that impression.

    And second question, a couple of years ago when you were younger, how did you handle doing challenging things that others your age weren’t doing but still not putting yourself above others your age? I myself am young, much to young for most everyones standards, to have gone by myself to Taiwan for 5 months! (I just turned 17 two days ago) I’m often running into problems because of my age. I try very hard not to push myself into things that aren’t open for those my age, but at the same time God’s given me gifts that I know he wants me to use.

    I’ll give an example but try not to write a book, but it might be too late for that!
    When I was in Taiwan I volunteered and lived at a Christian orphanage. The LEAST amount of babies I took care of at The Home was 12. Every day I helped to care for between 12 to 21 babies. I was night shift so I got up in the early afternoon and went to bed in the morning. At night I was the only one on duty. I enjoyed my work, it was hard, but it was a joy to work for Christ and help this ministry and give to these babies. Now as I’m back in the States It’s hard to get people to trust someone my age with even ONE baby! It’s hard not to be a little bit sarcastic when people wonder if you know how to change a diaper. But an even bigger problem is that I have a hard time now connecting and making new friends with those my age. They see me now as aloof and just WAY different! How can I be an encouragement to others my age when I’m way to young to be a mentor and way to different to be their friends? And when people ask me about things I’ve done and are truly interested, how do I talk and write about these things without seeming like I’m boasting?

    A new situation for me, but yet very familiar, is something at church. I’ve been involved, but just as a once every couple of months, volunteering in the nursery at church. (That’s what the youth are allowed to do) Now that our church is moving into our own building we are reorganizing and getting volunteers back together. The lady in change of this saw me signing up and told me to sign up on the adult sheet. She knew of my experience and joked that she’d trust me to handle the room full by myself. I appreciate her willingness to see past my age to my gifts and letting me be more involved.
    So what’s the problem?? Well, if I’m in the nursery much more often and am in the position of the adult when I’m there, then there will possibly be those my age or OLDER in the youth that I’ll might be officially “over” and be giving directions to.

    So… how have you all handled situations like these? You want to be friends with and encourage those our age, but yet often I find myself in a different stage or position in life and therefore not “in” with those my age.

    I realize alot of these situations just come down to my heart and my attitude so I’ll be praying about it. It just feels good to write it out and hear from others who’ve dealt with similar.

    In HIM,
    ~Elizabeth

  • Sometimes I can settle for “just enough” rather than my “utmost”. Is God glorified by my only getting by? I’m not sure, but I know He would be more pleased if I exerted myself and did the hard things for his glory. I need to give him my best. After all, hasn’t He blessed me with so much, even though I don’t deserve it?

  • Thanks so much for that wonderful post. I newbie when it come’s to the Rebelution website. I hope to grown more in reading your guys book and the website.. Thanks so much 🙂

    Whever you are be all there. Live to the hilt of every situation you believe to be the will of God. ~ Jim Elliot

    In Christ
    Samantha

  • When Oswald Chambers said “All noble things are difficult,” he was right. If they weren’t, then faith without works wouldn’t be dead.

  • I really liked the “Thank God he does give us difficult things to do!” That’s something my heart is echoing right now. I just went through a period where I was bitter at God for allowing things to happen that were extremely painful to me. But this reminded me that as children of God it is our privelige and should be our delight to endure hard things for His glory. I find that when I put it in perspective of doing things for His glory then it doesn’t seem so hard anymore because I want to do it.

  • I’ve been reading Piper’s Don’t Waste Your Life, and I came across this quote yesterday:

    “As I read that, [a story about 14-year-old WWII marine Jack Lucas, who became the nation’s youngest Medal of Honor winner] I thought about all the things that high school kids think is cool. I sat on the porch where I was reading and thought, ‘O God, who will get in their face and give them something to live for? They waste their days in a trance of insignificance, trying to look cool or talk cool or walk cool. They don’t have a clue what cool is.’
    “… Of course, we do not use the word cool to describe true greatness. It’s a small word. That’s the point. It’s cheap. And it’s what millions of young people live for. Who confronts them with urgency and tears? Who pleads with them not to waste their lives? Who takes them by the collar, so to speak, and shows them a life so radical and so real and so costly and Christ-saturated that they feel the emptiness and triviality of their CD collection and their pointless conversations about passing celebrities? Who will waken what lies latent in their souls, untapped — a longing not to waste their lives?”
    This is what the Rebelution is doing!

  • I also read My Utmost for His Highest and had the same thought of sending in that particular day’s reading! =) thanks for sharing that!

  • Wow! that’s all I can say at the moment. I’m rendered completely speechless.
    That was great. Unfortuneltly I dont have any great quotes to share. But I will say that what that man said was true. And we should all listen to the truth.

    ~Amber Lynn

  • I have been meaning to read “My Utmost For His HIghest” for quite a while now. It seems like a book that would greatly minister and challenge me. I should soon!

    I wish I could off of the top of my head remember my own “do Hard Things” quote that I love so well. (I have it written down in my prayer journal that I refer to daily)…..

  • Found that quote I love. It’s by Charles Spurgeon: “There is a lighthouse out at sea: it is a calm night–I cannot tell whether the edifice is firm; the tempest must rage about it, and then I will know whether it will stand. So with the Spirit’s work: if we were not on many occasions surrounded with tempestuous waters, we should not know that it was true and strong; if the winds did not blow upon it, we should not know how firm and secure it was.

    God’s grace is a truly a wonderful thing. An by His grace, we can Do Hard Things.

  • Amen! What an inspiring passage. I’m surprised that people find Chamber’s language out-of-date enough to need a ‘modernized’ translation!

    I have a ‘post request’ to add to the list. Hopefully this would be quick and simple for you, and give Rebelutionaries good food for thought at the same time – would you mind posting a full list of the books your dad assigned you to read in the summer of ’05? I’m always eager for good reading material and I’m sure many others on here are too.

    ~Crystal

  • Ella,
    Thats a great quote by Spurgeon. Whenever my soul needs some solid preaching I most often find myelf reading through one of Spurgeons sermons. Recently I found a quote from John Bunyan from his autobiography in which he says, “God ordains sin for my good”. Now that is a man who truly understood Romans 8:28.

    God Bless and Soli Deo Gloria

  • “Some Christians are satisfied just because they’ve enlisted, and avoid the frontlines as much as possible. We, however, are called to FIGHT!”

    Amen!

    Soldiers for Jesus!!!!

  • I love your insight into the fact that God calls us to do bigger things. If everything were easy what would be the point? I’ve recently been studing this at a Student Life Mission Camp. We learned that the way to God is a narrow path that few find and I think that ties what you said in to the fact that people are becoming more and more lazy. My friend brought up that people are being persecuted around the world for even saying God’s name or having a Bible. If we are not persecuted we’re doing something wrong by not getting out into that dangerous zone and by doing hard things.

  • It’s amazing to me how our salvation ties into the “Hard Things” we do. Everything is for the glory of God. Without salvation what hard things would we be required to do. We are called to do higher things. The more we practice doing hard things the more we are willing to obey them when they come along. It doesn’t always make them easier, but the end result is always God-glorifying!

  • Elizabeth Joy: You must have everyone stumped as no one has responded to your question yet! Usually there is plenty of advice from rebelutionaries.:) If you are still checking for it, here is mine, though I am far from being an authority on the topic.

    I also struggle to make friends although the reasons may be different. What my mom has always encouraged me to do is keep trying. Keep inviting and starting conversations even when they do not return your interest. Eventually they may see that you are just a normal person and be inspired by your example rather than intimidated by it. Also, take advantage of your relationship with the Lord during this time. I have found that I find God dearer as I see my need for Him more. He knows your needs and desires and He will satisfy them as you delight yourself in Him. (Ps. 37:4)

    Also about leading in the nursery class, I do not think that you need to worry. A man’s (or woman’s) gifts makes room for him. (Prov 18:16) I taught the 3 year olds at my church when I was 18 and found that the adult helpers were glad to help me. The focus is the gospel, so gifting is what is needed, not necessarily age. As long as you are respectful of their greater experience and honor them as adults, I do not think you will have any problems. I hope you have great success in serving these precious little ones and their parents!

    By the way, I really like your name. It is so cheerful! God bless.

  • Megan M. (and Elizabeth Joy):

    That is very good advice about friendship! Thank you for sharing it!

    One other thing that I’ve learned about friendship is to not make friends by what you can get out of them, but by how you can serve the Lord by serving them. In other words, we all like to have friends that return what we try to give to them, but sometimes God has better ideas (i.e. growing our character) so He allows us to be in situations where we must love strictly sacrificially — nothing expected. Ironically, the best way to learn how to be a friend is not always to have good friends, but rather to struggle in your friendships and by that way to learn what kind of friend you need (and others need, too). And, I think that sometimes while my goal is to HAVE friends, God’s goal for me is always that I would BE a faithful friend regardless of rewards.

    Have you had similar experiences? What are your thoughts?

    Elizabeth Joy:

    First of all, I have dealt with similar in feeling different from my peers. I finished school when I was 13 and was very enthusiastic about music, art, and writing — and kids/teens my age thought I was a little odd for that.

    One thing that helps is humor — when kids used to ask me about home-schooling and they found out I’d finished early, they’d say, “Wow — you must be really smart!” I wanted to say, “Yeah!” (I’m kidding) but I found it more helpful when making friends to say, “You don’t know me yet, do you?” and try to change the subject to areas they could challenge me on (something they know a lot about).

    Also, something about being better than others in one area that is good to remember is that they probably have just had different experiences than you and need to be eased into it a little until they feel comfortable enough to be enthusiatic about it (since they may not be very good at the things you are good at just because they haven’t gotten too many chances to try).

    For example, I love calligraphy and if I asked you (assuming you don’t write calligraphy) to help me out with some wedding invitations, you’d probably be a little apprehensive — although it may be something you’d really enjoy and could even be better at than I am if you’d had as much practice as I’ve had.

    Likewise, if you asked me to help out caring for a baby, I wouldn’t know too much about it so I’d feel a little awkward — but it would be something I’d want to learn to do well, because I know I’d love it (since I love kids — and would like to have my own someday).

    So, maybe if someone seems a little apprehensive or slow to help, just be really, really patient as they could just be afraid of messing up or afraid they will take up too much of your time while they learn.

    And second, something that really gets rid of pride in my life is to always keep His Work at the Cross in view.

    Paul, in the Bible, wrote about boasting only in the Cross of Christ — we can only do that as we truly remember the Cross of Christ, what we cost Him, and when we realize what we would be without Him.

    When I look at the Cross and think of the Sacrifice He gave — what He bore as punishment for my sins — I realize that I am, and would forever be, nothing without Him (I’d be sinful and horrible). Only because of His Love for me do I have the blessings and giftings He’s given me (which I didn’t deserve) and only because of His Grace in my life do can I use those gifts for good, and with a good heart, to please and glorify Him.

    So anything I am that is good, anything I accomplish, is not my work to take credit for, but a result of His Work in creating me with Love and saving and transforming me by His Grace — all work is His and His alone to receive credit for — is the result of His Love and Grace.

    And only as I abide in Him, can I continue to produce fruit (only as I fellowship with Him, feed on His Word, obey Him — thus let Him impart His Character into my life — can I continue to do good things, or be good in my heart, for His glory).

    Also, in relation to friendships, it helps to not see inspiring/exhorting them as mentoring them, but rather as helping them freely as God has provided others to help you (or has Helped you directly) — serving Him in your friends’ lives by being what they may need (a push, pat on the back, influence in pointing their eyes to Christ) to better serve Him themselves.

    I’d love to hear your thoughts back on this — and thanks for bringing it up! Also, I’d just like to say that it’s really cool what you’re doing (and all God has enabled you to do already) — what you shared about how you serve actually confirmed in a really cool way a dream/ambition of mine that I’ve been praying about making a reality — thank you! I am very encouraged. =)

  • Nicole: I have definitely had relationships where I felt that I was doing all the serving, although I would not define that as friendship. It is good to serve others and expect nothing back. I’m not sure if you are saying that it is wrong to look for good friends. Those are very important, too, especially for Christians. Like your friendship with your mom, we all need people who know us and what is going on in our lives. When they know us, they can point out sin in our lives we have missed and care for our souls in a specific way. We can keep each other accountable and bring thoughts about God’s word in ways we have not previously considered it. Ultimately, friendship is about glorifying God and being part of His people. That is why I pursue friendship (or at least that should always be my goal :). Not to ignore opportunities for reaching out to people, but to be spiritually fed as I am doing that for someone else. Does that make sense?

  • Megan M.:

    I only have a few minutes to respond as I am just taking a break in between stuff, but I wanted to clarify real quick. I absolutely agree that we should not neglect or avoid friendships where we receive in return equally (or more than) what we give those friends — or what we give to others. But as Jesus taught His disciples to not just love those who love them, but to love those who hate them; and not just to give to/serve their friends who would repay the favor, but to give to and serve the poor who could never repay; likewise, I believe that to “walk as Jesus would Walk” we should not just pursue/invest in the friendships that are rewarding, but in those that are not (which we may not even consider friendships, at various times).

    Personally, the best way I have found to receive from God is to give to others, and the best way I have found to grow is to encourage others in their growth, ambitions, and accomplishments. In fact, when I am in a really, really bad mood or if I am really grieving over a loss I will sometimes find someone I can cheer up or encourage as that gets my mind and eyes back on God, off of myself or the situation, and I am by extension preaching to myself what I really need to hear — I know that sounds strange, but it just works to bless others when you’re feeling you need blessing.

    And one more note in response to what you said; I do believe that, although it’s not what we would want to believe, there are many times in our lives when God does not will that we have the support of others so that we can and will learn reliance on Him and so that we will have the kind of close relationship with Him that we will not lose when our “crutches” are taken away (a family member gets sick, a mentor has a personal crises, a friend turns away from God, a sibling goes to college) — He isolates us so that we learn to abide in Him and find the kind of support, edification, help, safety, protection, and teaching that is eternal and which cannot be taken from us because it is directly from Him.

    You brought up my friendship with my mother, and you’re right about how great that is and what a blessing she is in my life; but we didn’t always have each other. When I was younger, God allowed a lot, and I mean a lot of stuff to come between us (family problems, sicknesses, busy schedules, hurt feelings, needy friends) so that we actually did not have any close friends for a time — neither of us did — and we had to find God to be the kind of friend you described is necessary.

    My goal in friendship is first of all to know God at all times in the way a man I once read about knew Him — the man was chased by savages into a tree where he hid for hours, alone; and yet, he said that he was not alone there — without mentor, without earthly companion, without family, without pastor or church he was held in a sweet embrace — he said that God was so real and that He held him in His Arms and spoke to him. When telling the story, the man asked something like, “Do you have a friend like that?” No earthly companion can be that kind of Friend — not in hours of need like that, of which there are many.

    Wow — I guess that was more than “one more note”! But absolutely, good friends are definitely a means of God’s grace in our lives and should never be neglected or ignored; although I do believe that we should only fully pursue the God of grace, Himself, as our friend and companion — and that He will sometimes lead us where He is our only source to fill our need, yet still cause us to give in abundance and lay down all for people He calls to be His friends.

    Thanks for letting me clarify!

  • Upon thinking throuhg this I realized I made a mistake (or rather, should clarify). When I said:

    “Personally, the best way I have found to receive from God is to give to others, and the best way I have found to grow is to encourage others in their growth, ambitions, and accomplishments. In fact, when I am in a really, really bad mood or if I am really grieving over a loss I will sometimes find someone I can cheer up or encourage as that gets my mind and eyes back on God, off of myself or the situation, and I am by extension preaching to myself what I really need to hear — I know that sounds strange, but it just works to bless others when you’re feeling you need blessing.”

    If I may rewrite it, so as not to encourage something lesser than I intended, I probably should have said:

    Personally, the best way I have found to receive from God (through others) is to give to others, and the best way I have found to grow (with the help of others) is to encourage others in their growth, ambitions, and accomplishments. But BY FAR, the best way to receive from God, of all ways, is to give to Him; and the best way, of all ways, to grow is to spend time alone with Him (in His Word, worshiping, praying) — sometimes He will use people in our lives to give to us or help us, but He is and should always be the primary source of all that we need and all nourishment and inspiration and the first we seek.

    Also, the best thing to do in a bad time IS to get alone with God and let Him satisfy our needs; but when we do come into contact with people, need help getting our eyes off ourselves and what we don’t have, are called to continue serving, or want help from our brothers and sisters in Christ — giving and helping can often be a better and more rewarding, beneficial way to go about it (sometimes) than seeking and asking.

    Now I’m totally off-topic, though (on both the article Alex posted, and this discussion). So, feel free to respond to what I’ve said, if you’d like; but I think this will be all for me here.

    Thanks for sharing your thoughts and God bless! =)

  • Thank you Nicole and Megan for your replies. Thank you also Nicole for letting me know that people had posted other wise I probably wouldn’t have found it. I appreciate your responses. I’ll continue to look to Jesus for guidance in all these areas.
    Actually I do have good friends now, but for awhile when I was around 14 yrs old, I did have trouble with that. People were just very shallow in what they believed in, and I felt myself just getting more and more shallow along with them (this was in my church) though I didn’t realize it at the time.

    Now I have the blessing of people in my Sunday school class and a Bible study group that are willing to look beyond my age and have welcomed me into their circle. God blessed me greatly in this way. I was more speaking about the superiority some experience in certain situations and how to avoid hard feelings in those situations.

    In HIM,
    ~Elizabeth

  • Amen! What an amazing post. Clearly isprined by the Holy Spirit. God’s purpose for you is, clearly, writing and I’m thankful God put your blog in my path. It has been such a blessing to read, and listen to the Lord as He speaks through you. Thank you for being faithful in following HIS plan and purpose for your life. Laura

rebelling against low expectations

The Rebelution is a teenage rebellion against low expectations—a worldwide campaign to reject apathy, embrace responsibility, and do hard things. Learn More →