Maybe you’ve called yourself a believer your entire life.
You’ve read the Bible verses about trials and persecutions. You’ve heard the stories about how depressed Elijah and Jonah became despite God being with them (1 Kings 19:4, Jonah 4:3).
It doesn’t sound appealing.
I’m here to offer you a way out of the life Jesus offered, that “take up your cross” kind of life (Matthew 16:24). I want to offer a “live the American dream” kind of life, a “do whatever you want because Jesus cares” kind of life.
1. Don’t Push Your Beliefs
If you don’t want to face persecution, don’t draw attention to yourself or force anyone to look at anything remotely related to Jesus.
At most, slap a Jesus fish bumper sticker on your car, copy a few verses in pretty handwriting, and write a few encouraging comments on social media.
When someone goes through a rough time, offer to pray for them…but you might want to forget about their needs before praying.
Avoid the pastors and evangelists in your life. If you end up with a Gospel tract, don’t you dare give it away. Use it as a bookmark if there isn’t a garbage can nearby.
2. Don’t Get Closer to God
If you want to avoid persecution, avoid God.
Don’t pray, don’t go to church, and definitely don’t read your Bible.
At most, highlight a few verses and then lose that book beneath the bed or behind clothes you’ll never wear. And if you are in the unfortunate circumstance where you stumble upon a Bible verse, don’t study it and don’t apply it to your life.
3. Don’t Stand Out
Stop playing by the rules and start doing what the people around you are doing.
Choose wisely how you’ll act—will you be a goody-two-shoes or will you be disrespectful? Respect no one except yourself, even if that means becoming a hypocrite, liar, and thief. Wear what you want, say what you want, and do what you want.
At most, fantasize about being the next great Billy Graham—and if religion comes up, assure your non-believing friends that the only difference between them and you is that you have a free ticket to Heaven. Otherwise, stay silent.
Dot your playlists with Christian music, but skip over them if you’re with other people.
Don’t let the Bible enrich your life. Don’t pray in public. If you want to avoid persecution, don’t follow Jesus.
What You Should Actually Do
If you haven’t noticed, I don’t mean any of that.
I want you to love Jesus and people so well that there’s no question who your master is.
I want you to pray, study your Bible, serve your church, and encourage your friends.
It is hard. It probably only gets harder from here.
But if you love Jesus, it’s not about you anymore. Want to take a guess who it is about?
Jesus never called us to a boring, self-indulging life. He told us that if we wanted to be with Him, we had our own load to carry. And yes, it was heavy and it would hurt. Yes, suffering marks the end of the journey.
Think of verses like John 15:19–20, 2 Timothy 3:11–12, 1 Thessalonians 3:3–4, or Matthew 10:16–18. Jesus told us many times we would face problems. Being His child doesn’t mean we’re exempt—at least not in this life.
From now on, how will you choose to follow Jesus with all your heart, mind, and strength (Mark 12:30)? How will you live for Him so that it’s undeniable you’re His child and He’s using you?
Your love should show the world that you are Jesus’ disciple—and that you’ll gladly accept whatever they throw your way (John 13:35).
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