When Following Jesus Gets Hard: Finding God's Guidance Through Prayer

When you first became a Christian, did you have any idea how challenging the journey would be? Most of us don't realize the twists, turns, and difficulties that come with following Christ day after day. We hear the good news of forgiveness, grace, and eternal life - and all of that is wonderfully true. But then the hard times come, and we wonder if we signed up for something different than what we're experiencing.

The Reality of Christian Living
Following Jesus means living by kingdom priorities in a world that increasingly disagrees with and even resents Christian values. If your goal in life is simply to fit in with culture, you'll find it impossible to truly follow Christ. The good news is that it's not difficult to stand apart from our culture today - the bar keeps getting lower with each news cycle and social media trend.

What Does It Mean to Stand Apart?
Standing apart from culture isn't just about what we don't do - not cursing, not consuming pornography, or avoiding other destructive behaviors. While these things matter, the real challenge is living in ways that spotlight God rather than ourselves. This means operating by kingdom principles that honor God, build up others, and reach out in love and mercy to those around us.

Why This Is So Difficult
Our culture doesn't just disagree with Christian beliefs anymore - it actively resents them. People are often offended by the simple gospel message of salvation through faith in Christ alone. In this environment, maintaining open communication with those we hope to influence for the gospel requires wisdom and discernment.

God's Three-Part Promise: Ask, Seek, Knock
Fortunately, Jesus gives us clear guidance in Matthew 7:7-11. He provides three commands that come with promises:

Ask and It Will Be Given
Seek and You Will Find
Knock and It Will Be Opened

These aren't one-time actions but continuous commands. Keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking. God will provide what we need for each day as we navigate the challenges of following Him.

How God Guides Us When We Ask
Prayer is our primary means of receiving guidance. But effective communication with others also requires us to truly listen, even to those with whom we strongly disagree. When we take time to understand what others believe before sharing our own faith, we often earn the right to be heard.

Being Prepared to Give an Answer
We must be ready to explain what we believe. This requires studying Scripture and knowing our faith well. Even if you're a new Christian, you're the world's leading authority on your own story - what your life was like before Christ and what it's like now.

God Provides What We Really Need

Understanding Unanswered Prayer
We don't always get what we ask for, and that's actually good news. Even Jesus didn't receive what He asked for in the Garden of Gethsemane when He prayed for the cup to pass from Him. If that prayer had been answered as requested, there would have been no atoning sacrifice for our sins.

God Knows What's Best
We're not omniscient - we don't know the beginning from the end or all the "what ifs." Sometimes God calls us to go through difficult things because He knows something important needs to happen that wouldn't occur otherwise. What He does give us is always good: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and gentleness.

God Abides by His Own Rules
Whatever requirements God places on us, He has met them Himself through the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Our High Priest understands our weaknesses because He has been tempted in every way we are, yet without sin. He has experienced everything from family irritations and financial struggles to pain, humiliation, and death.

The Greatest Drama Ever Staged
As writer Dorothy Sayers noted over a century ago, God has kept His own rules and played fair. He can exact nothing from us that He hasn't exacted from Himself. When Jesus was a man, He played the man - born in poverty, died in disgrace, and thought it was worthwhile because He thought we were worthwhile.

Life Application
This week, commit to developing a consistent prayer life that includes asking, seeking, and knocking. When you face challenges in living out your faith, remember that you're not knocking on the door of a distant ruler but on the front door of your heavenly Father who cares for you.

Practice truly listening to others before sharing your faith. Prepare yourself by studying Scripture so you can give a reason for the hope within you. Trust that God will provide what you truly need, even when His answers differ from your requests.

Questions for Reflection

• Am I consistently asking God for guidance in my daily challenges, or am I trying to navigate life in my own strength?
• When I disagree with others, do I take time to truly listen and understand their perspective before sharing my own beliefs?
• How can I better prepare myself to give a reason for the hope I have in Christ?
• In what areas of my life do I need to trust that God knows what's best, even when His answers differ from my desires?

Remember, in a world that feels unstable and where nations rage, we serve a faithful Father who guides, provides, and abides by His promises. Keep asking, keep seeking, keep knocking - because your heavenly Father truly cares for you.

Photo by Jack Sharp on Unsplash.