Contend for the Faith
ALWAYS BE READY TO STAND UP FOR YOUR FAITH.
Bible Reading of the Day: Read Jude 1-3.
Verse of the Day: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have” (1 Peter 3:15, NIV).
Bo stomped into the garage, where his dad was working on the family car. “What’s wrong with you?” Dad asked.
“It’s Coach,” Bo said, referring to the coach of his swim team. “He knows I’m a Christian, and he keeps calling me things like ‘Holy Bo’ and ‘God Squad.’”
Dad wiped his hands with a grease rag and leaned against the car. He nodded thoughtfully as Bo kept talking.
“And it’s like he purposely tries to get me mad and make me do something wrong, you know? Like he wants me to mess up.”
Dad nodded again. “It’s like he’s trying to test your faith.”
“Yeah,” Bo said, as if surprised that his dad understood.
“Reminds me of your first summer playing in the Little League,” Dad said.
“It does?” Bo asked. “How?”
Dad smiled. “You stepped up to the plate, and your coach started lobbing balls at you. You swung and missed three times. Finally the umpire called, ‘Strike three! You’re out!’ You turned around then and, without moving away from the plate, started crying and yelled to me, ‘Daddy! He won’t let me hit it!’”
Bo smiled for the first time since entering the garage. “I did that?”
“You sure did,” Dad said, returning Bo’s smile. “Of course, I had to walk you off the field and explain to you that the pitcher wasn’t supposed to let you hit it. ‘His job is to pitch the ball,’ I said, ‘and your job is to hit it. That’s baseball.’”
Bo rubbed his chin and leaned back against the car beside his father.
“Sometimes,” Dad continued, “we make the same mistake with our faith. We forget that the devil is going to attack our faith-and sometimes he’s going to do it through people, even through people who are otherwise decent folks.”
“So,” Bo said, “the devil’s job’ is to attack my faith.”
Dad nodded. “You can count on that. He will do that every day of your life in one way or another.”
“My job,” Bo said slowly, “is to stand up for my faith and to let Coach see what being a Christian is all about.”
Dad slapped his son on the back. “That’s right! You may not hit a home run every time, but you just stand in there and take your swings, and you’ll do all right.”
TO DISCUSS: Do people ever tease you for being a Christian or for trying to make right choices? How do you respond when people try to test your faith? Are there good ways and bad ways to stand up for your faith? Can you give examples?
TO PRAY: “God, it’s not always easy to stand up for our faith. Give us your courage when our faith is put to the test.”