Blogs are the Devil

By remembering what it was like to first encounter God, I offer these suggestions. The first act of faith is obedience, so I would recommend showing by example and explaining with experiences based on scriptural principles what obedience may look like. Obedience also breeds faith, so it is a very growing experience. Usually there are places where they know that God would like them to change. Reading will only intensify there resolve, if that is there intention. I would highly recommend reading, not just the Bible, but specifically John. Reading John is an easy book that helps you really get to know Jesus. Highlighting everytime you see the word "believe", helps you get your eyes focused. Keep it simple, faith doesn't have to be complicated, it's just the way we live it out is sometimes fraught with cultural ambiquities. But lots of time it is clear what we should be doing, like being self-controlled instead of anger-controlled, loving instead of a "taker". The inner person is one that is easiest to decipher when it's out of line with God, the outer stuff, like which church, which Bible, to drink or not to drink, are all a long way from the ones that I think (IMHO) are the one's God is interested in.

It's also usually a good move to spend time with other Christians who are really interested in growing. It would be interesting to see stats on the number of new Christians who did or didn't immediately spend time with other Christians. Which by the way, as mentioned before, would most likely be found in a church. So going to church is a good move, just try to find the 'growers'. There are usually some in any church.

thank you for your thoughts. if you wouldn't mind, please post your name so i know who's writing. thanks!

i am going to say that the answer to this question is difficult and for the most part it is individual. i would say it seems that 'anon' has some good thoughts but seems formulaic.
what i think is healthy is getting into a church and getting involved is important. i don't think you should start setting apart members of the church as 'growers' and 'non-growers'. i think what is best is spending time with people of all ages in various gatherings within your community. i think you can get just as much out of spending time with the on-fire for jesus pastor and the widow who is covering her pain with words of faith that she isn't sure she believes. we are all a part of the same community, and we are all trying to understand god more.

i think an important part of growing as a christian is understanding how difficult it is to do so. honestly, growing in a relationship with god who is unlike anyone else we have a relationship with, is tough. that is where a community gathers together. we collectively worship with our hands in the air, our heart's on our sleeve's, and our dissatisfaction as we strive to get to know this god who leaves himself as a mystery for future revelation.
it hurts me, we hurt together.
you may burn me as a heretic now.

some good thoughts here again. i really thought this was well-said:

"i think you can get just as much out of spending time with the on-fire for jesus pastor and the widow who is covering her pain with words of faith that she isn't sure she believes."

i don't know if there's anything more i can add to that.

the problem is that most churches really only give someone a bench to sit on for an hour a week. unless the sermons really teach, what good is church most of the time? of course it doesn't have to be like that, but around here, that's pretty much all there is.

I think I would quibble with this just a bit. When Luke describes the early church's corporate activities, he mentions more than just teaching: "They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer" (Acts 2:42).

God's grace from the church doesn't just come through the good teaching. Worship is what we do when we pray together and break bread together (in this verse the Lord's Supper; in v.46 probably a love-feast), and worship of God is always, by that very fact, good for you. You don't have to hold the Catholic view of the Lord's Supper to recognize it as our spiritual food, being, in one way or another, the Body of Christ, broken for us.

it hurts me, we hurt together.
you may burn me as a heretic now.

Heresy, schmeresy. This is exactly right. When I was baptized I was baptized into Christ's death (Romans 6:3), and when you were baptized you were also baptized into his death. That means that both of us were baptized into and therefore experience (in some mystical way) his death. And if in his death he took upon himself all of our sins, then that means that I am baptized into his death for your sins and you were baptized into his death for my sins. He didn't die once for you and then again for me, but rather "once for all". It was only ever one death and one baptism. We all die the same death, the death of Christ. And we all experience the same resurrection, the resurrection of Christ. You may very well say, "It hurts me, we hurt together." Pretty much everything shakkahop says is right on.

i think jon just bid $1 on me.