"Skate At Your Own Risk!"

THIS WEEK I went roller skating with my Youth Group on Monday. Every time I go roller skating I can't help but think it is very similar to Christian life in several ways.

The first thing you do after you pay to get in the door to the skating rink is go and get some skates. But you know that putting them on comes with a risk. There are a thousand ways you could fall down and hurt yourself, and there is no guarantee you will have an easy time. In fact, it is guaranteed that you will fall at least once as you learn to skate. As if it weren't frightening enough, there is a sign on the wall the says "Skate At Your Own Risk!"

In the same way, Jesus warns us that living as a Christian will not be easy. It comes with risks, since serving God is difficult in a sin-darkened world. In Luke 14:28-30 Jesus says "[28] For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not sit down first and count the cost, whether he has enough to finish it - [29] lest, after he has laid the foundation, and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, [30] saying, 'This man began to build and was not able to finish.'" But He promises that we will not face it on our own, because He will help us along the way and be our strength. In John 16:33 He says "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

So now you're strapped in, skating along, perfectly terrified but having fun. At first you have to cling tightly to the wall, but you take a step of faith and let go. As you begin your walk, you are discouraged by some other people's amazing skill at skating. They zoom past you, turning in circles and ducking under each other. How do they do it? As you watch one of them, you lose your footing and the world rolls out from underneath you! Now you are on the floor, and all of your limbs hurt. And it's so hard to get back up again!

This is similar to how can often be for a new Christian. He (or she) sees other people following God with such boldness and strength of faith that he is at once both frustrated and encouraged to grow. The process of learning to skate, like growing in a relationship with God, involves getting hurt, getting up, and getting better. The difference here between skating and Christian life is that the people who are more 'mature' in their relationships with God, unlike most amazing skaters, do still fall down and get hurt. But they are very difficult to keep down, because God is the source of a Christian's strength.

You have a few good friends skating with you. They are more used to this than you are, but they stick with you, holding your hand or reaching to you to help you when you wobble. Those people use their skills at skating to help you develop yours. This reminds me of sisters and brothers in Christ lifting each other up in groups - groups of friends, family members, or life groups or people who help each other grow by keeping each other accountable for their actions. It also reminds me of Christians who make disciples as Jesus commanded.

In John 13:35 Jesus says "By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
And in Matthew 28:19-20 "[19] 'Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations
, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, [20] teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.' Amen."

He loves it when we show love to each other. Friends helping friends make skating easier.

Now you are getting the hang of skating! You aren't exceeding seven miles per hour, but you aren't falling down every few feet. But what's that? Oh no - it's a jerk! Here's an amazingly fast skater with fire in his eyes and lights dancing on his teeth, moving opposite the flow of traffic! Here he comes, knocking down the best and the worst skaters in his path, just because he can. And you freeze with terror in your unstable tracks, because you know there is no way to stop him. Sure enough, he knocks you flat on your fanny, and you wish you could just sit there and not have to get up.

Or maybe it is a herd of troublesome pedestrians, or just the temptation to do something on wheels that you just can't do without falling - whether it is spinning around or stopping entirely. Whatever it is, we face things like that in our Christian walk as well. That's the devil, the biggest jerk in the skating rink of the universe, trying to make us fall down and not want to get up. Sometimes he uses people who hurt us, sometimes temptations, or anything else out of his arsenal of deceit. No matter how well we follow God, the devil is going to try to get us, and he often hurts us.

But the difference between skating and being a Christian is that we have the Holy Spirit giving us the power to resist the devil. It's harder to resist a guy who is trying to knock you over on skates than it is to have faith that God will give us the strength not to be defeated by the devil. Now, the devil might still cause us problems, but he won't win.

James 4:7 "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you."

The trick to skating, like walking in Christ, is to not stop. Things will hurt sometimes, but God picks us up when we fall, just like He has promised He would. It's scary, and it never stops being risky, but it's worth it. And, as I found on Monday, it's a lot more fun with friends. Finally, when it's all over we can take off the skates and go home, where there is no fear that we will fall down any more.