This quote yesterday from a trusted godly author from our area got my attention.  “He showed them that they could stand up for their beliefs without a hard heart, hatred, and antagonism. That is something that not just the young but the old need to learn. Thank you, Charlie Kirk. And thank you, Jesus.
As followers of Jesus, none of us should blindly follow anyone. We follow King Jesus above all, and that will mean agreeing with some people often, but not always, and disagreeing with others often, but not always. And it means actually listening, then looking for common ground, which I remember Charlie Kirk doing in some of his dialogues I watched. He would say something like, “Let’s establish first what we actually agree on.” May we all follow his example in doing this as we communicate both inside and outside our churches, and for that matter in our homes, in our marriages and as we raise our children.” Randy Alcorn. https://www.epm.org/resources/2025/Sep/12/charlie-kirk-brevity-of-life/

“Now, who will want to harm you if you are eager to do good? But even if you suffer for doing what is right, God will reward you for it. So don’t worry or be afraid of their threats. (*Reference to Isaiah 8:12 “Do not fear what they fear, and do not dread it.”) Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life. . .
Remember, it is better to suffer for doing good, if that is what God wants, than to suffer for doing wrong!
Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit.” 1 Peter 3:13-18

There will always be opposition to God’s ways. Often, the opposition comes from our own doubts. God doesn’t answer our prayers, and bad things happen to good people, so we accuse him of not being caring or not being powerful. This leaves us with no motivation to come close to God and lovingly obey him. We turn away, and bitterness puts up a wall between us and God. We forget to rest in the comfort that God is God and we are not. He is in charge, and that means good will come if we cooperate.

Other times, opposition comes from those we thought were believers. They go by the name Christian, but their words and actions aren’t like Jesus’ words and actions. This causes us great pain. We counted them as allies, and then they advocate for ungodly things, perhaps even being harsh toward us when we stand up for the Bible. We also know that any of us who believe can have lapses when we follow our emotions unguided by God’s Spirit and hurt others, thus opposing God’s ways inadvertently. We often hinder/hurt others by our words in unguarded moments, only realizing later that we caused harm by our unloving attitude.

Of course, opposition to God’s ways comes from unbelievers. They are living in rebellion toward God. They don’t want God to tell them what to do. They want to decide what is right and wrong, doing what they please. They may be vocal in their denunciations, like a state government official who told people not to pray after the shooting in a Catholic school. He spewed his disdain for prayer, saying that if God listened to prayer, why were the students killed while they were praying? We can expect this because their hearts are hard and their eyes are blind to the truth of God.

“Live no longer as the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused.  Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against him.”  Ephesians 4:18

So what do we do?
When we find ourselves doubting God and his inscrutable ways, we must go to the Scriptures and soak in the truth about God. God’s Spirit will soften our hard hearts and show us the truth about God- his care for his children even when he doesn’t give us what we want, his faithful love that keeps holding onto on to us even in the dark, his patience with us as frail humans, his good plan for us, his ultimate victory over evil, and the happiness he has prepared for us in the forever.

When folks who pretend to be Christians, but don’t actually believe the Bible, speak lies against God or us, we must pray for them and show them love. Not our natural reaction! When those who really are believers, but fall into the enemy’s trap of saying or doing unJesus-like things, we forgive and try to reconcile, knowing we have often done worse things.
“Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. Don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t retaliate with insults when people insult you. Instead, pay them back with a blessing. That is what God has called you to do, and he will grant you his blessing. “ 1 Peter 3:8-9

When unbelievers rail against God, or denounce those who are trying to follow God, we pray for them and don’t insult them in return. We know we shouldn’t lash out and give them a taste of their own medicine because God is watching and he blesses those who search for peace and work to maintain it.
“If you want to enjoy life
and see many happy days…
Turn away from evil and do good.
Search for peace, and work to maintain it.
The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right,
and his ears are open to their prayers.
1 Peter 3: 10-12 quoting from Psalm 34:12-16

“Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them.”  Ephesians 4:29

If someone who doesn’t believe is willing to dialogue with us, we must be respectful, honest, and clear. We mustn’t be evasive and cowardly, but on the other hand, we shouldn’t be aggressive and rude in our replies. And we must not just talk the talk, but we must walk the walk. Our lives must affirm that we believe Jesus is Lord. Note that, in my opinion, we’re not commanded to engage random people on the internet who haven’t asked for our input. They’re not likely to be convinced.  We’re commanded to kindly answer seekers who have genuine questions.
“And if someone asks about your hope as a believer, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way. Keep your conscience clear. Then if people speak against you, they will be ashamed when they see what a good life you live because you belong to Christ.” 1 Peter 3:15-16

May God help us to show love and kindness to all while bravely living and speaking the Truth.

“we will speak the truth in love, growing in every way more and more like Christ”. Ephesians 4:15