How Come It's No Fun To Be A Christian
HOW COME IT'S NO FUN BEING A CHRISTIAN
1. Why do people get the idea that it is no fun to be a Christian?
2. Is it fun to become a Christian?
3. What do you call "fun"?
4. Does everything worthwhile in life have to be fun? Can you name some things that you wouldn't want to be without that are not thought of in terms of being "fun" but that are extremely necessary or important?
5. How would you be able to tell if someone was having a good time? (I hate going on rides in amusement parks but I'm happy to go there with teens or family. I can say that for
me this is "fun". The idea is totally subjective. What is "fun" for one person may be totally uninteresting and boring to someone else.
6. Have you ever met anyone who enjoys being a Christian? Would you say that they do it because it is fun? Do people get married because it is fun? What are some of the important motivating forces in life that may take precedence over fun? (love, integrity, dependability, commitment, responsibility, compassion, etc.)
7. Are you always happy and having fun when you don't serve Christ? Why would one think then that a Christian must always find himself overjoyed with life?
8. How do people lose the joy in living for Christ? Did they ever have it in the first place?
9. Is serving God something that you do for fun or is it something that you do for other reasons? If it is something done for other reasons then is it fair to evaluate it on the
basis of how much fun it is. It would be like saying I quit work and I don't plan ever to do it again because it is no fun. People would look at you like an alien from another planet if that were your rationale? They would see you as an irresponsible kid.
10. The scripture says that there is a time for everything. Is there a time to have fun? Is it a part of the list? Is there anything close. Is "fun" something to be had at only certain times in one's life? Can daily living be "fun"?
According to the dictionary "fun" is: Something that provides amusement or enjoyment. "Enjoy" means: to take pleasure or satisfaction in. "Amuse" means to entertain in a light or playful manner.
one of the problems that we face in kids understanding what Christian living really means is that much parental concern is directed toward their kids being respectable as opposed to godly. There is a difference. To settle for the latter is to stop one step short of the goal. It is to settle for the bronze rule as opposed to the Golden Rule. The Golden Rule is to love the Lord with all our heart soul mind and strength. This is one lesson that we cannot teach unless we experience it. Because love must develop and blossom within a person's heart, it is also a more difficult lesson to teach because it takes time. The quick fixes are bronze rules and regulations. Third place is referred to as showing – just making it. It's easier to give our kids all the rules and regulations, things that the parents may have indeed adopted because they are meaningful or satisfying to them personally, but things that have taken them an extended period of living to hold discover and cling to. These are not the important things to pass on to our kids. A heart that loves God is the goal. We must teach them to experience that kind of relationship. No other will do. This is the heart of godliness. The hunger and thirst for God is what we must pass on. What then must the parent do? He must fall in love with Christ first and foremost in a personal way. He must do "all things without murmuring and complaining." It must be more than a begrudging silence as well. Servanthood must be the chosen path, joyfully taken not out of compulsion. It must become a life choice. Help me Lord in my own life to obey you because that is my joy and my passion.
I know, my God, that you test the heart and are pleased with integrity. All these things have I given willingly and with honest intent. And now I have seen with joy how willingly your people who are here have given to you. -- 1 Chronicles 29:17
No one could distinguish the sound of the shouts of joy from the sound of weeping, because the people made so much noise. And the sound was heard far away.
-- Ezra 3:13
For seven days they celebrated with joy the Feast of Unleavened Bread, because the LORD had filled them with joy by changing the attitude of the king of Assyria, so that he assisted them in the work on the house of God, the God of Israel. -- Ezra 6:22
Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them. -- Nehemiah 8:12
And on that day they offered great sacrifices, rejoicing because God had given them great joy. The women and children also rejoiced. The sound of rejoicing in Jerusalem could be heard far away.
-- Nehemiah 12:43
that the mirth of the wicked is brief, the joy of the godless lasts but a moment. -- Job 20:5
The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. -- Psalms 19:8
Surely you have granted him eternal blessings and made him glad with the joy of your presence. -- Psalms 21:6
The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to him in song. -- Psalms 28:7
Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. -- Psalms 51:12
Bring joy to your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. -- Psalms 86:4
Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days. -- Psalms 90:14
For you make me glad by your deeds, O LORD; I sing for joy at the works of your hands. -- Psalms 92:4
When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. -- Psalms 94:19
Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can share its joy. -- Proverbs 14:10
A cheerful look brings joy to the heart, and good news gives health to the bones. -- Proverbs 15:30
When justice is done, it brings joy to the righteous but terror to evildoers. -- Proverbs 21:15
then you will find your joy in the LORD, and I will cause you to ride on the heights of the land and to feast on the inheritance of your father Jacob." The mouth of the LORD has spoken. -- Isaiah 58:14
My servants will sing out of the joy of their hearts, but you will cry out from anguish of heart and wail in brokenness of spirit. -- Isaiah 65:14
The one who received the seed that fell on rocky places is the man who hears the word and at once receives it with joy. -- Matthew 13:20
"The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. -- Matthew 13:44
The seventy-two returned with joy and said, "Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name." -- Luke 10:17
And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. -- Acts 13:52
The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God--he and his whole family. -- Acts 16:34
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. -- Romans 15:13
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
-- Galatians 5:22
then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. -- Philippians 2:2
Your love has given me great joy and encouragement, because you, brother, have refreshed the hearts of the saints. -- Philemon 1:7
Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. -- Hebrews 12:2
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, -- James 1:2
It gave me great joy to have some brothers come and tell about your faithfulness to the truth and how you continue to walk in the truth. -- 3 John 1:3
I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. -- 3 John 1:4
A personal questionnaire for session #1
1. What is the thing in life that is most "fun" for you to do? The thing that you would drop most anything to be a part of?
2. Describe "fun" in your own words.
3. Did you ever wind up having fun at something that you thought you wouldn't enjoy? What was it?
4. Do you think that our society is too "fun" conscious? Why or why not?
5. What are some of the things that are excused on the basis that they are "fun"?
6. If you are a Christian, do you have "fun" being one? If you are not, do you believe that Christians have "fun"?
There is no word in the Bible that would be translated "fun". The closest would be "joy" or "contentment".
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