The Top Challenges a Public-Schooled Christian Faces and How to Overcome Them-Q&A Guest Post!!

 *bounces in*

PEOPLES GUESS WHAT!!!!! 

TODAY, SEPTEMBER FOURTH OF TWO-THOUSAND TWENTY-TWO, I AM HAVING MY VERY FIRST GUEST POST BY THE ONE AND ONLY ISABELLA!!!! 

Isabella is a lovely human bean who I meant on YDubs, and she just started up a blog!!! *cheers* And said blog is very, very, cool and special because Isabella's goal on it is to encourage and support an awesome group of humans...Christian public-schoolers!!! 

So without further ado, give it up for Isabella as she answers all of my burning questions about challenges public-schooled Christian face and how to overcome them in this Q&A!!!!!!!!!!!!! *cheers* 

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What are the top three challenges of being a public-schooled Christian?

I don’t know if this applies to all Christians in public school, but there are three main things that have been a struggle in my experience. These things are interacting with people, managing time well, and spiritual warfare. Let me explain why I think those aspects of school are challenging. 

1. People

Public-schooled Christians have an advantage in that they usually have more opportunities to interact with people, and different kinds of people, than others might have. Many public schools are large, and we get the chance to talk with people during clubs, sports, and classes. 

There is the challenge of interacting with more people. This may not be hard for extraverted Christians, but I’m an introvert and after talking for a while—especially to people I’m not close with or who don’t share the same values—I find myself drained. 

We have the challenge of interacting with people who may be very far from God. Public schools are a place for everyone, no matter their religion. That is a good thing, but because of it, we’ll end up being around people who have different values from us. Being around different worldviews is something that every Christian has to face at some point in life. It’s good that we get to meet a variety of people, but it’s hard to be different from the crowd and be surrounded by false worldviews. 

We also have the challenge of sharing Jesus’ light with people. This is not specific to public-schooled Christians, but it’s a challenge nonetheless. With so many nonbelievers who need Jesus around us, we often know that we need to share the gospel, but we don’t know how. 

We don’t want to seem too pushy, but we also don’t want to give people a watered-down gospel message. It’s hard to find a balance—but a balance is easiest to reach when we love those who we share Jesus’ story with. 

Lastly, we face, like any other people, social dilemmas. There are hard situations we can be put into sometimes–maybe a Christian friend is sinning and we want to lovingly rebuke them but we don’t know how. Maybe a classmate asks for our homework answers, we refuse to give them, and they get annoyed at us. Hard social situations will almost always arise. 

2. Time management

Time management seems to be a problem for everyone, regardless of what kind of school they go to or what age they are. Students in public and private school also have an advantage with time management—our day is very structured, with a certain amount of time set out for a specific activity that starts at a predetermined time.  

The main problem is the sheer amount of things we have to do. Almost everyone is busy. 

We have school for 7-8 hours each day. After school, we usually have sports, church, or clubs. Our schedule can be especially full if we’re in a competitive school district—which I am, and I know some of you are. In the time in-between school and activities, often, all we want to do is relax—but we still have things to do and people to spend time with. 

There is a difference between resting and wasting time. Getting enough sleep at night is rest. Spending an hour on Instagram is (usually) wasting time. Hanging out with people who replenish your energy is restful. Procrastination is wasting time. 

Managing our time in a God-glorifying way is tricky. 

3. Spiritual challenges

This, again, is not specific to public-schooled Christians—we face the same spiritual struggles that other Christians do. 

We can be tempted by Satan. We all struggle with sin–we might have a problem with pride, selfishness, impatience, or lust. Sometimes, we wonder how we are supposed to follow Jesus in a certain situation. We wonder how we’re supposed to share the Gospel. We can become anxious about our future—often things such as what college we should go to or what classes we’re going to take. 

These challenges can impact our journey in school. If we struggle with sin, we may wonder if we’re qualified to share the gospel with people. If we’re unsure of what to do, we may end up not acting at all. Nervousness and anxiety can impact how we act and perform in school. 

How do you overcome these challenges?

Here are some tips on overcoming the challenges I just listed. 

1. People

Form an inner circle of godly friends. We may be around a lot of people who are far from God at school. If these are the main people we pour our time and energy into, we will probably be influenced in a negative way. Having godly friends helps keep us grounded in Christ even when many people around us aren’t. 

Know the Bible and the gospel. People at school will be able to see that you’re different. You are a follower of Christ. They might ask you questions about your faith. We should know the Bible and the gospel message. Christians should know how to defend our faith when the time comes. Apologetics and related subjects are things that I need to learn more about. 

If we are asked a question we don’t know the answer to, that’s okay. We can search for the answer and get back to the person who asked. None of us are expected to know everything. 

Be kind. Or rather, be Christlike. I know, that’s a big challenge. None of us will be perfectly like Christ until He returns to Earth and sin is no more. 

But, right now, we can be like Him by reading the Bible and striving to follow the Word. We can be like Him by being loving people and by following the golden rule (do unto others as you would have done unto you). The kind of love that Christ has and His followers should have through Him is unique at school. 

Push yourself. Reach out to that person. Do what the Holy Spirit has been calling you to do. Comfort zones were made for breaking. 

Jesus never said following Him would be easy—because it won’t be. Following Him means doing new and sometimes uncomfortable things. I have to push myself to love others the way Jesus calls me to. We don’t naturally default to love, forgiveness, or kindness. Because of our flesh, we often want to do the opposite. We need to step out of our comfort zones to follow Christ. 

2. Time management

Put the most important things first. Have you ever seen the illustration where rocks and sand are put into a container? In the first part of the illustration, the sand is put in first, then the rocks… but the rocks won’t fit because there’s no room left for them with the sand already in the container. In the second part of the illustration, the rocks are put in first, and then the sand is poured on top—and everything fits well. 

This illustration shows something about life. It’s harder to fit the important things into our schedule after we’ve done all of the small things we want to. It works better to do the big things first, and then fit in the little things. 

What are the big things in your life that come before other, less important, things? Mine are time with God, time with my family and friends, writing, fitness, and school. I make sure to fit most of these things into my schedule every day—even if I’m not in school, I’m still learning. 

I also want to point out that, after God, people and relationships should come first. I should always be willing to push my writing time to the side to call a friend or family member, because I know that they are more important than my to-do list. People are eternal, and therefore, greatly important. We should value our relationships with others. 

3. Spiritual challenges

John 8:44 says that Satan is “a liar and the father of lies.” To combat Satan’s lies and deception, we need to know the truth. We need to study God’s Word so we can recognize Satan’s lies and combat them. 

We should rely on God to get us through spiritual hardships. Pray to Him and lean on Him when times get tough. He will never fail us. He will get us through whatever battle we’re facing because He is stronger than the enemy. 

And, as I mentioned above, we need to have Christ-like friends. Friends who are pursuing and following God; who will walk alongside us in our journey of following Christ. Friends who will encourage us when we struggle, remind us of the truth when we face a challenge, and bring us closer to Christ. 

How do you stay positive and have a godly attitude in a secular setting like public school?

Not being influenced by the ungodly things in school may be more of a struggle for some people than others. There are people who are heavily influenced by the social group they’re in. I don’t know how much I would be influenced by a bad social group, because I’ve been lucky enough to find a group of wonderful Christian friends at school, and they have been my main friend group for a while. 

I have still felt pressure at school, though. And I have still been tempted to adopt a worldly attitude—to scroll on my phone instead of talking to people, to not reach out to new people as I should, and to stay inside of my comfort zone. 

Having an eternal perspective helps me to stay positive, have a godly attitude, and behave in a God-glorifying way in school. The more my relationship with God has grown and my perspective has shifted, the more joy I have had. And the more I have realized that one step outside of my comfort zone can have an eternal impact. It can lead another person to or away from God. So I want to love others well for the Lord even when it may be hard. 

Reading my Bible is one of the things that has helped me develop an eternal perspective, along with my amazing friends. As you grow closer to Christ, your worldview will change to align with the Bible. 

What's one piece of encouragement you would give to a public-schooled Christian who's struggling? 

I feel that there are 2 main ways that Christians spiritually struggle in public school. These two things often seem to go along with each other. 

1. It’s hard for Christians in school to be so different from everyone else and they feel isolated. 

2. Christians find themselves succumbing to peer pressure at school. 

To someone struggling with #1, I would say that you’re not the only one who’s different. Jesus was different from the world. So were the apostles. In every great story you read about a Christian, that Christian is different. You are meant to be different. It’s hard to stand out, but it’s amazing that you have Christ’s light in you! He is changing, sanctifying, and working through you. 

To #2, I would say to focus on walking with the Lord daily. Don’t say, “I’m not going to give in to this temptation ever again,” say, “I’m not going to give in to this temptation for the next 24 hours. I’m not going to let negative peer pressure influence me today.” Making a small goal is doable and encourages you when you succeed. 

Thank you for having this Q&A with me! It was an honor. 

You're very welcome! Thank YOU for answering all of my questions. 😜

Be sure to check out Isabella's blog HERE if you want to find more encouragement and tips for public-schooled Christians! And if you want to follow along with the rest of the blog tour here it is!

August 30

5 Ways to Make the Most of the School Year @Eliana the Writer 

August 31

Dear Public-Schooled Christian, You Are Not Alone @Anna Kate Writes

September 1

Author Interview @Roses of Grace

September 2

3 Tips to Overcome Fear @The Public-Schooled Christian 

September 3

Your Calling is Simpler Than You Think @Chosen for Christ

September 4

The Top Challenges a Public-Schooled Christian Faces and How to Overcome Them  @The Book Dragon's Alcove (you are here! XD)

September 5

Author Interview @The Misty Mayflower

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Are you gonna go check out Isabella's blog? *nudges you to click the link* XDD