Growing Up With Faith in God

And at least here in Germany, but I'm sure it's also in the States, when you are in school you suddenly at some age get confronted with atheism and people that don't believe in God or that believe that the Bible is a storybook and a whole bunch of junk and nonsense. And if you want to, first of all, keep your own faith and keep standing yourself, or even if you want to win anyone in school at that age, you need to be able to give answers to questions that they have. Ladies and gents, welcome to Voices of

Life, the podcast with topics related to the apostolic faith in the 21st century. Let's talk about what interests you here on Voices of Life. Hello and welcome back on Voices of Life. We're sitting here today and we're going to talk about an interesting topic and that is how is it like to grow up as a Christian child or teenager? Because there are ups, there are positive sides, things that we enjoyed in our experience, but also things that were rather difficult or maybe not as UPIA. And then there are just in general differences that we notice when

we grow up, compared to our schoolmates and friends that are outside of the church and outside of the Christian faith. So that's what we want to talk about today.

Let me just define Christian faith, because it's the apostolic Christian faith. A lot of people would say, well, we are Christians. We grew up as a Christian, especially in the Western culture. But we are talking about really dedicated Christians that like to go to church activities almost every day throughout the week. I'm exaggerating a little bit, but we are talking about that kind of fate, a living fate.

But since you mentioned it, that's actually something that has changed for me. That was the first thing that changed when I came to church with my mom when I was 11, and usually we went to churches on Christmas and Easter, sometimes Pentecost, but rather not. So it was like 2 times a year where we were in church and that was okay for me. I said, Okay, on Christmas we go there. It was like a tradition, it was a nice tradition. But then when we came to apostolic faith, all of a sudden we went to church every

Sunday, and Tuesdays to Bible studies, and other church activities. Not every day, of course, but These 2 days, they were set in my weekly schedule now, and it was so strange in the beginning for me. Like, why are we going to church again? What are we doing there again? And our church services, just so you know, they start at 2.30. So that was also very strange for me, because church was usually in the morning, and the rest of the day was then off. But it was 2.30, it was the middle of the day, and we actually

stayed in church afterwards and spent time with the people there. So that were just things that were a lot different. So this was something that changed drastically for me, but it was not really a negative change because I had people there, I had friends there, I made friends there, and so I had people I liked and we could talk and we had fun together, so it wasn't too bad to have

those services on Sundays.

Just A little fun fact. In the beginning, when I was very little, we had... Our church started as a missions work, you can say, with just a few people, but in the beginning we had on Sunday morning service and also on a Sunday evening. And what we did is, after the Sunday morning service, we went next to a park, a little recreation area, a park where you can have some fun, of course, or don't have fun, whatever, and then we returned back in the evening, but we had some lunch or so, and then we turned back

in the evening and had another service.

Wow.

Yeah.

And that's something I didn't experience, but just like Stephen, I also was used to something else on Sundays. Like my family, my parents, they planned a lot of things and did a lot of things with us children. And suddenly we started going to church. And for us it wasn't every Sunday right away. It started slowly, spontaneously sometimes, And then it started every second week. And sometimes we started coming regularly. I have to say a lot of times I looked forward to it, at least how I remember. For sure there were also many times where I was

like sad that we didn't do those fun things anymore that we used to do. But I liked the Sunday school. Yeah, in my memory, I really liked it. Also the people because they were also, I have at least a lot of good memories from Sunday school. It's so much time ago, it's like 10, 12 years. It's the half of my life. However, Forget about the Sunday school. There were the people and they were always so friendly. I remember smiling faces when I came to church and the songs, it was different to what I used to know.

The instruments, you know, they had drums there, They had keyboards there. It was, no, for me, they are laughing here and making faces. Also because pastor has a bit different experience probably. For sure. But for me, I loved it, yeah. So, that was nice coming to church, yeah. But I also wanted to say, because we spoke a lot about coming to church, it's not just coming to church that started to be different. I also got myself a Bible, and I was reading Bible, I was studying tracts from church. Those things happened throughout the week. I started

to pray before I fall asleep and things like that. So when we talk about faith and coming to the Lord, of course it's not just about coming to a church and having a routine, and your faith is not tied to just the church. It's happening outside of the church as well, of course, that change.

And I think for some of our listeners it's somehow strange or amazing if you're not in our faith yet that a young boy, a kid, let's say 12 years old or so, is having a Bible and is reading the Bible. How many people in school did you or do you know or did you know that had a Bible where they were reading, not just somewhere in the shelf? And I also think that there are many families in our country that don't even have a Bible or possess a Bible in their homes. I'm not talking about foreigners

that are of a different faith, like Muslims, of course. Most likely they have no Bible at home. We understand that. But I'm talking about German families, let's put it this way. And it's so different compared to the United States. So in the United States, I think, especially the Bible Belt or some areas, people know a lot about the Bible and a lot of stories. Not necessarily everything is right, but they have some Bible knowledge. At the East and the West Coast there may be some differences, I understand, but mostly they know a lot more about the

faith or the Bible than people here in our country. And then having young people, young kids actually having a Bible, which is strange. And then you said you prayed regularly and we attended church, we attended conferences and had some camps and all that stuff. I envy you guys. When I was young, it's so bad. I sound like an old guy, you know, we had no toys, we only had stones to play and la la la. No, it wasn't that bad. But there was no youth group. It was just a Sunday school. And I was the first

kid in Sunday school, the only 1 for some time. And then we had another 1 and maybe 2 more and that's it. And they were not regularly on Sunday with us. So it was so different. And I had to smile a little bit, almost laugh when you talked about the music. And you said, oh, it was so nice coming in here. I got the keyboard, you had the drums and everything. I remember None of these things. When I was little, we had maybe the guitar. Yes. And we just worshipped God the way we knew best, let's

put it this way. And God accepted it, of course, because it came from our heart. But it was nothing like today. So there are different times, yes. And there are some other people maybe that are listening to that podcast, I don't know, that can relate to it, that know exactly how it used to be here in Germany, with no youth activities and so on. But I am not here just to cry and be sad and want to have your pity. We also had good times and especially what I really appreciate the most is if you grow

up in a Christ-like family or environment, you will be protected. Spiritually, you will be protected. And I may not have valued it when I was a teenager, but right now I really do. I'm grateful for it.

Yeah. I agree so much to that. It's also for me in my experience, it's very different. I mean, parents like to help, a lot of them, if they are good parents. But when they are also in the Lord and share the same belief that you have, it's very different when they approach you, at least in my experience. And they pray for you, and you know that they pray for you and they throw in some spiritual thoughts that can connect with you much deeper because sometimes it's maybe also hard between children and parents to understand or to

be on the same wavelength, just because there's an age gap between you and your parents. But when it comes to spiritual things, you're talking about the same thing, you know, you know what you're talking about. And so, being a...

Or you think you know.

Yeah. Yeah. But it's like, what I mean is like when the parents tell you that the Lord, you know, it's important for the Lord that we are balanced and things like that. And from a biblical founded and perspective also, and you know, talk about Bible persons and compare, make comparisons and stuff. You have the same basis, you have a common ground that connects you and also lets you get different advice from your parents that really helps you to make it through difficult times. And at least, I don't know if it was confusing what I said, But

I just remember that I was grateful that my parents were in the Lord and that the advice they gave me was not just materialistic or from their own life experience, but also founded on Bible and on faith and such things. And it put me in a position where I could get advice from them. That was very helpful sometimes.

And something you also mentioned was that you, of course, read the Bible and that you could talk with your parents about different stories. And I think that is a big difference. Like you also mentioned, little pastor, was that young people in church, when we grow up in church, we build up knowledge of the Bible. If it is through Sunday school or through our youth group, we get this knowledge, maybe not even that we really notice it and value it, but it's still in our subconscious. It's there, and those Bible stories that are easy for us to

know and recite. For example, when we talk about a talking donkey, we all know which story that is in the Bible or what it is about. But I recently heard somebody say, oh, I have never heard of that story before that this is even in the Bible.

They think it's Shrek. Well, it's a donkey that talks, you know.

True. Yeah. So, and that's so interesting to me because even I myself, for me, It was self-explanatory. I don't know. That's not really the word that I'm looking for.

For granted?

Yeah, I just took it for granted. Of course you know those stories, because they are so famous. Well, for us, they are famous. If we talk about Abraham or Jacob or Daniel, we know those stories. And it is mainly because we hear it in the preaching, we hear it in Bible studies, we hear it in youth groups or Sunday schools, and it's taught to us over and over and over again. And even though we may not notice it, we get a Bible foundation that many other young people, most of other young people, don't have anymore. And

this is also, this helps us to lead, like you said, a different lifestyle. It's just a different lifestyle that goes hand in hand with it, especially if you start to study the Bible yourself then. Because of course you can hear so much about it, you can know all those stories, but it won't help you anything if the Word doesn't get in your heart and if you don't get busy with it yourself. So this is also something that you said, that you did, studying the Bible and reading the Bible. That's also a difference between other young people

in the world, but that's not the same for everybody. Not Every young person is just in church and, yeah, I'm going to church every Sunday and I'm praying and studying and everything is great and it's the greatest time to be a Christian.

And the Bible encourages us also to study, to study His word and it's important to do so. Because some people are in the church, doesn't matter if they're young or if they're older, they've been in the church many years, and if you ask them, well, can you explain the baptism in Jesus' name? All of a sudden they can't, Even though they heard it so many times and they heard about the Bible verses that apply to it and so on, but they are not able to do so. Because they are just listening to it, but they are

not really working with it. They are not really studying the Word of God and so we need to study the Word of God. And that's the dangerous thing, I also believe, when you grow up in church as a little child, you hear those stories a lot of time. And I don't know how many times I've heard the story of David and Goliath, for example, and other Bible stories, and you just listen to it and you remember them and that's it, but you don't really think about them so much anymore. Then, when you are challenged by somebody

else that is not of your faith, then it becomes very difficult to defend the word of God, actually, or not the word of God, basically, but to defend your own faith. Because we don't need to defend actually the word of God. The word of God is His word. It needs nobody to defend it. But we believe the word of God and our belief, our faith, we may have to defend to other people and explain why and give reasons why. And the reason is not, well, I grew up in church.

That's it.

And I had no chance to live differently. Well, now you're grown, you can live differently. So Anyway, we have to identify with the faith and we identify with it when we work with the word of God and when we have a relationship with God.

Yeah, what you said about being able to explain your faith and defend it, I think it's also a thing that depends on person to person. Some person might need it a lot for himself or herself, and that you are able to explain everything, and other persons are, let's say, more like the sheep, just following. They are happy to know some about it, but they don't need to explain every question that some disbeliever could raise or someone that wants to attack your faith. They are happy even if they cannot explain everything. I think it's important that all

of us deal with it and find answers where we need to find answers for faith. And the reason I'm saying it is because we're talking about growing up as a Christian, and at least here in Germany, but I'm sure it's also in the States, when you are in school you suddenly at some age get confronted with atheism and people that don't believe in God or that believe that the Bible is a storybook and a whole bunch of junk and nonsense. And if you want to, first of all, keep your own faith and keep standing yourself, or

even if you want to win anyone in school at that age, you need to be able to give answers to questions that they have, or that they put at you and your faith. So, yes, it's a personal preference. Some people want it more analytic, you know, want to have all the answers to every critical question, some not so much, but there should be some basic understanding and knowledge so that you can give answer to people and don't seem like a foolish sheep that just believes something because it was born into it and never really thought about

the world. Yeah, that's at least how I see it.

I think this generation today is not satisfied with the sentence, because I said so, or because the pastor said so. Well, it should be that way that you are obedient, but anyway, it does not hurt or harm if you can defend it also.

And I think also something that's different growing up as a Christian than in the world today is having absolutes in your life instead of everything being muddy and gray, and it's not black and white anymore, it's not this or that, but it's all inclusive. It's all trying to, well, you have your opinion, I have my opinion, it's okay to have that. You can live like that, I can live like that, and we can all accept each other in any way, but that's not how it is in apostolic faith. There are rights and there are wrongs, and

so there's a clear differentiation between that, And I think that's also something that young people, especially we grew up with, okay, there are wrong things and there are right things and there is a right way to live and there is a wrong way to live. And I think This also just starts to define you as a young person, that you start also to think like that and have that in your mind more and more. For me personally, it's now more when I grew up and I'm older now, when I look back that I see, okay, these

lines or these definites, it was important that they were there and that those lines were drawn and that they are not changed or moved in any way, because that would just make it all, like I said, make it all muddy and make it, okay, there is no difference anymore between worldly lifestyle and the Christian lifestyle. So if you move those borders, there is no differentiation anymore. And it's like, okay, you are not different than I am. And I think there was a study, I don't really remember, but it said, talked about branding and it said if

a brand, maybe you know the exact number, you can also Google it if you want to know for sure, but a brand has to differentiate from others in a certain kind of way, I think 20 or 40%, something like that, until it is recognized as something else.

I think it was Simon Sinek that also said that.

And so, Google him, you'll find it, and you'll find the exact number. But as long as it doesn't differentiate by that percentage, it is seen as everything else. And so that is the same as a Christian young person. You can be an undercover Christian, just fly under the radar and just try to fit in as much as possible. But you can also just be different and say, hey, no, I'm not going to that party. I'm going to church on Sunday. Or, hey, I'm not doing that. I'm not drinking alcohol because the Bible tells me that I

should protect my body. My body is a Temple of the Holy Ghost, and I want to protect it from those substances, and I want to protect my mind from being numbed by something like that. So there are just things that are definitely different between the young people in church and the young people in the world.

Yes, the things that you just said, they are absolutely right, but I think that sometimes people don't understand, they really don't understand it because words like, our body is a temple, for us it is so easy to understand. We are used to that lingo, but some other people may not understand what temple, what does it mean and so on. But also those confrontations help us to think differently or to try to explain the word of God differently so other people that are not familiar with our terms, that they can understand it. But you said also being

an undercover Christian. I think when I look back to my own life, when I was in school, I was an undercover Christian. And I was an undercover Christian also when I graduated. And these are the things that I regret today, but at that time I was just too scared to share my faith,

to

be honest. And I also was a little ashamed of it because I was or we were so different compared to the rest of the world, the way we live, the way we think, what we say, that we pray all the time, sing strange songs compared to the songs in the world, of course. And then I think that's a problem for some young people, especially because they have not found their identity yet. Grown-ups, after a while, of course, there are some exceptions. But usually, they have found their identity, and they don't care so much what other people

say about them, think about them. But when you are young, you care a lot what other people think about you. It starts with little things. Some people in school were afraid to read in front of the glass. Even in our native tongue German, when they said, well we are talking about a certain book or whatever, you just read 1 page, please read. And then you were thinking, oh no, if I misread, mispronounce a word or whatever, then the others will think I'm stupid and stuff like that and so we we are so ashamed because we are

we are our identity is based on the opinion of other people and we need to grow up and mature and then we don't care so much. And I think that could be a reason why young people reluctantly share their experience with God or share the gospel in total. And here in Germany it's different than in the States. In the States there are so many different churches and people are used to religion, they are used to terms of, well, God bless you, pray to God and things like that. But here in Germany it is not that way.

Even today it's not the way. If somebody really says, God bless you, have a nice week, they will look at you strange and think, what is wrong with you? Or Happy birthday, God bless you. May God bless you, right? It's still today when we are out there in a restaurant and a brother or sister, it's their birthday and we sing happy birthday. Of course, the people in the restaurant, the other people will notice that. Some of them will clap with us and join us. But then the next part that we usually sing is, may God bless

you. And this is something that they are not used to. And it's sometimes it is like a cringe moment, you know, because everybody's looking, what are they doing? What are they singing? Because it's not common here in our country. And I think especially as a young kid or teenager, it's not that easy for some people. Of course, there are different personality types. Some, they just don't care. They are very outward-spoken or they are very extroverted and they have no problem with that, but not all of them.

I think we want to say we do understand, We don't condemn young people, and we were like that as well, that are shy, that don't dare it. At the same time, we also encourage you to step out of your comfort zone and try to speak as much of the Lord and of your faith as you can. And don't be afraid when people ask you about it, because only by doing it you will grow in it more and more, and your identity will get stronger with time.

And I think you, Sebastian, you were thinking about Daniel, right?

Yeah, and the 3 Hebrew kids. I know their names in German, but... Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Yeah, they are similar,

I guess. Similar names, that's why I said them. Maybe you recognize them. Yeah, I was thinking of them earlier, before we recorded the episode, because they are Hebrew children, obviously, and the moment, at the different stories that we have about them, we see how strong their identity was formed. Yeah, I'm sorry. So when they were in prison and they wanted to give them just any food, you know, the food that the king would like them to eat. May I correct you?

I wouldn't say necessarily...

In prison, I'm so sorry.

They were taken away from

the homeland. I'm so sorry.

They were at the court, the king's court, actually.

Yes, they were selected and now they were supposed to be trained and put to their best shape and form. And for that purpose they wanted to give them food, nice food, the king's food and all kind of meat and meals that they weren't... Stephen is looking at me because I grew up vegetarian. So what they said is, no, don't give us that meat, I want vegetables.

That should be your famous story. Yeah. The story you like the most, right?

Praise God that they held on to what was...

More power to vegetable and fruits.

But it's really impressive, like those guys, because later, when it comes to worshipping that idol, that picture that He put up, even though they knew that He would put them to death, that He would burn them alive, they refused. That's how firmly they were grounded in the Lord. And as we grow up, that's the process that is starting, if we walk with the Lord, that we get grounded deeper and deeper, and that our identity gets that firm, and our prayer should be that it gets firm, like it did get for them. That even if we are

outside in the world where everyone is doing it different than us, that we know, no, I'm not doing that. Because the snake, the devil, he's going to try to show you how beautiful the apple looks. And just imagine Adam and Eve, if they hadn't bitten into that apple how the world would look like.

Now we have to interview again right?

Yeah, a fruit. Yeah, I'm so...

You know what, the funny thing is, I was just thinking about my mother, because my mother would have just jumped in and said, no, Apple, it's a fruit, we don't know what it is. And we have it in the German episode as well. I know exactly what my mom will say when she listens to that right away. It's so funny.

It's also not 3 kings, 3 holy kings. I don't know if you say that in the States. It's the wise man.

Oh, now he wants to show his Bible knowledge.

It's also not a whale that ate Jonah, it's a big fish. And he

did not eat him.

I just hope I would like if it really was an apple in the end and God is having a good laugh right now. Well, we don't know. Well, apple stolics, that's okay, too much. Okay, let's get back to the topic. I'm sorry. So they ate the fruit.

What's amazing is that Israel was punished because they were doing a lot of idolatry. They worshipped so many different gods when they were still in their own country. And I think that those 3 children, and boys, and also including, what is his name, Daniel, that they, I guess their family, maybe, or their families, they stayed with the Word of God and they did not do idolatry. And then they were deported to Babylon and they still kept their faith, because a lot of people were not doing the right thing. That's why God punished this whole country. So

I guess that family was already strange in their homeland. And then even stranger when they were taken as captives to Babylon. But see, it's not important what other people around you think, you just do what

is right. There was a very nice preaching once. It was called, embrace your weirdness. And I heard it when I was a teenager and it really helped me. So if you're strange or weird it really doesn't necessarily mean it's anything bad. That's what people like I have to tell myself when I look to the mirror.

No, that's bad. You are special. Right, right.

Okay, I don't know if it even makes sense to go back there, but just to finish the sentence and the thought, so Ada and Eve, when they bit into the fruit, everything was ruined. And the devil tries to tell you, you know, you have to try partying at least once. You have to know at least once in your life how it is like to kiss your classmate that is so beautiful or whatever. He's trying to tempt you with different things. Why are you looking at me like that again? The first girl I kissed was my wife

and the only girl I kissed, okay? Or woman or lady or whatever, feminine.

Alright, we got a new man. Keep going. He's digging a hole deeper and deeper and deeper.

So anyway,

I'm glad you only kissed a girl and

that's your wife. Also no boys, by the way.

No boys, okay.

So but for real, I mean, all jokes aside, the devil is trying to tell you, you miss out if you don't try it at least once. If you've never been drunken once, you know, you want to like, like he's trying to tempt you to do it just 1 time. And that's also a lie of him. Just 1 time, you know, just 1 time to know how it's like. And so what I wanted to say is, if you're young and growing up, don't listen to that, don't go that way. It's not going to lead you anywhere good,

just like biting into the fruit. What's that leading mankind anywhere good?

I'm done. Yeah, young Christian people can spare themselves of a lot of trouble and a lot of problems and a lot of heartache and even bad memories. Of course, there are good memories, but there also might be a lot of bad memories that you just spare yourself from by. Like you said, never being drunken or never having done this or that, or never having that experience and carrying that around with you for the rest of your life. So this is also something that can be—it doesn't have to, but it can be. So positive, looking back in

your life and, yeah, regretting some things, but never having made mistakes that are so heavy still on your heart today that you still remember. Because, of course, God can forgive and He can give you grace and heal you and love you and get you out of there again, but the memory will always be there. It will never be completely erased, and those wounds may not be wounds anymore that hurt, but it will be scars that remind you, hey, I fell there so badly and I could have avoided that and I could have avoided the memories that

go with it now. Or like you also mentioned, Sebastian, was that once you were in it, it's easier to go back or fall back into it, instead of never having been there and never having that even as an option or an opportunity to go back to. So I think that's also a great blessing that you can have as a young Christian person, growing up in Christ, to not having that in your life.

We also have to consider and think about it. Basically, what you said is, a sinful lifestyle will also have consequences. Even forgiven sins will have consequences. And some of those sins may have lasting consequences for a long time or maybe the whole life. For example, if somebody is, well, having intercourse with, not the wife, with somebody else and this lady gets pregnant, for example, and the child is born and it's not aborted, then you have lifelong consequences. Even though God has forgiven your sin, maybe. So we always have to think about that. Those sins may give

you joy and pleasure for a little moment, but the consequences, they could be a lifelong. It's true.

And you can spare yourself of exactly those experiences. Of course, it's not all dark and bad experiences, things that happen. For example, of course you can go partying and not have some bad experience or bad memories from it. Oh, I don't remember what happened there, or whatever. But like you said, Pastor, sins do have consequences, and you can spare yourself of these things and have so many greater things. For example, 1 of us mentioned it just shortly, for example, at camps that we have. We also talked about it in 1 of our other episodes, conferences and

camps that we have. And those are examples for great experience that I had as a child and— well, child, that was when you're in Sunday school—but as a young person then, that I still remember today where you just met other people, where you just had great experience with God, where people got blessed, where you got a word from God. Or it was just so amazing, those memories as well, that you will never have when you come to Christ as an adult or an older person that you will never make, because you will not automatically be young

again and then grow up in Christ. So this is also, I think, a great blessing and possibility and opportunity that young people have in a church today.

It sure is. And I think we've reached our goal maybe for today, for sure, our time limit. So we want to thank you that you've listened to us today and listened to our thoughts. Also share your thoughts that you have or experiences. Feel free to leave a comment, leave a like or subscription, how you say, to our channel if you haven't done so yet. And then hopefully we'll See you and hear you again next time here on our podcast. Always on Thursday at 5 p.m. We publish. That is at 5 p.m. German time, though, so you

have to look up what it is at your time. So God bless you. Looking forward to be with you again. Bye bye. Goodbye. Till next time. God bless.