"It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships to enter the kingdom of God." (Acts 14:22)

Ever question what the hardships are that one must undergo in order to enter the kingdom of God?

In today’s day and age, many face financial hardships because of the use of credit cards and excessive spending. There are many who live from pay check to pay check with very little savings. There are those who make just enough money to make their mortgage payment on a house they cannot afford, a car payment for an expensive car, and their utility bills. They pray each week that the air conditioner on the house doesn't break, or that they don’t have a major breakdown with their car, for then they will have to charge to get it fixed, adding just another hardship in their life. These are hardships, but they are "secular hardships”. The hardships spoken about in Acts are what we could call, "spiritual hardships”.

The spiritual hardship would not be that which one develops by living according to worldly ways, but rather, they are those hardships that we encounter by giving up the ways of the world. It is easy to spend money with the use of credit cards; it is a greater hardship to say no to the things we want to buy.

Another spiritual hardship would be that of not creating, or taking part in, gossip or idle talk about another person. It is so easy to tell stories about other people, whether they be true or false. It is a hardship to refrain from spreading gossip and slander about another person.

It is easy to join in with everyone else when they choose to live an immoral life, or do that which is not Christ like. It is a hardship to live the teachings of Christ and to be "different" from the ways of the world--not by placing ourselves above others, but by humbling ourselves to them.