If you are new to the faith it is not impossible that you are making some classic mistakes rookie christians make in their walk with God. Nonetheless, I congratulate and celebrate you for surrendering your life to Christ. Welcome into the fold dear sister (or brother); and welcome to the light!
Now that you have truly experienced what it means to have the joy of salvation, you now know that giving your life to Christ is by far the best decision you have ever made and will ever make. As you take the baby steps on this journey of faith, you might battle with self-doubt from time to time and wonder if you are doing it right.
Here is a list of the 4 mistakes rookie christians tend to make; and if you are not already making these mistakes, this should help you avoid the pitfalls. I know because I made a few of these mistakes as well:
1. Thinking that God cannot use you to do exploits because you are far from perfect
People who are young in the faith tend to have a habit of thinking that they are so imperfect that God cannot use them to preach the gospel to someone else. There would be times when you would feel the nudging of the Holy Spirit to speak to someone about Jesus or pray for them but may second guess yourself. You might be holding back because you feel you are not righteous enough or because you do not yet have a good enough understanding of the bible. Here’s the good news: God is not interested in using people who are “qualified”, but only interested in using people who are willing to be his vessels.
Paul used to be a full-time persecutor of Christians, Thomas was a doubter, Jonah ran from God and Rahab was a prostitute. The Samaritan woman at the well was immoral but she was used by God to proclaim the gospel; she was nowhere near perfect yet she became an evangelist.
The moment the Samaritan women encountered Jesus, she immediately started telling everyone about him; she did not hold back and neither should you. From all the aforementioned biblical characters, you can see that God has a thing for imperfect people; he is the God that does not call the qualified but qualifies the called and equips them by his spirit.
When you feel the desire to share the gospel with someone such as members of your family and friends; you do not need to use any fancy words or complex bible verses and theology. You only need to be sincere and tell them of your encounter with the Saving grace of Jesus, his death on the cross and the transformation your life has experienced.
God can begin doing great things through you even as you take the baby steps in faith and press on towards spiritual maturity. You only need to stop doubting the power of God at work in you and just believe the words in Philippians 4:13 that says that you can do all things through Christ that strengthens you.
2. Making your Christian walk about getting to heaven rather than getting to God
I remember seeing a post on social media some years ago, where someone was asking if people would still be Christians or serve God if they had the assurance that hell does not exist. Seeing that post made me question if there are people posing as Christians only because they were “trying” to escape the scary fiery furnace hell. This was me when I was very ignorant, my service to God was from a heart of being careful not “to miss heaven” rather than out of a heart of pure love for God.
Unfortunately, many people who are new in the faith are yet to read with understanding the words in 1 Peter 3:18 and come to the knowledge of the fact that the sacrifice that Jesus Christ paid on the cross of calvary was first for all of mankind to be restored unto a relationship with God.
God desires that you seek him and serve him because you genuinely love him and not just because you are scared of hell, this way, you can live a life of total surrender and obedience to God. Hence, eternal life is a no brainer because you already have it in Christ Jesus and because you love God with all your heart and believe in his son! Only then will you truly begin to get intimate with the Almighty God, and begin to authentically fall in love with him.
3. Not Adequately feeding on the word to enable spiritual growth
The bible is the ultimate manual for Christian living; 2 Timothy 3:16 says all scripture is profitable for instruction, for conviction [of sin], for correction [of error and restoration to obedience], for training in righteousness. The word of God is what transforms the mind of a sinner that was once conformed to the world and then renews it to have godly desires.
The mistake many rookie Christians make is they stay baby christians and never grow because they starve themselves of the spiritual milk of the word of God (1 Peter 2:2) Listening to sermons should never be a substitute for in-depth bible study, it is important that you do a personal study of the bible that involves constant meditation. Not to mention, a christian who is not properly rooted in the word is the kind of Christian that is easy prey for the devil and his tricks. Spiritual growth is expedient to manifesting the fruits of the spirit, therefore, constant study of the bible, contemplation and, prayer are imperative.
4. Running away from God after a mistake or sin
I saved the best rookie christian mistake for last…or should I say the worst.
In Genesis 3, Adam and Eve had sinned by eating from the very tree that God had instructed them not to eat from. Remember how after their act of disobedience they heard God’s footsteps in the garden and went to hide among the trees out of shame and guilt?
This is a trap that the devil sets for ignorant christians. Likewise, you may have a situation where you fall into the old habits of sin or disobey God in some way and after letting your flesh get the best of you; you would probably be overcome with a lot of guilt and suspend your quiet time with God. Some people even lose the confidence to pray all in a bid to hide from God because they feel he’ll be really upset and disappointed in them.
Here is the truth that sets free: God is faithful to forgive our sins if we confess them before him (1 John 1:9) Please do not make the mistake of “trying to run” from God when you do something that displeases him, simply ask God for forgiveness and grace. Get up on your feet and continue running the race and press towards the higher mark. However, this does not mean that you should keep going back to your sins just because grace abounds (Romans 6:1)
This reminds me of the words of one of my favorite Donnie McClurkin songs:
We fall down
But we get up
We fall down
But we get up
We fall down
But we get up, oh yes
For a saint is just a sinner who fell down
And got up.
Finally, It is my sincere hope that someone is blessed by this and that a rookie believer who is new to the Christian race does not make these mistakes or stops making them.
If you can relate to these mistakes rookie christians tend to make, I would love to read about your experience and your beginner years of being a Christian in the comment section. I’m sure your story will be a source of encouragement to someone else.
Stay blessed!
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