Defending Your Faith Pt. 1: Believing What Your Defending đŸ›Ąïžâš”ïž

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Introduction
In today’s world, it’s becoming increasingly difficult to be a follower of Christ. External forces constantly challenge our faith—whether it’s family, friends, societal trends, or social media. While it’s often best to keep looking forward and avoid conflict, there may be times when we need to defend our beliefs and stand up for what we know to be true.
 
Several of us sometimes struggle to stand up for our beliefs when they are challenged. That’s why I’ve decided to write this email series titled “Defending Your Faith.” I hope that these emails will help you and I develop a better understanding of how we can defend our faith in a Christlike way over the next few weeks.
 
I will be drawing heavily from a book published by Cedar Fort called Be Ye Wise as Serpents: Defending Your Testimony in the Latter Days by Scott R. Frazer.
Scott’s book not only discusses how to handle situations where you’re confronted with tough questions or anti-Christian rhetoric but also dives into controversial topics such as plural marriage and homosexuality.
 
The book’s title is inspired by Matthew 10:16, where Christ says to His apostles:
 
          “Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.”
 
This scripture highlights the importance of being knowledgeable enough to defend your faith, while also being gentle and peaceful, like the Savior.

 

Establishing a Foundation of Faith
Do you remember the primary song about the foolish man building his house on the sand and the wise man building his house upon the rock? That song is incredibly relevant here. If our testimony is our “house,” then we need to build it on “rock”, which represents truths and doctrine taught by church leaders and found in the scriptures.
 
         “This parable equates not listening and obeying the Savior’s teachings with building a house upon the sand. Fools do not recognize many of the important things of life—like following the Lord or building a house on a solid foundation. This parable shows us the importance of learning the Lord’s teachings and using them as a foundation in our lives.” (Scott Frazer, Be Ye Wise as Serpents)
 
To stand up for our faith, we must genuinely understand and believe in what we’re defending. In other words, we need to have a strong testimony. Building a strong testimony comes from faith-building experiences such as:
  • Church attendance/taking the sacrament
  • Praying daily/repenting daily
  • Reading scriptures/listening to General Conference talks
  • Attending the temple/doing family history work
  • Serving and ministering
Notice that the first letters of the first three bullet points spell out C-P-R.
 
Just as actual CPR is a method to keep someone alive physically, spiritual CPR (Church, Praying, Reading) keeps us spiritually alive and gradually strengthens our testimony.
The Church, along with its many programs like “Come, Follow Me,” has taught us the core truths and doctrines we need to know. However, there are many specific topics that critics of our religion often bring up, and some of us may not be familiar with all the details. That’s why it’s up to us to study and pray to better understand these complex topics.
 
In essence, we need to prepare ourselves so that we know what to say when we find ourselves in situations where we need to defend our faith. We’re all at different stages with our testimonies, but no matter where we are, we can always learn a little more.

 
If you’ve had any experiences where something you recently studied came up in a conversation, hit that reply button and share it with us! We’d love to hear about your positive experiences.
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