Following Christ is decidedly not easy. It involves a lot of hard work.
That much seems clear from the variety of word pictures Paul uses in 2 Tim. 2:1-15 to motivate his pastoral charge, Timothy. Every one of them – soldiers, athletes, farmers, workers of all kinds – engages in strenuous activity to accomplish his objectives.
Terry Johnson, in this month’s edition of Tabletalk Magazine, observes:
Success in these endeavours requires aggressive, focused, energetic involvement. Each may, and should, pray to God for help, for wisdom, and for strength. God’s strength is necessary for these activities. But the soldier finally must pick up his sword and fight; the athlete must step into the arena and compete; the farmer must work the soil, plant, water, weed, and harvest; and the workman must lay each brick. Dependence upon God never means passivity; reliance upon God never means inactivity. Fail to grasp the human contribution to Christian service and personal sanctification and one is doomed to experience continual frustration and defeat.
If the apostle Paul had lived in the computer age, when so much of kingdom work takes place on the Internet, I suspect he may have included web designers in his list of metaphors from which to motivate us.
I say this because I have watched Greg, John, and Ray put in long hours and work extremely hard to create our recently launched, though still-under-construction, new web site for OGC.
No one knows for sure just how significant the rebirth of our website will be. While the previous version has served us well for years, and many thanks to servants like Mark and Dan for their hard work during that season, time had come for a redo. Most new people now indicate that they come to OGC because of searching the web. That fact alone means we must pay attention to our first impressions in that realm and make our site as serviceable to the needs of those who visit is as we can possibly make it.
I am thrilled at the new look and features and I commend these brothers for their hard work in the Lord!
curtheffelfinger.com 
It’s interesting to me that you started a sentence, “If the apostle Paul had lived in the computer age..” I was just imagining the same thing before I read this post, and wondering if 1 Timothy 3:2 might have read “able to blog” in place of—or in addition to—”able to teach.”
Those of us who built this new website do indeed hope that other elders and perhaps other leaders in different capacities within Orlando Grace would also be contributing authors on this blog. It is certainly set up to accommodate that. Perhaps a subject for a future leadership meeting to discuss.
But in the meantime, it is you who is making this website beautiful. Thanks, Curt.
Able to blog, interesting qualification, indeed. I suppose I might be willing to share the blog with others. . .
The new website really looks great guys! Thanks for all the hard work. I’m not just saying that either, it really is awesome.
Thanks for the encouragement, young man!
It is indeed a fresh and streamlined upgrade from the old. And, unlike Josh, I am “just saying that”. Wait a minute: No, I’m not.