to know God's word; to share the faith; to communicate with God; to find God's will; Far from taking a holy holiday, a heavenly escape route, persevering in the Christian life is a struggle. We need to understand clearly what we are fighting for. And we need to know in the depths of our being that the eternal God loves us and plans only our highest good - more trust in him, more likeness to him. That love will bring pain as intense as the joy we feel. For the Christian life is a fight.