Backsliding

Here are some reasons why many struggle in their faith and soon backslide – 

“The shrinking from difficulty, 

the dread of ridicule, 

and the love of ease sap a man's moral earnestness 

and soon dry up the very roots of all moral faith. 

Though he must believe before he acts, 

he will not long continue believing 

once he has ceased to act. 

The coward who flees the fight mutters as he retreats that “there is really nothing worth fighting for.” 

Those who decline the high battle of the Christian life convince themselves there is no worthy field, 

no urgent call, 

no real enemy—

and the clarion call of God that pierces and inspires faithful souls 

becomes to them mere hypocritical noise. 

The prophet’s battlefield, 

where every step demands vigilance, 

appears in their eyes a soft and pleasant stroll; 

and the sins that good men have 

spent their lives driving back 

become their most agreeable companions, 

of whom it was mere bigotry to think ill."

In essence: 

Moral cowardice and inaction do not merely follow disbelief—

they actively produce and deepen it, 

leading to self-deception and the redefinition of sin as harmless pleasure.