As a mediocre (at best) climber I tend to favour routes with obvious and large holds, I can be fairly confident with my feet as long as I have something substantial for my hands.

One of the most disheartening feelings when climbing is dragging yourself up a wall or crag focusing on the big juggy hold that will allow you a good place to rest and relax your fingers, only to get there and discover all is not as it seems. This is the gutting moment that you find out the amazing hold you were looking at has in fact a rounded, slimy, finger muscle destroying sloping  top to it. The only real function this hold actually provides is a focus of your screamed abuse as you plummet embarrassingly from the rock.

The great challenge of being a Christian is to be the good hold that people can rely on rather than the disappointing mirage.

It is easy and often accomplished to gain the reputation and appearance of a Christian. You can look like one in the same way a hold can look useful, however it is easy, like the promising hand hold, to fail to back this up. Just because you look like something does not make it the case.

As a Christian I feel it hugely important to follow through on my beliefs. In the Bible much of Paul’s letters to the Churches are devoted to telling people this very thing. Acting and behaving as a Christian will lead to looking like one and providing people with something to rely on, looking like one and not acting like one will lead people to question you and your beliefs.

– Graham