What does honest faith look like?

Andrew Fadoju answers questions about worship, suffering, prayer and practical peacemaking

What are the different ways of worshipping God?

Jesus gives us the heart of true worship in John 4:24: “God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth.” Worship, then, is not first about style, volume, music or mood. It is spiritual, Spirit-led and sincere. It was never intended to be a performance of piety that draws attention to us. It is about being real before God.

That principle never changes, but its expression can look very different from one person to another. Some people meet with God most naturally in quiet reflection. Others express their love for him through joyful, exuberant praise. Some worship with raised hands, some with tears, some through stillness, service, generosity or obedience. None of these expressions is superior in itself. What matters is whether our worship flows from truth.

God looks for honesty in the inner life. True worship is more than singing when we feel strong; it is bringing our real selves to God when we feel broken. He would rather have us sit in heavy silence, like Job, or pray with the raw honesty of Psalm 73 – “But as for me, my feet had almost slipped” – than pretend all is well while anger, fear or despair are burning beneath the surface. True worship does not wear a mask. It brings our actual reality before the living God.

Can suffering shape us for the better?

The simple answer is yes – but not automatically. Suffering does not make us better simply because it happens. It becomes transformative when we are willing to engage with it, learn from it and allow God to work in us.

Even Jesus was not exempt from suffering. Hebrews 5:8 says, “Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.” From a human perspective, Jesus walked the path of trust through rejection, humiliation, pain and death – a path that led ultimately to resurrection. His suffering was not meaningless, and neither is ours – when it is surrendered to God.

That said, not all suffering is the same. Some trials are unavoidable. Others are the result of foolish decisions – our own or those of other people. We should not romanticise pain or pretend every difficulty is good in itself. Yet even in the mess created by human failure, God can redeem and restore if we are willing to listen.

How should Christians respond to war?

War is brutal. Lives are lost, families are shattered, communities are traumatised and the abundant life God desires for humanity is violently disrupted. From a human point of view, war is a tragic net loss. It leaves grief, destruction and wounds that can last for generations.

Our first response, therefore, must be prayer – fierce, faithful and persistent prayer. We should pray for swift resolutions, for the protection of the innocent, for wisdom among leaders and for a supernatural restraint on violence. We should pray not as distant observers, but as people who believe God hears and intervenes.

But prayer must also move our feet. Christians are called to be peacemakers, not passive spectators. In times of conflict and in the long aftermath of war, the church can embody the hope of Jesus. We can offer compassion, practical help, reconciliation and courage to communities shaken by fear.

This article first appeared in Direction Magazine. For further details, please click here.