Going through life is like riding a pendulum. If we swing more to the world, we’re further from God. If we swing toward God (by making a conscious decision to follow Him), then we distance ourselves from the world.
Sometimes our friends and co-workers want to swing the pendulum for us. When that happens, it’s up to us to resist.
How are you going to handle the pressure to blend in?
This is love for God: to obey his commands. And
his commands are not burdensome, for everyone
born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory
that has overcome the world, even our faith.
(1 JOHN 5:3-4)