Remember, the scriptures are your sole source of truth. God may use people that he gives to the church and their gifts to guide and influence you, but in reality, it is still just you and God. God brings to you truth and he expects you to trust him and live by faith in that truth.
There may be times when you struggle with this. Your struggle may come from a mis-understanding of truth or from fear that may keep you from believing and living by faith. It can happen to the best of Christians. The scriptures record the Apostle Peter as being one of those who struggled.
When certain disciples came to Antioch from James, Peter, who had previously eaten with the Gentile believers, withdrew and separated himself from them. It was a terrible decision that brought upon him rebuke from the Apostle Paul. Furthermore because of his vacillating, he probably confused and offended the Gentile believers, negatively affected his testimony, and hindered his ability to lead and influence others. The worst was that he grieved the Holy Spirit and disappointed his father in Heaven. All of this happened because he feared what others would think.
I wonder how many times in my life, I have failed to live as I believed, but instead altered my actions to satisfy others. Believers need to know what they believe and then live according to that belief without being confused or ashamed. To keep from falling into that trap, I suggest that you consider the following.
1. Expose yourself to the scriptures daily.
2. Learn truth from the scriptures.
3. Believe what the scriptures say and not what others tell you what they say.
4. Ask God for grace to live the truth that you learned and believed: especially when you may be afraid.
5. Praise God each step of the way.
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