When Trying Harder Isn't the Answer: Discovering the Law of Life
Many of us spend years searching for answers to the struggles that seem to follow us through life. We pray, work harder, make new commitments, and promise ourselves that this time things will be different. Yet despite our best efforts, we often find ourselves facing the same frustrations, failures, and disappointments. What if the problem is not a lack of effort, but a misunderstanding of how true transformation occurs? The Christian life was never intended to be sustained solely by human determination. Instead, it invites us to discover a greater power at work—a life that comes not from striving harder, but from trusting more deeply in God.
If we pray and search for answers but hear nothing, maybe we are missing the real issue. Many of us, myself included, truly want breakthroughs but still feel stuck. This could mean we are not focusing on the real solution.
Watchman Nee talks about this in his book "The Normal Christian Life," connecting it to the book of Romans. Romans explains both the law of sin and death and the law of life in Christ. Most of us know the first one well, but not the second.
The law of sin and death makes us do wrong even when we want to do right. This might show up as an addiction, a fight, or holding onto bitterness.
Watchman Nee explains it like this:
The law of sin and death is like gravity: if you drop a handkerchief, it falls. The law of life is stronger. The handkerchief still falls, but a hand catches it. Gravity is still there, but a stronger law steps in.
If this is true, then why do we still struggle? Watchman Nee goes on to say:
These laws operate without our effort. Birds fly without knowing gravity. Our hearts beat on their own. When we force sleep, it eludes us until we relax.
We often think everything depends on our own effort, but that is the law of sin and death at work. The main point is that the law of Life in Christ is about trusting God and letting go, not relying on ourselves.
Conclusion
The good news of the Christian life is that victory does not depend on our ability to overcome every weakness through sheer willpower. The law of sin and death is real, but it is not the strongest force at work in the life of a believer. Through Christ, we are invited to live under a greater law—the law of life. As we learn to trust God rather than ourselves, we discover that freedom comes not from trying harder, but from resting in His power. The breakthrough we seek may begin when we stop striving to hold ourselves up and instead allow the hand of God to carry us where our own strength never could.
