Here are a few things that I figure everyone should know, and no-one ever dares to say (dunno why). The world might just be a slightly happier place if we accepted them.

Life is not fair. Nobody EVER said it was. So don't whinge, get on with what you've got.  Accept that some days you are the pigeon, and some days you are the statue….. God has his reasons for letting those crappy things happen to you, and he has planned a day to sort the whole thing out - it's called judgement day.

God doesn't promise you anything in return for you giving him everything, except eternal life. That's just the way it is. If you think it's unfair see (1) above.

Being a Christian is not always easy or fun. Anyone who says it is isn't telling the truth. Being devoured by lions for your faith or mocked by your mates at school is NOT fun, unless you are a very twisted person. But if you're in this for fun you joined for the wrong reasons.

Other Christians are not perfect. You will have nothing in common with many of them except your faith, and a few of them are a right royal pain in the bum (though they might have got that way from dealing with people like you and me). Don't expect them to be perfect or you will be disappointed every time. You may find that sometimes it's easier to get on with your non-Christian friends, especially on bad days, see (5) below.

You will have bad days. You will wake up crabby sometimes and wonder what's going on and why you ever bothered with this Christianity stuff. You will have days when you wonder if God even exists. Don't let them bother you too much - often it's just your emotions playing games with you.

…… if all that seems like bad news then Sarah suggests some more conventional advice for dealing with the above without cracking up !

• Remember that God loves you enough to die for you - a love that strong will not let you go or ever leave you alone.
• Find 2 or 3 mature Christian friends who you can be really honest with. They will help you through those bad days.
• Read good (honest) Christian books - those that tell it like it really is. (Try Phillip Yancey or Adrian Plass)
• Continue to pray and read the Bible even when things go wrong but don't make this good habit into a mere ritual !
• Read Biographies of real Christians - warts and all.
• Remember that it's ok to be angry or sad and don't pretend everything is ok when it's not. God can handle our honesty even if other Christians can't.
• Hang in there. It may feel like this life is so very long and will never end. But remember when we finally get to eternity this life will seem like a brief interlude.