Is Christianity Just a Crutch?

We started off this Spring semester with a talk series called "Hard Questions About Christianity," and I had the honor of giving two, the first being, "Is Christianity Just a Crutch?"  It is fun and challenging for me to sincerely dive into these types of questions because I have to research, be articulate, and give what is hopefully a satisfactory answer.  This question is relevant because people often see Christianity as something that merely gives people comfort during hard times, that weak people use to find meaning, or that people need to not feel alone. I explained that Christianity at its essence is not a crutch, but oftentimes is used as a crutch.  Everyone turns to some sort of crutch in their life (needing to be liked, substance abuse, pride, etc.), so I asked people to reflect on what they find dependency in other than God.  As Christians, we believe that we are weak, which is why we need God, and God's power is made perfect in our weakness. (2 Cor. 12: 9-10)  I challenged the non-Christians to make God the thing they rely on and I challenged the Christians to be active in their faith, rather than just use it as a "crutch."  Pray that these students would rely on God alone, and be active in their faith.  Also, consider whether you have been using Christianity merely as a crutch...