I want to GROW!

In the same way our bodies, like plants need various ‘ingredients’ or nutrients to grow, so our spirit man (or simply, spirit) needs proper nurturing for it to flourish.  This is never instantaneous, but rather a process that can sometimes be frustrating and seemingly fruitless in the present but I can assure you it always produces fruit much greater than we could ever imagine!

Below are a few of these ‘nutrients’ needed for us to grow. The list is in no way exhaustible as God continually shows us new areas and ways of growth. If you have other tips or suggestions, please add them in the comments section and we can all learn and begin to apply them.

*Scheduled devotion/quiet time with God – We need to spend time alone with God in the same way we do for other relationships that we desire to flourish. This time spent with God is important for you to get your bearing, for you to speak out genuinely and openly to Him as well as being silent and still for Him to speak to you or prompt you in a certain direction. Your devotion time can include prayer, singing, doing a guided devotional or pure reading of His word – really there’s no formula, all you need is to take the dedicated first step of making time daily to spend with God.

*Prayer time – This consists of your regular devotional prayer time as well as being able to pray for things beyond the scope of Y.O.U! Sometimes we get so caught up praying for ourselves, OUR needs and OUR desires that we leave no room to pray for other people. You should individually or corporately be involved in regular prayer time for needs beyond your own.  

*Regular intake of the Word – Spend time reading the Bible. Before you became a Christian, you fed your mind with all sorts of things and those things eventually became the norm for you. Romans 12:1 says be transformed by the renewal of your minds… The way to start living out that transformation, and seeing it manifest is by reprogramming your mind with the Word of God. There are truths you need to meditate on that you will only find IN the Bible, lessons you need to learn, revelations God wants to give you, a lifestyle He wants you to have and these can only become possible and a reality when you are feeding on His word. You may choose to go chapter by chapter or alternatively use a devotional guide to help you keep track of where you have reached and give you some complementary insight to the scripture you have read.

*Memorizing Scripture – In Joshua 1:8, God asks Joshua to meditate on His word day and night. How can you meditate on something you do not know or have readily? Something that is not already on and in your mind? Instead of spending lots of time stressing about issues or thinking about unproductive stuff, how about you spend that time thinking through, digesting and repeating to yourself God’s word? The Bible says that God’s word is living and powerful (Hebrews 4:12) – it can give you strength in moments where you’d rather give up; give you renewed assurance and faith in times of despair. If you have this word in your mind – ready to battle with the enemy when He comes against you with all sorts of lies and accusations (It’s the sword of the spirit – Ephesians 6:17), you will be able to live out a truly victorious Christian life. There are various ways you can memorize scripture: Some people write out the verses they wish to memorize on little flash cards, others print them out and stick them on their mirrors or other regular reference places – find what works for you and MEMORIZE THAT WORD!

*Fellowshipping in a Bible-based/ Bible teaching Church – Hebrews 10:25 “Do not forsake the meeting together of brethren as some are in the habit of doing”. There is something powerful about corporate worship – where believers come together to sing, pray and sit at the feet of Jesus to hear His word. So many people testifying of His goodness might be an encouragement or challenge to you or somehow you might be an encouragement to them! God speaks and moves in various ways and one of the ways is when His body comes together to worship. He instructed us to come together to worship and there has to be good reason and sense for us to obey that (as is with His other commands). I stated ‘Bible-teaching church’ because some churches are not teaching the Bible and are hence communicating a false doctrine. Be sure to always check that the messages being preached and the church’s statement of faith/beliefs are in alignment with the word of God – The Bible. If you have queries and uneasiness about some things, pray about them and speak to one of the pastors/leaders who should be willing to direct you to scripture that explains why certain things have been put in place. There’s no use in you being hyped up and excited when nothing’s actually changing and you aren’t growing – there’s no growth outside Christ and His Word.

*Get involved – There has been some lackluster behavior in the Church in recent years where the congregation believes that only an elect few are called to be involved in ministry and in God’s work. We are all part of God’s family (all part of the same body – Romans 12:4-8) and each in his/her little corner whether seen or unseen is crucial for the effective functioning of the body of Christ (Eph. 4:12). Find your place, get involved. Many times God will teach you lots of lessons on your attitude and dealing with people as you work in His house so do not take this service lightly. Whether it is in ushering, intercessory team, welcome committee, counseling, Sunday school, visitation ministry, choir – you name it. There is always a need for a few extra hands in Church, so instead of sitting back, mostly complaining about how wrong others are doing it, get off your behind and find somewhere to give of yourself. Like Celebration Ministry puts it: Involvement is the key to your destiny. Discipleship too, takes place in the context of getting involved with others.

*Fellowshipping in a smaller group of believers e.g. Bible study or Cell group – I cannot emphasize enough how crucial this is. In these groups you are able to reflect on the message you heard in Church or alternatively on specific bits of scripture and like I mentioned in a previous post. It is in the discussing and sharing of the Word that a lot of truth becomes known to us and others. Secondly, in these smaller groups, we are able to share personal struggles, get godly advice on how to handle these (see this post) as well as get people praying for us where we would normally either have kept to ourselves or shared with people who wouldn’t be able to help! Let’s face it – the bigger assemblies of believers – i.e. church services are too massive to give individual attention to everyone and therefore, you can end up feeling alone, uncared for and disconnected – beware of this, the devil tries to isolate you so he can send all sorts of tricks your way. Be proactive; join a Bible study or fellowship group as soon as possible. Additionally, in these smaller groups, we are able to hold each other to living out God’s word so that we are not simply hearers but also doers of the word (James 1:22).

*Music – I know this tends to be a touchy subject for many people but music is one of those things I believe are very crucial facilitating spiritual growth. The music you listen to goes into your sub-conscious, and before you know it, you begin to speak, dream, act in a certain way because of the things you feed your mind. I’m not saying that you necessarily have to listen to medieval choirs sing hymns and stuff (if that’s not what you like) – there’s a lot of contemporary (rock, r&b, hip-hop, jazz, afro-fusion, soul and even neo-soul) gospel music that you can enjoy nowadays. Just be sure that it’s based on God’s word though because many times we get hooked to stuff just because of a couple nice-sounding ‘gospel-ish’ lines and before we know it, we have misconceptions about who God is or our relationship with Him. Just be wise and think twice before you play that song or watch that music video. (see Tashyb’s post on this)  

*Walking in obedience – Being faithful in the little things causes you to be awarded greater things to be a steward of (Luke 16:10).  The Christian life is not one of a ‘one-time-class’ and then graduation. We are constantly being taught, constantly being tested, after we pass the test, we move on to the next level (we grow). Think about the Israelites, walking round the desert for 40years… If they had been obedient in the first place, this time would have been much shorter. For some of you it may seem like things aren’t changing and yet all you need to do is ask God what the lesson you need to learn is and learn it, or what the task is and DO IT as he instructs. You might be limiting your own growth just by being disobedient!

I pray that these will help you in your quest to grow in God and know Him more and more. It is in Him that we live, breathe and find our being (Acts 17:28). If you desire growth and want to see His kingdom come and will being done in your life – spend time in His presence and in things that edify you and bring Him praise. Before long, that transformation will shine through and His light in you will draw many to Him.

My final note is that above all else, ask Him to grow you, ask Him to teach you more and reveal His truth to you – He says ‘you will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.’  (Jeremiah 29:13)