7/62 How to Develop Personal Growth as God’s child?
Remember, we are called to grow both in the natural and in the spiritual as a Jesus Follower. However, personal growth is not about being perfect – but about overcoming! …… because we will never be perfect outside of Jesus!
Refining isn’t about getting Perfect and ‘earning’ God’s love! If we could have reached perfection alone, we would not have needed Jesus. We don’t have to scrub off every bit of dirt so that we can be more acceptable to Father God. Healthy Biblical growth comes out of relationship with Jesus Christ. Boiled down to simple terms, all we need to do is hear and obey.
We could lock the door and send out for pizza and salad to ‘spit and polish’ each other perfect for the next ten years …… and guess what? We would still have mountains of stuff to deal with! That is the ‘old nature’. We will never be perfect outside of Jesus. After those ten years, Father God wouldn’t love us any more… or if we died in the next 10 minutes, He wouldn’t love us any less.
- True growth is about making choices
There is a saying: Choices, decisions & Consequences. We chose our consequences when we make decisions – good ones and not so good ones.
Counselling may be necessary for some people, because they have been very damaged by consequences -t their and others. The Counsellor’s job is to apply ‘Band-Aids’, until the person is really patched up enough to ‘die to Self’. That is where the real Freedom is, through an intimate relationship with Jesus! (Matthew 10:39, John 14:6)
“If anyone would come after Me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will save it.” Luke 9:23-24, NIV
Every time I choose to do things His way, a little bit of the “self” dies – that new life might flow through me.
Here is a demonstration I did once for my group. I had a large rubbish bin, a biscuit rack, two jugs of water, one glass and one can of Pepsi. I filled the glass ¼ full with the Pepsi to show the condition of our heart before we come to Jesus. Slowly I poured the water into the glass to show the need to continually fill ourselves with Him. As I continued, what happened? The water became clearer and cleaner.
The other g;ass and that Biblical view? I filled the other glass with clean water. We do receive a clean heart 
when we accept Jesus. However, when I let in a bit of anger, or some unforgiveness, what happens. My heart gets a little bit dirtier. I poured a bit of the Pepsi into the clean water to show my heart now is not as clean as before.
What does this demonstration tell you?
So whether we have a clean heart when we accept Jesus and it gets dirty when I ‘sin’, the results are the same. If I start with that dirty heart and clean it with “…the washing of the Water with the Word…”, I need to learn to guard my heart to keep it clean … or to get it clean. Same process, same results. Again choices! ‘Keeping on’ being filled with the Spirit does bring lasting change.
- Real growth isn’t about trying to meet unrealistic expectations set by myself or others.
| What measuring stick are you using? Are you competing with other’s apparent glowing progress? Your own unreal expectations? Other’s religious judgements on you? Remember, we are all ‘blind’ and need to follow God’s instructions. | The Apostle Paul had the right attitude: 1 Corinthians 4:3-4 “I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.” |
Ask the Lord Jesus to give you a picture of your own ‘measuring stick’. Record what He shows you. Next question: “Jesus what do You want me to do with my measuring stick of my own growth?” Record what He tells you for some later homework.
- Real growth is beyond just the ‘aha’ and revelation.
Knowing something doesn’t bring actions. It’s the experience that makes up the other half of the circle. Seeing without practice is like collecting cook books without ever cooking! Remember, you’ll only have the power and the authority over the storm you have learn to find peace and sleep through.
- We need to promote our own growth a. Learn to use prayer as your first response.
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James 5:16: “Therefore confess your sins one to another and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man (or woman) is powerful and effective.” |
When the need arises, ask for prayer FIRST. Have your Growth group pray for you. Put your ‘faith muscles’ into action and ask for prayer for the aches and pains of life, before you reach for the aspirin or contact the doctor. |
5. Be a partner with God in your growth.
We continue to grow and enter His kingdom by choice. God doesn’t do for us what we can do for ourselves. Participate in your own growth; it doesn’t just happen. Choose to see things as God does (Colossians 3:1-4, 10). You are responsible for your own growth, not your Sunday service or your home group.
Some people use a logical, rational approach: “If it’s not broke, you don’t need to fix it.” However, like any plant, you need to water, encourage and look after growth to have growth continue.
Learn how to care for yourself, to be self-aware in the middle of the fire of growth, in the midst of change so that growth can happen. Understand the “HALT” prescription: Don’t get too Hungry, Angry, Lonely or Tired. When we haven’t learned how to see and set our boundaries for these four things in our own life, each can bring a discouraging downward slide.
6. You don’t repair the roof in the middle of the storm.
Determine to work on your relationship with Father God while things are going well. Learn to hear and obey His voice in the quiet, peaceful times. Then when the cyclone hits, you are ready to follow Him through the storm to the eye of the hurricane.
7. Learn the power of creating rituals. Here are some examples:
Walking by faith is also following the spiritual disciplines Jesus practiced. Get into good habit patterns. Always begin with what the Holy Spirit is convicting you about! Do not respond to condemnation (Romans 8:1) but focus on the ‘God principle’ in your situation.
Let Jesus help you develop precise, concrete, achievable and realistic goals. “I’ll read 14 chapters of the Bible each day because I feel condemned that I am not reading enough of His word.”
Set small goals you can achieve. Don’t aim to change too much at one time. Remember small steps get us to Mount Everest. Remember persistence pays off. Learn to relax in His presence, knowing that He is 100%, Totally. Totally on your side.
Focus on one change at a time. It takes more than 6 weeks for a new habit to replace an old pattern. Expect relapses, especially in dealing with long standing addictions or self-sabotage thinking systems. Create an environment that supports change. Be with people who are growing in the Lordship of Jesus. Create accountability and feedback by using a prayer journal, a prayer partner, a support group, etc.
Establish networks with those who are really in touch with their own lives and with the reality of the living Jesus. Establish Daily Rituals such as daily prayer, praying in tongues for a length of time, reading your Bible daily (the complete text over the year). Attend a weekly Growth Group, Accountability or prayer group and the Celebration of your faith.
Growth requires the conviction of the Holy Spirit, determination, dedication and small, consistent steps to get there. We would climb Mount Everest this way too.
Remember, Jesus not only wants the destination of growth, but He also wants to walk the journey with us. Growth and change are the normal life for someone who follows Jesus Christ. Surrendering to God is a fundamental principle. ‘Legally’ we are perfect because of what Jesus has finished for us. However, we are still ‘a work in progress’!
Susanne Fengler, Blog Author
www.christianfoundations.jesus-treeoflife.info
Tags: choices, death to self, growth
Filed under: From Slave to Sonship
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