Thu, Jul 26th - 6:32PM

God wants you to grow up .... Spiritual growth is not automatic.  It takes an intentional commitment.  You must want to grow, decide to grow, make an effort to grow, and persist in growing.  Discipleship-- the process of becoming like Christ-- always begins with a decision.  "Continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to His good purpose (Philippians 2:12-13)  This verse shows two parts of spiritual growth:  "work out" and "work in" is God's role.  Spiritual growth is a collaborative effort between you and the Holy Spirit. 

Your first step in spiritual growth is to start changing the way you think.  Change always starts first in your mind.  The way you think determines the way you feel and the way you feel influences the way you act .  Paul said, "There must be a spiritual renewal of your thoughts and attitudes" (Ephesians 4:23

excerpted from Rick Warren's "Forty-Days of Purpose"

Fri, Jul 13th - 10:35PM

W.W.J.D.?

God uses His Word, people, and circumstances to mold us.  All three are indispensable for character development.  God's Word provides the truth we need to grow, and circumstances provide the environment we need to practice "Christlikeness"

You can't grow into Christlikeness in isolation.  You must be around other people and interact with them ... True spiritual maturity is all about learning to love like Jesus and you can't practice being like Jesus without being in relationship with other people ... It's all about love ... loving God and loving others. 

God is far more concerned in building your character than He is anything else.  We may worry when He seems silent on specific issues such as "What career should I choose?"  The truth is, there are many different careers that could be in Gods will for your life.  What God cares about most is that whatever you do, you do it like Jesus would do.

"TalkerCat"

Fri, Jul 6th - 12:59AM

I May Live in California - But my HOME is Heaven!

Every time we forget that character is one of God's purposes for our life, we will become frustrated by our circumstances.  We wonder "why is this happening to me?"  ... "Why am I having such a difficult time?" ...

One answer is that life is supposed to be difficult!  It's what enables us to grow.  Remember, earth is not heaven!

Never forget that life is not about you! We exist for God's purposes, not vice versa.  Why would God provide Heaven on Earth when He's planned the real thing for us in eternity? 

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