SPIRITUAL GROWTH: STICKING WITH THE PROCESS

Estimated reading time: 2 minutes 6 seconds

“The flow seems right,” she said. “So, what’s this big leap with you going to be like? Are we going somewhere? Are we going out? Do I call you every day? Would you call me? What happens when you don’t?”
He smiled. “Derin, you already feel things. Allow yourself to feel them. We are not on anyone’s schedule or clock. We are just in time for love, alright? There’s no leading here. We are going together. I’ll know what you like. You’ll know what I like and in a good time, we’ll have the same favorites, we’ll be more than best friends, and if… if God wills, you’ll be my forever.” - Excerpt from Tomi Adesina’s IN SEARCH OF FOREVER.
Keep this in mind as we go.

Every human being wants to experience growth; even those who don’t put intentional effort into it. A mother would be bothered if her babe is experiencing stunted growth. As God's children, we bother Him when we're stagnant. He, wishes for us to grow from the stage of drinking milk to cracking bones.
Growth is a very important part of our being. But there will be a problem if in our desire for growth we neglect/overlook the place of process. We might end up unnecessarily pressuring ourselves. Or, what is growth if we don't grow into it?

One time I put myself under so much pressure. Why? I desired a level of growth in my spiritual life--as I had seen in people of my age; those younger than I study, divide and share the word amazingly. I also desired this. This desire was valid, but I turned a blind eye on the process. My motives for growth were wholly wrong.

Along the line, I got frustrated I was not seeing my desired level of growth. I was not grasping the scripture the way I wanted. There were times I slept off studying the scriptures. I wanted to grow from 20kg to 70kg (this is overboard) in 2 days😂. I wanted to be so close to God and talk about my Koinonia experience the way I had seen others do.

Like a normal love relationship should be, God wants us to grow through our love walk with him.  He wants to teach us how to love him.

And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man.
Luke 2:52 KJV

A lover shouldn’t rush his/her partner in a mutually loving relationship. It’s something you both should grow together doing and learning. It doesn't involve building castles in the air through unrealistic terms and ideas. It is the same with God! Start with desiring the sincere milk of the word and grow from there into cracking bones. You can't expect a full-grown man/woman to come out of a pregnant woman in the process of delivery. That would be very strange. There is a process.

As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby:
1 Peter 2:2 KJV

From the story, we see that in a love relationship, you must be able to grow together. No pressure. One step at a time. Enjoy the process. The same with our Father. God wants to walk us through the process. He’s not interested in the early morning rituals that we do to please your conscience. Our 5 minutes heartfelt conversation is more pleasing to God than the rituals we do just to mark prayer register.
Spiritual growth doesn’t happen like magic. Don’t expect to grow from 10kg to 50kg the next day. The process is beautiful. Sometimes, you feel you know the depth of his love, and then he leaves you perplexed by taking you deeper.

Once we commit ourselves to a relationship with God, and we are doing our path, we would grow. It may not feel like it sometimes, but the results would prove it.

Another reason you put so much pressure on yourself than necessary is that you are comparing your spiritual growth to another. You see the way Bro divides and shares the word at the fellowship, on that WhatsApp group and you are feeling like you are not doing enough cause you are not at the level you see him. This amongst many other things is what drives people into error. They want to sound deep. They want to show that they know. The desire to grow is valid, please; but embrace the process. Let God build you so you don’t miss out on any ingredient. Daniel, enjoy the process! “Insert your name” enjoy the process. Stop the comparison and be open to learning. If you keep comparing, you won’t know when you get embroidered in jealousy.

And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.  And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he came, helped them much which had believed through grace:  For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, shewing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.
Acts 18:26‭-‬28 KJV


God wants you to grow, and he won’t love you less than the way he loves someone ahead of you. If it was only you on earth, God would still have sent Christ to die for you.

Now on the flip side, maybe the reason you are not growing as you desire is that you have not put in the required work. I've been there, too. Religion won’t help you grow. It’s not only going to church programs or being involved in activities that will make you grow. Growth is not in the activities but in putting conscious effort and being intentional by doing everything required of us. As much as we should stick with the process we should not be lazy in the place of the study of the word.
Let’s enjoy the process as God shreds and builds us.

Thank you for reading❤.
If you are new here, welcome🤗. Do well to check out the other articles you will be blessed.