Day 28 – It takes time

There are no shortcuts to maturity.

Spiritual growth, like physical growth takes time. God views our lives from and for eternity, so He is never in a hurry.

While we worry about how fast we grow, God is concerned about how strong we grow. You can only give God as much of you as you understand at that moment. Your discipleship is the process of conforming to Christlikeness, your eventual destination, but your journey will last a lifetime.

Today we’re obsessed with speed, but God is more interested in strength and stability than swiftness. Real maturity is never the result of a single experience, no matter how powerful or moving – the growth is gradual, through many epiphanies, struggles and battles.

WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG?

+ WE are slow learners.

We forget the lessons God teaches us and soon revert to our old patterns of behaviour. Accordingly we need repeated exposure, to the same experiences.

+ WE have a lot to unlearn.

All of our bad habits and problems didn’t develop overnight; it is therefore unrealistic to expect them to go away immediately.

When you’re given a brand new nature at the moment of conversion, you will still have all the old habits, patterns and practices that need to be removed and replaced.

+ WE are afraid to humbly face the truth about ourselves.

The fear of what we might discover if we honestly faced character defects keep us living in the prison of denial. You cannot grow without a humble, teachable attitude.

+ GROWTH is often painful and scary.

There is no growth without fear or loss; and there is no loss without pain.

+ HABITS take time to develop.

Your character is the sum total of your habits. To develop the habits of Christlike character, you must practice them – and that takes time.

If you practice something, over time you get good at it. Character building habits (spiritual disciplines) are the result of repetition – the mother of character and skill.

DON’T BE IN A HURRY

+ BELIEVE God is working in your life even when you don’t feel it.

There are seasons in your spiritual life. It’s fine to pray for a miracle, but don’t be disappointed if the answer comes through gradual change.

+ KEEP a notebook or journal of lessons learned.

Write down the insights and life lessons God teaches about Him, and everything else so that you can review and remember them and pass them on to future generations – reviewing your spiritual journal regularly can spare you a lot of unnecessary pain and heartache.

+ BE patient with God and with yourself

God’s timetable is rarely the same as yours. Remember that God is never in a hurry, but He is always on time. He will use your entire lifetime to prepare you for your role in eternity.

Great souls are grown through struggles and storms and seasons of suffering.

+ DON’T get discouraged.

A delay is not a denial from God. Remember how far you’ve come, not just how far you have to go.

God isn’t finished with you, so keep moving forward!

Hurry up, and slow down… I love you ~ SB