Tag Archives: spiritual growth

August 19, 2025 · 5:30 AM

The Process Of Growth

The Chinese Bamboo tree is one of the most incredible trees on the planet. When a farmer plants the seeds in the ground, waters and fertilizes them every day, nothing happens. He can keep tending to the soil for a year and nothing will happen. If he keeps going, years two, three and four will pass to with nothing shooting up from the ground. Then in the fifth year, suddenly the stalks rise up to 90’ in the air in just six weeks time. For five years, the farmer must trust that roots are forming underground while he does the preparation above ground. His faithfulness is rewarded in “sudden growth” that actually has been going on for five years where he couldn’t see.

This the same growth process God uses in our lives. We see it many times in Scripture. Take David for example. He was a young shepherd boy around 16 years old when he was anointed King. It wasn’t until he was 30 that he actually became king. During those 14 years or so he faced giants, served in Saul’s court, fled for his life, lived in caves and in foreign lands as well as became the leader of a group of outcasts. David wasn’t ready for the coronation at 16 so God sent him through a growth process that was masked in intense trials. One day his men were about to turn on him, and the next he became king suddenly. What seemed like a dark period of his life was actually roots of faith growing in the unseen to prepare him for what was next.

Galatians 6:9 says, “Let us not grow weary or become discouraged in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap, if we do not give in” (AMP). If you’ve been in an intense season of trials or you have been praying over a situation for what seems like an eternity, don’t give up. God is working in the unseen. At the right time, those seeds will sprout and come shooting out of the ground. If you’re waiting on God to fulfill his promise, don’t stop being faithful in your preparation. It can often feel like nothing is happening or that God is slow concerning His promises, but nothing could be further from the truth. God’s promises are on the other side of His processes.

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August 15, 2025 · 6:05 AM

Multifaceted Growth

By midsummer, all the plants I pruned in the winter have shoots going in every direction. The growth in all directions is a sign of health and life. When I see the greenery and the growth, I think of how God’s plan is for healthy things to grow. Our lives are no different. The Bible is full of verses about our growth as a sign of maturity and spiritual health. We each have unlimited growth potential in so many areas of our walk with Him. The parts that get pruned, fed and watered are the ones that will see growth. Just like my plants, it should be multifaceted extending in all directions that affects others.

Here are some Bible verses on the different areas of growth we need:

1. He makes the whole body fit together perfectly. As each part does its own special work, it helps the other parts grow, so that the whole body is healthy and growing and full of love.

Ephesians 4:16 NLT

2. Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Colossians 2:7 NLT

3. But continue to grow and increase in God’s grace and intimacy with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. May he receive all the glory both now and until the day eternity begins. Amen!

2 Peter 3:18 TPT

4. May the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow more and more and become as great as our love for you.

1 Thessalonians 3:12 GNT

5. For I long to visit you so I can bring you some spiritual gift that will help you grow strong in the Lord.

Romans 1:11 NLT

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August 8, 2025 · 6:06 AM

Seeking Spiritual Things

In John 6, Jesus fed the 5,000 before He and the disciples crossed the Sea of Galilee. When they returned, the crowd wanted another miracle as they referenced the manna in the wilderness. Jesus replied He was the Bread of Life. Like the woman at the well, they were looking for Jesus to satisfy their physical needs while He was offering to take care of their spiritual needs. Like them, we often prioritize the physical over the spiritual. Throughout Scripture God speaks to giving us spiritual things. He’s prioritizing the eternal over the physical. We then must learn to seek the spiritual things He offers us.

Here are some Bible verses on the spiritual blessings He offers:

1. All my words are clear and straightforward to everyone who possesses spiritual understanding. If you have an open mind, you will receive revelation-knowledge.

Proverbs 8:9 TPT

2. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

Romans 8:5 ESV

3. I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God.

Ephesians 1:16-17 NLT

4. It is love, then, that you should strive for. Set your hearts on spiritual gifts, especially the gift of proclaiming God’s message.

1 Corinthians 14:1 GNT

5. Open my eyes [to spiritual truth] so that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law.

Psalms 119:18 AMP

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July 30, 2025 · 5:40 AM

Creating Eremos

When was the last time you got alone and quiet without distractions? No phone, tablet, computer, TV, radio or people. With all the technological breakthroughs of the last century or so we have advanced in so many areas and made life better. However, with the invention of all these things, we have lost our ability to be alone. The quietest place on earth is at the Microsoft headquarters. The anechoic chamber has six layers of concrete and steel. It’s suspended by springs to eliminate ground vibrations and it’s fully padded with foam. It’s designed to absorb all sound. The problem is most people can’t stay in there for more than 30 minutes because it’s so unnatural to the modern person.

In Luke 5:16, and throughout the Gospels, it says, “But Jesus Himself would often slip away to the wilderness and pray [in seclusion]” (AMP). The Greek word for wilderness that was used each time Jesus did this is eremos. We have translated it as wilderness, but it’s more than that. It’s not just a lonely, quiet place, it describes a place of encounter, formation and communion with God. It was a set apart place from all distractions where He could hear God’s voice without the noise from the world. In this eremos, He met God to get clarity and renewal. If He made it a point to find these places often in a less distracted and connected world, how much ,ore should we make time for it?

In Matthew 6:6 Jesus encouraged us to do the same by saying, “But when you pray, go into your most private room, close the door and pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees [what is done] in secret will reward you.” We must find our own eremos where we can meet with God. It may not feel comfortable at first, but keep going to it. The goal isn’t external silence, but internal stillness. Jesus is inviting us into God’s presence where we can be still, know He is God, rest in His presence and find renewal for our soul. Creating your own eremos is critical to your spiritual growth and relationship with God.

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July 24, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Seeking More

One of a kid’s favorite games is hide and seek. Since we had some kids over recently, we encouraged them to play inside. The last one caught got to be it each time. On one occasion, the youngest player got to be it. After a few minutes of trying, she couldn’t find anyone. She was ready to quit. We encouraged her by setting a timer, offering hints and walking with her. She found no one. After the timer was up, we had her call out, “Marco!” The older kids responded, “Polo!” She began seeking again and was able to find them. I realized at that moment that each person has a different ability and threshold for seeking.

Hebrews 11:6 says, “And without faith living within us it would be impossible to please God. For we come to God in faith knowing that he is real and that he rewards the faith of those who passionately seek him” (TPT). Each of us are called to continually seek Him even after we’ve found Him. There are greater depths of Him to know beyond what we find on the surface at salvation. He’s not asking us just to find Him. We’re to know Him as well. We can’t just give up or stop seeking Him after salvation. We need to seek the different aspects of who He is because we’re going to need them as we go through life.

Psalm 105:4 says, “Seek more of his strength! Seek more of him! Let’s always be seeking the light of his face.” Seeking more of who God is should be a daily discipline for believers. Our personal revival starts with seeking these different aspects of who He is. When we go through dry times in our relationship with Him, the root cause in a lot of cases is that we have quit seeking Him. He wants to be found. He wants to reveal more if Himself to you, but you must move and seek Him. We have a promise in James 4:8 that says if we will draw close to Him, He will draw close to us. Seeking Him is the pathway to the closeness we’re looking for.

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word. 

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July 21, 2025 · 4:30 AM

Purposefully Planted

I grew up having watermelon seed spitting contests with my friends. These days you have to look hard to find a watermelon with seeds in it. There’s a lot of seedless fruit these days in the produce section. While it’s convenient to eat, I can’t help but think about we’ve learned to circumvent God’s process for growth and reproduction. Seedless fruits are created through processes where fertilization occurs, but the seeds to reproduce the fruit don’t mature. It produces fruit that’s easy to consume, but lacks generational continuance.

I love the story of the woman at the well in John 4. Jesus asked her for a drink to open the conversation and then let her know that He had living water to satisfy her spiritual thirst. Verses 28-30 say, “Then the woman left her water jar, and went into the city and began telling the people, “Come, see a man who told me all the things that I have done! Can this be the Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed)?” So the people left the city and were coming to Him” (AMP). Once she experienced salvation, she ran into the city spreading seeds about Jesus. The people came out to the well and believed in Jesus as well.

In John 15:16 Jesus said, “You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed and placed and purposefully planted you, so that you would go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit will remain and be lasting.” You have been planted right where you are to plant seeds and bear fruit that remains. God isn’t looking for superficial results from your life where it’s busy with activity but doesn’t plant seeds in others. When we fail to share our faith, we’re just like a seedless watermelon. He’s purposefully planted you so you can multiply the kingdom the way the woman at the well did.

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July 17, 2025 · 5:30 AM

Your Holy Pursuit

Today’s world has us concerned mainly with our output. We measure what’s important to us. That could be our bank account, our income, our work, our busyness, etc. We’ve learned to value ourselves by our output. In this pursuit of value, we’ve overlooked our inputs. When do you feel most mentally alert? When are you feeling your best physically? When do you feel closest to God? Those are tough questions that we rarely give any thought to, but if you will think about them, you’ll notice patterns and behaviors that increase those feelings. Output activities drain you mentally, physically and spiritually, but input activities increase your energy in those areas. As I mentioned, we’ve become so focused on outputs that many of us feel tired, mentally drained and far from God.

Jesus constantly took time to get alone with God in prayer. That was His method of input or recharging Himself. All day long He would be doing output things like preaching, teaching, healing and forgiving. To make sure He had enough in the tank each day, He woukd withdraws to secluded places. David found his spiritual inputs in God’s Word and in worship. If you’ve ever read Psalm 119, you know it’s all how much He loved God’s Word. For the leaders of the Early Church, prayer was their input. In Acts 6, they appointed seven men to oversee some of the administrative side of the church so that they could give their full attention to prayer and the Word of God. So I’ll ask you again, what are your spiritual inputs? Have you been too focused on your outputs?

In Paul’s last letter before he was martyred, he wrote final instructions to Timothy on how to conduct himself. Part of 2 Timothy 2:22 says, “Whatever builds up your faith and deepens your love must become your holy pursuit” (TPT). Your spiritual inputs must become your holy pursuit. They must take precedence in your life. While this world, and even the Church, is concerned with your outputs, God wants us to be focused on our inputs. An empty vessel will have nothing to pour out. An empty vessel simply goes through the motions. Yet, it’s the empty vessel who will say, “Lord, didn’t I do all these things (outputs) in your name?” And Jesus will reply, “Depart from me. I never knew you (you never took the time to know me (inputs)).” Outputs are important, but inputs need to be our holy pursuit.

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word. 

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April 8, 2025 · 5:41 AM

Taking Assessment

I recently retook an assessment that I had taken several years ago. I taught a class on it for a few years, so I know why the assessment is asking the questions it asked. As I took it, I had a thought. I could give answers that made myself look really good, or I could answer truthfully. I wanted to get an accurate assessment of myself more than I wanted to look good for someone else. I answered truthfully and several of my flaws were revealed with red marks on the results. I sat on a coaching call answering questions explaining what was going on inside me when faced with certain situations. I figured the only way to improve is to have an accurate assessment.

Many people in the Bible were assessed by God. Saul’s heart was exposed when he was confronted by Samuel regarding his disobedience. He made excuses as to why he didn’t obey, as he tried to make himself look better. When David was confronted on his disobedience and sin, he admitted it and sought forgiveness. There are places like Psalm 139:23 where he says, “Examine me, O God, and know my mind; test me, and discover my thoughts” (GNT). He understood the need for personal, spiritual and motivational assessment. If you’re going to grow or get better, you must be willing to expose those areas.

In 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, “Put yourselves to the test and judge yourselves, to find out whether you are living in faith.” How strong is your faith and belief? Only when it is tested can you truly know. It’s easy to say what you believe when you’re not being tested. However, being faced with a hard time, or a hard truth, will reveal what’s inside. It’s important to regularly assess where you are in your faith and growth as a Christian. Are you taking steps to be more Christlike? Are your roots growing down deep or are they shallow? The only way to know is to ask God to examine you and put you to the test. Don’t be afraid to ask God to show you areas of growth that are needed. Get an honest assessment, see it as an opportunity to build Christian character and growth, then make changes as necessary.

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October 30, 2024 · 5:40 AM

Wilderness Seasons

Some of the toughest seasons in life to get through are wilderness seasons. They’re brought on by different things that happen in our life. Sometimes we enter them shell shocked after our world has been rocked. You can’t really feel Godwin the wilderness, but you know He’s there. I’ve found myself simply going through the motions. I stand during worship, but words won’t come out. I hear the message, but nothing seems to resonate. I smile and shake hands, but feel disconnected. I try to pray, but my words fall flat. There’s no telling how long the season will last, but I’ve found that wilderness seasons are usually followed up by victory seasons.

In 1 Kings 19, Elijah had just called fire from heaven and proved God’s existence to the nation when Jezebel threatened his life. Verse 4 says, “Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die” (NLT). He fell asleep there from his depression, but was awakened by an angel who fed him. He laid back down and slept again until the angel did the same thing again. He then traveled forty days and nights deeper into the wilderness where he found a cave on Mount Sinai. God spoke and asked him what he was doing there. He needed to hear from God and know His power. He experienced an earthquake, a fire and a still, small voice. God sent him back into the wilderness with instructions to anoint a new king and to appoint a successor. In that moment, God took care of the future and his present. Some of his greatest miracles are in the chapters that follow.

Deuteronomy 2:7 says, “For the Lord your God has blessed you in everything you have done. He has watched your every step through this great wilderness. During these forty years, the Lord your God has been with you, and you have lacked nothing.” God never leaves us in wilderness seasons, and He provides for us while we’re there. I’ve learned that these seasons, while tough, have produced deeper roots in my faith. They caused me to dig down deep into God’s Word, to seek His presence and to depend on Him. I couldn’t always see Him in my wanderings in the wilderness, but when I look back, I see He never left my side. If you’re there now, keep being desperate for God to answer. It may not be big and grandiose like you want. It’s often in the still, small voice and in subtle ways. God has a purpose for wilderness seasons. Don’t rush through them. A victorious season is just ahead.

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October 10, 2024 · 5:30 AM

Life In The Desert

In the mid 1990’s, I moved to Cairo, Egypt. As the plane landed, I looked out the window. I was shocked to see that there wasn’t any grass on the medians between the runway. On the drive to my new home, I was overwhelmed by the sea of monochromatic tan all around me. The Sahara Desert was my first culture shock having lived in a lush green area of East Texas my whole life. However, over time, I grew used to living in the desert and the lack of green vegetation. Then, early the year after I moved there, I decided to take a bus to Israel. We drove for hours through the desert until we came to the border. As I got out to walk across, I saw the strangest thing ever. All along the border there was a line of grass and flowers in the middle of this desert and it extended into Israel. It was an incredible sight to see life growing in the middle of a barren land.

The reason deserts lack life is because they lack water. Over 90% of Egyptians live along the Nile river because that’s the on,y way they can sustain life. Sure, there are people who live in the desert, but life is better and more easily sustained where there is water. Even along the Nile, I hadn’t seen what I saw at the border that day. Things were thriving at the border. It reminded me that God is able to do the impossible. He can grow life in the middle of nowhere and in the harshest environments. He is able to take our roughest, driest patches in life and spring up new life. He is able to take what looks like an end and create a new beginning. The desert we’re temporarily living in has the potential for life.

In Isaiah 43:18-19 God says, “Do not remember the former things, Or ponder the things of the past. Listen carefully, I am about to do a new thing, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even put a road in the wilderness, Rivers in the desert” (AMP). I believe God is still speaking to us through these verses. The desert you’ve been in is about to burst forth with life. It starts with us forgetting the things of the past that led us into the desert. We need to focus our attention on what God is doing right now in this dry season. He’s creating a pathway forward for you and bringing a river of life to your situation. What has been a barren time for you is about to be teeming with life. God does not abandon us in the desert and He’s able to make a way where there seems to be no way. Trust in Him, don’t lean on your own understanding, acknowledge what He’s doing and He will direct your path through this time (Proverbs 3:5-6).

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Throwback Thursday is a feature I’m using to help build some margin into my schedule to pursue other ventures. Each Thursday I’ll be bringing you a previously written devotional that still speaks encouragement to us from God’s Word.

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