God’s Tool Box for Growth

Are you growing in your walk with the Lord Jesus Christ?
 
It’s a must! You and I are saved to grow (Col. 2:6-7), commanded to grow (2 Pet. 3:18), and equipped to grow (2 Pet 1:3).
 
But growth is not automatic.
 
The blessing of the Christian life is that the Lord gives us all the TOOLS we need to grow, but we need to use them.
 
Here are a few must-have, must-utilize tools:
 
God’s Word: “Like newborn babes, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation” (1 Pet. 2:2).
 
Prayer: “Epaphras…always laboring earnestly for you in his prayers, that you may stand perfect and fully assured in all the will of God” (Col. 4:12).
 
Holy Spirit: “Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Gal. 3:3). Don’t grieve Him (Eph. 4:30) or quench Him (1 Th. 5:19), but walk by His empowerment in your life (Gal. 5:16-23).
 
Trials: “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (Jms. 1:2-4). Spiritual sandpaper smooths out the rough spots in our lives.
 
Spiritual Leaders: “And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ…We are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ” (Eph. 4:11-15). Listen and follow their lead as they help weed and feed your soul.
 
Fellow Believers: “But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called 'today,' so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin” (Heb. 3:13). Look up some of the “one anothers” and put them into practice.
 
Satanic Suffering: “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith…After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace...will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you” (1 Pet. 5:8-10). God uses Satan to actually bless our lives as we fight the good fight of faith.
 
We don’t lack any tools (Eph. 1:3: Col. 2:10), so take full advantage of what God has given you, or else you will find yourself weak, struggling, disconnected, and unmotivated to walk in a manner worthy of our Lord.

Pastor Jeff