Graced for Growth: Tools for Spiritual and Personal Development

In distinct parts of youth and childhood, we experience what many know as growing pains. Bones and bodies shift. Cells multiply, making room under the skin’s surface for what isn’t yet seen. Our adult lives mirror a similar process. Personal and spiritual development hinge on our willingness to engage in intentional goal-setting as well as the ability to respond with flexibility to inevitable life change.

Life stretches us where we may be skilled, while also strengthening us in areas of weakness. Human errors color, shade, and highlight parts of our journey, revealing what needs attention and alignment with God’s ultimate purpose. Our mistakes not only make for a more intriguing life landscape but also create a wealth of life lessons for both personal and spiritual development.

Missteps provide us with opportunities to learn, love, and live forward with the God who has created, chosen, and called us to life with Him. When we leave room for grace amid flaws and failures, we can encounter God’s greatness and strength even more than what we imagined possible on our own (2 Corinthians 12:9; Philippians 4:13).

Self-talk

For us to see and secure the vision that God has concerning our personal and spiritual development, we must rescript our self-talk to align with Jesus, the Word of God (John 1:1). The Bible articulates the Truth we need for abundant living. When we interact with God’s Word as a living force, it awakens parts of us that need to come alive to the spiritual blessings and soul benefits that the Gospel has made available (Hebrews 4:12).

With the Word of God, we deconstruct the negative thoughts and limiting beliefs that our enemy craftily uses to poison thoughts, feelings, and actions. We can better demolish arguments and pretensions that set themselves up against the knowledge of God and better learn to take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10: 5).

To an even greater degree, the Word infuses us with the confidence essential to carrying out our divine purpose and destiny.

If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have given me life. – Psalm 119:92-93, ESV

Small wins, significant victory

Every bit of progress, no matter how small, is significant. Celebrate the small wins, knowing that Jesus has settled a victory over all that seemed formidable and final. Because of Him, sin and death have been forever conquered and subdued by the power of our Resurrected Messiah (1 Corinthians 15:54-56).

This equips you to war, advancing from a place of joy and rest, even on the days when your spiritual and personal development journey tax you to the point of abandoning your pursuit. Don’t yield to the enemy’s pressure or the frustrations that accompany the process. Instead, pause, pray, and gather perspective, honoring where you’ve been and charting the course forward into the next part of the adventure.

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain. – 1 Corinthians 15:58, NIV

Supportive circles

A famous line from John Donne’s poem reminds us that “no man is an island.” Throughout Scripture, biblical narratives underscore and illustrate that the Father created us for community with Him and with one another. Interdependence affords us the richness that friends, loved ones, and accountability circles can provide.

Our personal and spiritual development journey can get lonely at times, but interacting with a small group of people can foster essential support. This is true even in groups with similar, shared, or diverse goals. A healthy community provides rest and refreshment when we feel isolated or misunderstood, or perhaps disconnected from the developing dream.

God created us with a need to give and receive the human touch, which enables us to recover from weariness and resume kingdom pursuits with renewed vision and fresh resolve.

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. – Proverbs 27:17, NIV

Next steps

Jesus never promised that any journey would be challenge-free, whether one characterized by spiritual or personal development. He guaranteed us that in this life we will have trouble; but we can take heart, for He has overcome the world (John 16:33).

In each season of life’s experience, He embeds opportunities for His faithful ones to grow in grace. Whether it is directly through the Holy Spirit or the fellowship of other believers, you can find the strength needed to endure and remain curiously engaged, even in the most challenging process.

Having a counselor is a critical support that can offer clarity and empathy as you grow through each part of your experience. Search this site for a professional to connect with, then commit to meeting regularly. You will not only be making room for new growth but also for the greatness God is already developing in you.