Post details: "what can I be doing to bring about spiritual growth?"

04/10/08

Permalink 01:54:23 am, Categories: By Trent, GraceHead counseling
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"what can I be doing to bring about spiritual growth?"

by Trent - from November 2005

For MORE QUESTIONS like this, click here.

OK. Here is another question that someone asked me, and gave me permission to share it here. I think this one is one of the all-time best questions that I have ever been asked. What do you think? How would you answer this young lady?

Question -

I really do not know exactly how to explain how I feel. ... I have asked God to come into my life, accepted Jesus as my savior, and asked for my sins to be forgiven. I've been trying to make it a point to pray at least every night. I really do not know much about the Bible. I've been reading it a little, but honestly it puts me to sleep. It is almost like I cannot make myself concentrate on the text. I cannot begin to explain how eager I am to be right with the Lord. It just seems like the more I pray and the more I want to walk with God, the harder things get. It seems like it gets harder to believe, and I start doubting, etc. I am not sure if this is normal, or what is going on.

I really want to be right with God and I have no idea how to approach it. Any advice at all will help. I really just want to feel God's love and to know that I am in good hands and that I let God take care of everything in my life. Is there some feeling you get when you know that you are walking in Jesus's footsteps? Thank you for your time. Have a great day.

end o question. What do you say to someone like that?

Well, I prayed about how I could answer her, and this is what I said:

Essentially, you are asking how you are going to get to the point of peace, when you are personally, and emotionally intimate with God … what is going to take you there, and what can you be doing to bring that about? You want to be rid of doubts, be firm in your understanding of spiritual realities, and have a healthy appetite for the things of God, right? Meanwhile, you want with great eagerness to be close to the Lord, but you are not seeing how to get there.

However, before I can answer your question, I have to know something first. In fact, if you can answer this question, I know many, many people that can take the information and have a quantum leap in their spiritual growth. I mean this, your answer will help a lot of people.

Not so long ago you didn’t care about Jesus, and God … and going to church made your hair stand on end. Only a short while ago you went from a gag reflex to God to now “[you] cannot begin to explain how eager [you are] to be right with the Lord.”

How?

There are people with that gag reflex their whole life, and I just need to know what you did, that made that shift to hunger for righteousness. What was your practice? Was it a morning study of the Bible? Was it watching or listening to Christian programming? Was it learning Greek, or Hebrew? Was it pouring your life into ministry?

Now, if we were sitting together, I would really press you for this answer right now. How did you get to where you now want to be right with God with your whole being?

What is the first thing that comes to mind? What would you tell me if we sat together?

Well, actually I deceived you, sister. I know the answer, because it is the same for all of God’s children: “I don’t know.” And sometimes I hear this also, “I guess God just changed me.” Right? There is no answer to that question, where you are concerned. It has to be Him.

He must have made the difference not anything you did.

And now you know the answer to your question. The same God that changed you to the point that you now “cannot begin to explain how eager [you are] to be right with the Lord” will the be God that takes you deeper and deeper into the spiritual walk.

What does all of this mean? Well first of all, rest!

Spiritual rest is like physical rest. It is required for growth. Did you know that children have a growth hormone that causes growth, and that this hormone is only active during sleep? It is true. I am 6-5” tall, but if I was deprived of sleep as I was growing, then I would not be as tall. Rest will accelerate your spiritual growth more then anything else.

As a churchgoer, you will encounter people that give you a formula for stuff you can do that will help you get spiritually mature. In fact, most of what you hear in church will be along those lines. All of that is fine and good. I am not saying anything about it, except to say that if there is a list of 10 things that we can do that help me grow, then there are 100000000 things that GOD IS ALREADY doing to help us grow, and improve us spiritually. You are a testimony to this reality, because He changed your desires without anything special you did. In fact, I would not be surprised if God has allowed your disinterest in the Bible to persist ONLY because you might credit your study as the reason for your change of wants. But, as it stands you cannot credit your Bible study because you were totally disinterested in it. You have nobody to credit but God.

Your interest and disinterest in things will change because God is now in charge of your will. He is at the helm. You don’t have to make Him Lord, because that is what He is. Whatever little effort that you make will be eclipsed a million times over by God’s efforts to reform you and make you new, and present you holy and blameless. Just rest in that. You asked Him in, and now just thank Him that you have already given your life to Him, with no take-backs.

What if you fall tomorrow? Well, rest. Rest, because you have already given your life to God, and what more could anyone expect of you? There isn’t much more that you can do. But, when you fall, you will see that it is because you did something that you really did not want to do, or you did not do something that you really wanted to do. If Jesus lives in your heart, then He will first impact your wants. Resting in Him, means acting like you WANT to feel, even when you don’t feel that way. Trust your wants before your feelings, because that is where God lives, now. He lives in your heart, not emotions.

How do I know that He lives in your wants/heart … well, you said it yourself, “. I really want to be right with God …”

How do I know that He does not live in your emotions? Well, you said that also.

I’m not worried, because the same God that took you this far will complete the work that He began in you. You have a Shepherd.

Rest.

Ripening for the harvest,

Trent Fuller


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Comments:

Comment from: contemplativethoughts [Visitor] · http://contemplativethoughts.typepad.com
Well written answer you put forth.  I personally am so tired of people always seeming to have some kind of answer for every spiritual struggle or ailment that comes to pass.  Sometimes I wish people would just say, "You know what?  I have no idea."  Some people seem to have cornered the market on God.  But if I'm not mistaken, God said in Scripture that His thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways.  I realized how much time I had been wasting trying to figure Him out.  I can't.  So now I rest.  And as you said, rest is a good thing, especially spiritually resting in the peace of the Lord knowing that He will take you where you need to be.
Permalink 11/08/05 @ 14:10
Comment from: contemplativethoughts [Visitor] · http://contemplativethoughts.typepad.com
[[I, Trent, deleted duplicatation of previous comment]]
Permalink 11/08/05 @ 14:16
Comment from: Trent [Member] · http://www.GraceHead.com
Rest is a good thing ... Maybe the best thing. For the Creator having made what is "good" and what is "very good" was not finished until He created "rest" on the seventh day.
But rest isn't easy.
The greatest struggle is to struggle not to struggle. And to help us along, God has arranged a special obstacle course for each of His children ... One like quick-sand that rewards rest and sets-itself against our efforts.

Thank you for your confirmation.

Ripening for the harvest,
Trent
www.gracehead.com
Permalink 11/09/05 @ 13:17
Comment from: Mrs Zeke [Visitor] · http://evolislovebackwards.blogspot.com/
Trent I think you answered fine.

I love music and this song had brought me back to your point so many times

"Rest Easy" by Audio Adrenaline

One more mile 'til I lay rest
I have put myself through this rigid test
But the mile has never ended no distance has been gained
I do not see greatness I wanted to obtain
Where is my embrace from the race that I have run?
I have kept a steady pace but still I have not won

[CHORUS]
Rest easy
have no fear
I love you perfectly
love drives out fear
I'll take your burden
you take My grace
Rest easy
in My embrace

I am such a sinner I fear my evil ways
I fear my imperfection I fear my final days
I just want to take control and snap this rusty chain
drop my heavy burden it seems to be in vain

[REPEAT CHORUS]

[BRIDGE]
I am not a bold man even though I want to be
I am just a dreamer with a timid history
Scared of confrontations I fume all through the night
the world has it's hold on me and I just want to fly
The sky, the sky is open wide
but I can't fly 'til I step aside

[CHORUS II]
Rest easy
have no fear
I love you perfectly
and perfect love drives out fear
I'll take your burden
you take My grace
Rest easy
in My embrace
Rest easy, rest easy
rest easy, in My embrace
Rest easy
Permalink 04/10/08 @ 13:33
Comment from: j'net [Visitor]
Trent, as I read this womans questions, I realized it was much like the same question I asked God myself...and I wondered what I would answer back to her...You put it perfectly! I could never come up with any answer either, except that it HAS to be the Lord that does the work within us. After all, none comes to Him unless He first calls them. In God's awesome Love for us, He guides us each step of the way. One step, then the next, each in order to bring us to where He wants us to be: with Him.
Permalink 04/11/08 @ 12:04

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