Growing in Faith
by Dan Green

“We have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God.”  Colossians 1:9-10

Growth is a byproduct of many factors.  You cannot simply say to a seed, “Grow” and expect to see results – at least I can’t!  You have to provide soil, sunlight, and water and these all work together to cause the seed to grow. 

Many parts of life are like this.  Well-behaved children are not raised by simply telling them to obey the rules; it’s a far more complex function of love, coaching, education etc  (If anyone has worked this out please don’t be shy – the rest of us would appreciate a hand!)  Growth in faith is the same; we must attend to our part if we want to grow in faith.

What is our part?  I suggest it is to love and serve God, to worship Him, to talk to Him through prayer, to learn about Him through the Bible, to care for others, and to witness to others.  The results of this kind of living will be growth in faith.

A decade or so back I got into working out, so and once a week for a whole hour and a quarter I was at the gym.  I skipped sometimes like when I was on vacation, or had a big night the night before, or a game was on the TV.  I never did any pushups at home or went walking or did any other exercise outside of the gym.  I also kept my previous eating habits of burgers etc.  After a while I quit the working out routine altogether – it just had had no results! 

Are you surprised with either outcome – the lack of results or me quitting? No, neither should I have been.  Nothing significant can be achieved with this little input – not even Christian growth.

Sharing the faith is also a significant part of our calling as Christians.  And if it is lacking from our routine, our growth here will be stunted as well.  But since this is often a challenging area for many of us, our congregation offers programs like “Friend to Friend” to instruct and support us in this area of our walk.  Like most things, once they are stripped down to bite size pieces they are not so scary and this course will do this for sharing the good news.  “It allows believers to make the most of their relationships with unbelievers by building bridges. 

Don’t feel fearful or guilty about this area of your walk with Christ take a prayerful baby step forward to venture where Christ has already been and to where the Holy Spirit patiently awaits us. 

Dear Lord, thanks for all You have done for me!  Help me to be active in doing those things that You call me to do, so that I might grow in my faith and commitment.  If there are places where You need to “weed” or “fertilize” my life, then do so.  Give me the courage to step forward in faith – even if it’s just a baby step.  In Jesus’ name, AMEN.