May 3, 2013

  •  God Wants You to Grow

    When it comes to progress, there are no shortcuts. If you want to improve in any area of your life, you have to pay attention to the small stuff. You have to take one step at a time.

    Say you want to get into shape physically or lose some weight (or both). Contrary to the promises made by miracle programs, machines, and drugs, there is no such thing as instant success. You have to pay attention to the details by eating and exercising correctly every day in order to realize long-term results. The same principle applies to improving your mind. There's no quick way to get a college degree. And even if a diploma isn't your goal, the only way to accumulate useful knowledge is through disciplined, consistent study. You can't even train a dog overnight! It takes repetition, consistency, reinforcement, and practice. Otherwise Fido will look at you as if to say, "You've got to be kidding!"

    Well, we're not kidding. It's a fact of life. To grow in any area, you've got to do the little things over and over again. The principle of growth through detail is especially true in your spiritual life, yet people think that by praying once in a while (when they get in trouble), by going to church twice a year (on Christmas and Easter, of course), and by cracking open a Bible once in a blue moon, God will smile on them and give them blessing upon blessing.

    Make no mistake about it. God won't love you any more just because you do certain things. His love for you is always the highest love. But you will experience certain spiritual benefits if you pay attention to spiritual details. Like reading the Bible consistently. Or talking to God on a regular basis. Or helping others in need when the need is clear. We're not talking about spiritual legalism. Paying attention to the details of your spiritual life is all about discipline.

    God wants you to grow spiritually because when you do, your life becomes more meaningful and more satisfying. Just like you feel when you make the consistent effort to improve physically, you will feel great about yourself when you make the effort to improve spiritually. And even better than that, the people around you will experience the benefits of your growth.

    from: God is in the small stuff/and it all matters 

    What helped me the most with my spiritual growth has been reading the Bible that comes with daily devotionals. They helped me to understand the Bible scriptures and verses. The devotional books that I've read in the past years have given me so much understanding about God. It is true that the more we understand God's plan and purposes through constant Bible study, it gives meaning to life. For me, there's something that I've realized: Life is not easy to decipher. We are constantly looking to be in a meaningful relationship, but we always end up in all the wrong places. We have this desire to be successful in life, but we ended up disappointed, unhappy and unsatisfied. Whether we are rich or poor, we would all find ourselves on the same road to depression. Why is it that as we get older, we become more reclusive. We come to the point in life that nobody can satisfy our needs. We get tired of people that hurt us over and over again. It could be our own family, siblings, relatives, friends and work associates. It seems the heartaches never end. That's why we have so many reality shows and movies based on true stories. Perfect examples of how we are doomed from the get go. You'd think we would learn from these true stories. But they get us more depressed than anything. This kind of struggles, I found out, do not have to rule my life at all. I found out that as I study God's nature and His desire to lead me to the right path, I found myself getting out of the Depression Road. When I realized the depth of Jesus Christ sacrifice to save me from all the burdens I was carrying in life and His offer of eternal life, I found myself so blessed and so favored by the Creator of this world.  Knowing He is on my side and loves me unconditionally, I've learned to be compassionate of others who "still haven't found what they're looking for."

     As long as stars shine down from  Heaven And the rivers run into the sea, Till the end of time, forever, You're the only love I'll need
    In my life You're all that matters, In my eyes the only truth I see. When  my hopes and dreams have shattered, You're the one that's there for me

    When I found You I was blessed, And  I will never leave You, I need You
    Imagine  me without You I'd be lost and so  confused, I wouldn't last a  day, I'd be afraid without You there  to see me through
    Imagine me  without You Lord, You know it's  just impossible Because of You,  it's all brand new, My life is now  worth while, I can't imagine me  without You
    When You caught me  I was falling, Your love lifted me  back on my feet. It was like You  heard my calling, And You rushed to  set me free