3 Tips for Spiritual Growth

Brad Spangler

The Apostle Paul experienced a remarkable transformation on the road of Damascus, and yet he continued to grow throughout his entire life. This transformation and spiritual growth enabled him to remain faithful to his calling. Toward the end of his life he wrote, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith“ (2 Timothy 4:7, NKJV). What a wonderful testimony to have! 

With that said, each one of us will also need to go through our own process of spiritual growth for us to run our race well. As a short definition, we will define spiritual growth as spiritual development from the moment we are born again until we reach maturity in Christ. 

Here are three things that you can begin to implement today for your growth process:  

1. Reflection

When it comes to our spiritual development, it is essential that we locate ourselves by taking the time to reflect. We need to pause and ask ourselves hard questions, such as:  

• What stumbling blocks are in my life?“

• Who do I need to become to fulfill what God has called me to do? 

When you identify an area that needs improvement, you can begin to ask the Holy Spirit for guidance and grace to help you grow in this area. 

To be completely transparent, growing in patience is essential for me to improve my love walk. My desire for this year is to become a more patient and loving follower of Jesus.

2. Meditation

Two of the most memorable days of my life were getting to witness the birth of my children. Now, grant it, I did almost faint while my wife was in labour with our daughter, but that is a story for another time. When a healthy baby is born, it comes from the womb whole and complete, with all of its parts. Likewise, we are instantly made whole and complete with our spiritual birth in Christ. This means that faith, healing, love, patience, and anything else we need to live victoriously in this life are already within our spirit. We then need to go through a process of developing just like a baby naturally grows and develops. This is why Paul told the church in Galatia that he desired for Christ to be formed in them (Galatians 4:19). 

One way that we can begin seeing this type of formation is through mediation. Meditation means to simply to think about, imagine, or speak the Word of God out loud.  I have found this tremendously helpful in my spiritual growth journey. Let’s use the example of improving my love walk this year by growing in patience. Here is a short confession based on 1 Corinthians 13 that I have begun to meditate on daily: 

I thank You, Lord, that because Your love is in my heart, I am patient and kind; I do not envy; I do not parade myself, I am not puffed up; I do not behave rudely, I do not seek my own, I am not easily provoked, I think no evil; do not rejoice in iniquity, I only rejoice in the truth; I can bear all things, I believe all things, hope all things and endure all things. By the grace of God, I will never fail.

3. Living in Community

While I believe that spiritual growth takes personal responsibility, I do not believe that we can reach our full potential without the help of others. We were created to live life and grow in a community. 

Proverbs 27:17 says that ”as iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend” (NKJV). We must be intentional about who we choose to surround ourselves with, both inside and outside the local church. We all need people in our lives who will challenge us, love us, hold us accountable, pray for us, and even mourn with us during the most challenging times.  We must actively pursue those who have gone before us, lock arms with those beside us, and reach back for those behind us.

While this may not be an exhaustive list, I believe these three things are essential for anyone’s spiritual growth. I hope that you have been inspired to take action. Remember, the Greater One lives in you, so you have what it takes! Put your faith into action and begin growing into your future.