5 Stages Of Spiritual Growth #4
The Spiritual Adolescent/ Server
This is part 4 of my 5 Stages Of Spiritual Growth series. You can read part 1 here, part 2 here and part 3 here.
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As we hit stage #4 I wanted to make sure I make this point very clear- You should not be feeling any shame if after studying these spiritual stages and listening to the Holy Spirit you find you aren’t as far along in your spiritual journey as you originally thought. ( Galatians 5:25) Maybe you’ve been a Christian for many years and thought you were a spiritual parent just based on the number of years you’ve been saved. But now you’re realizing you’re more of a spiritual child or even an infant. There is no shame in this! This does not make you a bad Christian or useless for the kingdom of God. Continue to humble yourself before the Lord, search the scriptures and purpose to find a spiritual parent to disciple you one on one or join a discipleship group at your church. Keep looking to grow in your faith. Your pastor or church leadership team should be able to help guide you in this. God will bless your efforts and grow you more and more into his likeness. And again, if you don’t have a pastor because you don’t belong to a local Bible believing and teaching church, I urge you to find one and join that body of Believers ASAP. You will not be able to reach full maturity in Christ if you do not belong to a local body of Believers.
Or maybe you’ve considered yourself a spiritual person your whole life but are realizing you are actually spiritually dead and need to be born again into the family of God. I would be happy to communicate with you more about this. Please message me or leave me a comment and I will reach out to you!
The Spiritual Adolescent/Young Adult/ The Server Phase:
By this phase the Believer has gone from being self-centered to others-centered. They are beginning to understand their role in furthering the kingdom of God and starting to take this calling seriously. (1 John 2:13) They are becoming givers rather than just takers. Ministering to others rather than just being ministered to. They are taking what they are learning in the Bible and actually applying it to their life and daily circumstances on a consistent basis. They are feeling more confident in their knowledge of the Bible and “correctly explaining the word of truth”. (2 Timothy 2:15 NLT) They have a great desire to serve and help in their church and to live for God. This is evident in their growing Christian character and how they spend their time and money. They are becoming more confident and comfortable telling others about Jesus and sharing their testimony. However, in many cases the Spiritual Adolescent doesn’t see themselves as a disciplemaker quite yet nor do they have the confidence in their ability to do so.
The Spiritual Adolescent/Young Adult’s Next Action Steps:
Join the membership of a local Bible believing and teaching church if you haven’t done so in the Child phase.
Join a discipleship group or 1:1 discipleship relationship with a spiritual parent (again, if you haven’t done so in the Child phase)
Figure out what your Spiritual Gifts are and use them to serve. (There is a lot of information about Spiritual Gifts online. There are various paid and free resources to discover your gift. A Google search will give you a host of options.)
Find areas to serve in your church and serve faithfully. This could be in big or small ways. You might even find a ministry you are passionate about and begin to serve there (Music, children’s ministry, missions, outreach etc).
Make sure you are tithing.
Be actively seeking opportunities to share the gospel with others.
Continue in daily studying God’s word and praying for yourself and for others’ requests.
Scriptures for further reading:
2 Timothy 2:15, 1 Corinthians 10:31, Romans 8:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18, Ephesians 6:7, 3 John 1:11Philippians 1:11, 1 Corinthians 12 (whole chapter), Romans 12:4-5, Ephesians 2:19-22, 2 Peter 1:5-7
THE DISCIPLEMAKER’S RESPONSE TO THE SPIRITUAL CHILD/YOUNG ADULT:
Encourage the Spiritual Adolescent to join the church body as an active member if they haven’t done so.
Disciple them 1 to 1 or help them find a discipleship group to join.
Help them figure out what their Spiritual gifts are and how to use them.
Point them to different areas of service within the church or ministries they would be a good fit for and help them plug in.
Be available to answer questions about God, the church or certain scriptures in the Bible the Spiritual Adolescent has questions about.
Encourage them to share the gospel with others even if they are nervous. Give them the opportunity to practice with you!
Be a source of accountability, friendship and encouragement to this growing disciple.
Scriptures for further reading:
2 Timothy 2:2, Hebrews 6:11-12, 2 Peter 1:5-7, Philippians 2:3-4, 1 Corinthians 16:13-14, Galatians 5:25-26, Ephesians 6:15, Proverbs 27:17, Acts 16, Philippians 2, 1 & 2 Timothy.
Growing in your faith and maturing is an ongoing and lifelong process for the disciple and the disciplemaker! Continue “working hard to show the results of your salvation”. (Philippians 2:12-13)
Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.
For the calling,
Melissa
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