Craig T. Owens

A few checklist items for a growING Christian (from Philippians 4:4-9):

• Learning to rejoice in the Lord. Always.
• Maturing in gentleness.
• Becoming more consciously aware of God’s omnipresence.
• Decreasing in anxiety.
• Constantly praying.
• Increasingly thankful.
• Learning to remain peaceful.
• Becoming more discerning of what goes into my mind.
• Learning and relearning biblical principles.

I observe four things about this list:

1. None of the verb tenses in the Greek are past tense. These are all on-goING processes.
2. If this list is changed from in-process to fully-completed, it sounds like Jesus.
3. I have to decide daily to be growING.
4. I cannot grow through this list without help: I need the Holy Spirit.

This is a rather short list, but it’s filled with a lifetime of growING opportunities.

If I decide today that I want to be growING, my Heavenly Father will bring me into more opportunities where the Holy Spirit will help me develop and exhibit the qualities of Jesus Christ.

Are you ready to do some growING today?