Prodigal: Just dropped off my present.
Me: It must have been big to have to carry it in that wagon.
Prodigal: It was, and I hope it is enjoyable.
This is from the book Life Essentials: Knowing God better, Experiencing God deeper and Loving God more by Tony Evans
When it’s all said and done, then, spiritual growth does not primarily depend on what is happening around you, but on what is happening inside of you. Growth comes from the inside out, which is the way God designed all of His creation to function. Full-grown oak trees don’t just appear. Neither do full-grown Christians. But all the requirements for growth are there.
Spiritual growth is the process of expanding and releasing what is on the inside so that it becomes visible on the outside. What God often does is apply the heat and the pressure to bring about this release. That’s why our greatest times of spiritual growth are almost always our times of greatest trial.
We cannot see the growth that is taking place day by day as we lean on Christ, and as we pray more, and more. A habit is growing one that says I must turn to Him if I am to make it through this at all. What a great habit that is to learn even if it seems difficult at the moment.
The disciples had forgotten to bring bread, except for one loaf they had with them in the boat. “Be careful,” Jesus warned them. “Watch out for the yeast of the Pharisees and that of Herod.”
Jennifer Van Allen
www.theprodigalpig.com
www.faithincounseling.org
