Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Tools for Growth 01-13-16 (part II)



First, do whatever work is necessary to build depth into your life. Address the character issues; are you a person of integrity, honesty, admitting your failures and learning from them, developing unselfish motives in serving others, recognizing and minimizing the distractions that keep you from growing, paying attention to why you do what you do?  Are you taking regular time for reflection about the quality of your inner life, about your thought patterns, your feelings and emotions, your desires, your joys and sorrows? Do you carve out space to stop the busyness and be in solitude and quiet, times to just be? Do you take the time to regularly evaluate your goals and dreams, your priorities, and how your actions and behaviors and choices are either facilitating or detracting from them? Are you intentional about building relationships with others who can support you, hold you accountable, and encourage you toward your potential; people with whom you can be completely transparent about your struggles and temptations and pitfalls? Are you paying attention to what’s “below the waterline” of your life?


Second, make use of the resources God provides in this process. What does this mean? What are God’s available resources? In our story, think about what the farmer offers to the seeds. (1) He plants the seed in the soil. In other words, he offers the seed a place for growth and maturation. (2) He develops the soil into a cultivated, fertile environment for the seed conducive for abundance. (3) He uses external sources and forces to bring about a rich harvest. With that in mind, consider what God is willing to do for us in our journey toward wholeness and fruitfulness.

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