The Discipline in Growth

I so enjoyed my visit to Kentucky with Ray, his family and his growth group that met at his house. PIctured is Ray with Barron Olaf.

A passage of Scripture that has always been a challenge to me is 2 Peter 1:2-8

May God give you more and more grace and peace as you grow in your knowledge of God and Jesus our Lord. 3 By his divine power, God has given us everything we need for living a godly life. We have received all of this by coming to know him, the one who called us to himself by means of his marvelous glory and excellence.


The first challenge is to grow in my knowledge of God. That means spending consistent time with Him – connecting through prayer and Bible intake. Results? God’s grace, a subsequent peace of mind and everything we need for living a godly life. Wow!


I hear resistance to a daily discipline of solitude. Some say, “That is legalism.” Others report, “That’s not my personality.” And they miss out. Less awareness of God’s grace, peace of mind available and appropriating everything they need for living a godly life.


The passage continues with: And because of his glory and excellence, he has given us great and precious promises. These are the promises that enable you to share his divine nature and escape the world’s corruption caused by human desires.


Think of it – “share His divine nature.” Another WOW! His divine nature slowly penetrates my being, causing the corruption of my self-centeredness and all of its “demons” to slowly dissipate. I’m taking on more and more of God’s divine qualities, less and less of fleshly self (that part of me that wants my way at my timing with little thought to others.)


Continuing with the passage, we read:
In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises.

Make every effort. That’s discipline. That’s work. So easily disregarded because of mental laziness, disguised as busyness or “that’s not my personality.”

Peter then notes the virtues that produces a well-rounded fruitful Christian life.
Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone. The more you grow like this, the more productive and useful you will be in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.


These virtues are cultivated simultaneously in increasing measure. Enough said. Needs no further explanation.


“God, increase my hunger and thirst for your divine nature to permeate my very being.”