Possess these Qualities in Increasing Measure II Peter 1:8

"For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." II Peter 1:8

Dear Father,

Help these young ones to understand that spiritual growth is a process. Help them to know this for two reasons: first so that they will not become discouraged when they do not display the spiritual maturity that they would want to show - when they fall short of what they would like to accomplish spiritually, when they make mistakes that a more mature person would not make. Help them to understand that this is normal spiritual growth. They will make mistakes and take wrong turns, but may they understand that growth comes by getting back up, turning their direction back to you (repenting) and getting back on their way. Secondly, help them to understand that this process never ends. Whether they are 10 or 20 or 30 or 60 years old, this scripture tells us that we must continue to add these qualities in increasing measure, otherwise we will become ineffective and unproductive.

That is a bit if a mystery to me, but the scripture tells me that the level of maturity and the level of these qualities that I possessed at age 50 are not adequate at age 60. I do not think this is about achieving spiritual accompishment, rather it is about journey.

If we stop moving along our journey, no matter how far we may have already come, we will stagnate and thereby will become ineffective and unproductive. I pray that none of us ever become satisfied with our level of spiritual growth.


Amen