4 Habits for Spiritual Growth
By Jeff Cranston
Spiritual growth is a lifetime journey where God teaches us one lesson at a time to develop our character, so we become more like Jesus. At the core of this journey are rhythms that help us grow spiritually. These rhythms or habits aren’t new; they’ve been around for thousands of years.
But here’s the truth: You can talk the biggest talk, but you won’t grow deeper spiritually until you walk the walk. We are the sum of our habits. So, here are four non-negotiable habits for the Christ-follower:
1. Read your Bible daily.
We desperately need God’s truth downloaded into our lives daily. God’s truth sets us free—free from worry, free from the expectations of others, free from guilt, free from fear, and so many other negative things.
In John 8:31b-32, Jesus said, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
Since the Bible is the best, most reliable, and only Source for God’s truth, I want to encourage you to do all that you possibly can to ensure that you are into God’s Word on a daily basis. Because you and I simply cannot grow spiritually apart from the Bible.
2. Pray often.
Followers of Jesus spend time with Jesus. God’s Word tells us in John 15:7-8, If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.
We become disciples by bearing fruit. We bear fruit by remaining in Jesus—and having His words remain in us. We listen to God through His Word, and we talk to God through prayer. To grow spiritually, we need both habits in our lives.
3. Tithe consistently.
Tithing reminds us that everything we own belongs to God. He doesn’t just own that first 10 percent. He owns it all. If God isn’t Lord of our possessions, He isn’t our Lord.
Too many of us are possessed by our possessions. Learning to tithe helps you and I hold what we have with an open hand and put God first in our lives.
4. Worship weekly.
The Ten Commandments are not suggestions or good ideas. They are commandments. And one of them tells us, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work, but the seventh day is a sabbath of the Lord your God. (Exodus 20:8-10a, NASB)
God’s commandments are gifts to us. As we willingly submit to them, we discover the path of life and blessing. One of the gifts God gives is the Sabbath. As we open this gift, we begin to experience the joy of simply “being” and are free from the burden of relentless “doing.”
F.W. Boreham wrote, “We must rest. Life must have its free spaces. The music gathers new emphasis and effect from the pause. The finest engines will become overheated and subject to needless wear through constant motion. They must cool. Even nature must have her wintertime to gather back into herself her forces in preparation for another spring.” 1
The Sabbath day is about a lifestyle, a rhythm, a way of “doing life” that feeds our soul and develops our spirit. Sabbath, as God designed it, is to help us grow into the fullness He intends for us. Protect it, sanctify it in your life, set it aside as a day of rest, and of worship to God. Don’t allow it to become like any other day. We are created by God Himself, who observed a Sabbath rest after creation, to need that rhythm in our lives.
There are no shortcuts to spiritual growth. While we worry about how fast we can grow, God is concerned with how well we grow. Think about it: When God wants to make a mushroom, He takes six hours. When God wants to grow an oak tree, He takes 60 years. Do you want to be a mushroom or an oak tree? Incorporate these habits into your life—read your Bible daily, pray often, tithe regularly, and worship weekly—and you’ll grow into an oak.
Jeff Cranston is the lead pastor of LowCountry Community Church in Bluffton, S.C.
F.W. Boreham. Boulevards of Paradise. London: The Epworth Press, 1944, p. 169.