Spiritual or physical growth is not automatic. It requires intentional commitment. For any growth to take place, you need to have the desire to grow, decide to grow, make practical efforts to grow, and be willful in growing daily. Thousands of people have impeded growth. They are glued in endless infancy, continuing in diapers and suckers. They have decided not to grow.

Nothing in life shapes you more than the commitments you choose to make. Your devotions can either develop you, destroy you, or define you. Tell me in the comment box below what you’re committed to, and I’ll tell you what you will be in ten years. Whether we choose to believe it or not, we become whatever we are devoted to.

Many of us today are easily swayed by any movement, be it sporadic or regular. As a result, we are afraid to commit to anything and prefer to wander through life. Many others make half-hearted allegiances to opposing values, which leads to frustration and mediocrity. Some others make a full devotion to worldly yet difficult goals like; becoming affluent and popular. They don’t always achieve these goals and end up becoming unhappy and bitter.

Any growth in life requires commitment, conscious efforts, and change of thoughts.

One practical step to take towards enhancing your spiritual and physical life is Changing Your Thought.

The power of the mind is unfathomable. It can make you or break you. Your thoughts shape your life. If you must change your life, and grow without limits both spiritually and physically, then you must change the way you think. I love the example Rick Warren gave about riding a speedboat – “imagine riding a speedboat on a lack with an automatic pilot set to go east. If you decide to reverse and head west, you have two possible ways to change the boat’s direction.

One way is to grab the steering wheel and physically force it to head in the opposite direction from where the autopilot is programmed to go. By sheer willpower, you could conquer the autopilot, but you would feel constant friction. Your arms would ultimately overwork of the stress, you’d let go of the steering wheel, and the boat would immediately head back east, the way it was internally programmed.” (pastorrick.com)

I love this scenario depicted by Rick because many of us try to change our lives with willpower. We conveniently say; ” I’ll place myself on a strict diet…but at night we steal some late-night snack with tons of calories. I’ll exercise more…yet we break the alarm clock when it rings by 5 AM. I’ll quit being late…but we never catch the first bus.”

Willpower can be good and it can produce short term change, but it puts us through constant internal stress. Suddenly we realize that the change doesn’t feel natural, eventually, we give up. Get off our diets and eat up as much donut as we want, become known as always late.

It’s time to make a pivot – change the way you think. Change always starts first in your mind, and the way you think determines the way you feel, and the way you feel determines the way you act. The first step is to adopt:
1. Unnatural
2. Countercultural
3. Mature
3. Selfless method of thinking. Be more empathic in your thought processes. Focus on others and not just on yourself alone when you’re processing an thought. Things aren’t always what they appear to be.

Knowledge is certainly one measurement of maturity, but it isn’t the whole story. Understand today that your life is far more than creeds and convictions; it includes conduct and character. Your deeds must align with your creeds. Your spiritual life must grow side by side with your physical life. Take on Christ’s outlook and perspectives and allow him to transform you into the person he needs you to be.

Make it part of your lifestyle to think of others and not only of yourself as Jesus Christ did today!

❤

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