You Are A Work In Progress

Spiritual maturity is neither instant nor automatic; it is a gradual, progressive development that will take the rest of your life.

You are a work in progress. Your spiritual transformation in developing the character of Jesus will take the rest of your life, and even then it won’t be completed here on earth. It will only be finished when you get to heaven or when Jesus returns.

At that point, whatever unfinished work on your character is left will be wrapped up. The Bible says that when we are finally able to see Jesus perfectly, we will become perfectly like him: “We can’t even imagine what we will be like when Christ returns. But we do know that when he comes we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.” (1 John 3:2 NLT)

Much confusion in the Christian life comes from ignoring the simple truth that God is far more interested in building your character than he is anything else.

Jesus did not die on the cross just so we could live comfortable, well-adjusted lives. His purpose is far deeper: he wants to make us like himself (Christlike) before he takes us to heaven.

—from Rick Warren’s daily devotional

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Identify the Battlefield

Did you know that we are in a war every day? Looking around at all the suffering, we may think the battles are just taking place externally, but in reality, we’re losing the advanced and more important conflict, the battle in our minds.

When we fail to identify the battlefield, we also fail to correctly identify our foe. We tend to believe people, money, religion or “the system” are our problems. Unless we renew our mind, we risk continuing to believe those lies and making important decisions based on deception.

Each day our minds are bombarded with a constant stream of nagging thoughts, suspicions, doubts and fears. While any one of these can cause defeat and devastation, grabbing on to God’s truth can bring victory and joy.

You may have some major strongholds in your life that need to be torn down. Let me encourage you by saying, “God is on your side.” There is a war going on, and your mind is the battlefield. But the good news is that God is fighting on your side!

Prayer Starter: Holy Spirit, I don’t want to be deceived, ignoring the real battle that’s happening in my mind. Keep me on guard so that I can fight the good fight. With You on my side, I can’t lose!

—from Joyce Meyer’s daily devotional

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