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How old are you? I mean, how old are you in Christ? Do you know how long it’s been since you became a new creation in Christ? Has it been a year, or ten years, or maybe twenty years since you accepted the redemption that Christ offers?
For me, it’s been quite a few years, but I wonder if my spiritual growth matches my spiritual birthday. In other words, if you’ve been a Christian for ten years, have you grown as a ten-year-old Christian should grow? Or has your growth been stunted?
When we are born from above, we begin a journey from that day until the day we are with Jesus in heaven, and this journey is all about transforming us into the likeness of Jesus Christ with ever increasing glory, as we read in 2 Corinthians 3:18. In order to be all that we should be, we must learn to feed ourselves every day, to take the Word of God and make it the bread of our life. That’s what I’ve been talking about this week: How to feed yourself.
In addition to reading God’s Word each day in a structured way, and then journaling as you read, another important way to grow is to read other good biblical material. To get you started, here are five books that I believe every Christian should read. They are Knowing God by J. I. Packer, Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis, The Pursuit of God by A. W. Tozer, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence and Corrie Ten Boom’s biography, The Hiding Place. These are just a very few of the wonderful books that will truly enhance your life and help you grow spiritually.
Of course, the Bible takes precedence over all other books, but I strongly urge you to develop some good reading habits. Maybe you prefer books on CD or books you can download—there are lots of good ones available. There’s really no excuse for not reading good books. I’m absolutely certain that the reading I’ve done and continue to do has made a huge difference in my spiritual growth.