READING: 1 Peter 2:2-3, Hebrews 5:12-14
Jim Putman, in his book, Discipleshift, describes five stages of one’s spiritual growth:*
- Dead: people who are still in unbelief
- Infants: new believers who are just beginning to learn about walking with Christ; they have lots of questions
- Children: believers who may be growing, but they’re still marked by self-centeredness
- Young adults: believers who are increasingly God-centered and others-centered
- Parents: believers who intentionally and strategically reproduce themselves by making disciples
You may name or describe differently the stages of Christian growth, but I think it’s helpful to have some categories to help us disciple others. Not only do the categories help us to show believers a process of growth, but they also help us to evaluate our own lives as disciplemakers. Sometimes, in fact, it’s good to recognize that we operate at different levels at different times. For example, we might claim to be “parents” as we invest in others even while we’re acting like self-centered children. Every moment of every day, we must intentionally seek to be growing in Christ.
PRAYER: “God, I want to keep growing. Help me never to get satisfied with, or overestimate, where I am.”
TOMORROW’S READING: Psalms 23-24, Romans 4
*Jim Putman, DiscipleShift: Five Steps That Help Your Church to Make Disciples Who Make Disciples(Exponential Series) (pp. 60ff). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.