Do you want to grow your faith? Chances are, if you’re reading this, the answer is yes! It makes sense. In fact, a huge part of life is looking to and wanting to grow—physically, mentally emotionally, relationally—in different ways and in different seasons.
Spiritual growth is no different. Even the Bible addresses it in a few verses, specifically 2 Thessalonians 1:3 and 2 Peter 3:18.
2 Thessalonians 1:3 =“We ought always to thank God for you, brothers , and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing.”
2 Peter 3:18 = "Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ”
One important thing to remember is that faith, much like life, is a journey rather than a destination. You’ll never “arrive”—that’s a good thing! It means there is always more to learn, experience, discover, change your mind on, etc. Not that you always have to be growing or moving forward, but rather it can bring you peace to know you’re along for the ride rather than trying to get it right.
With that said, the good news is, at every step of the faith journey, there are things you can do if and when you want to grow. We’ll go over 4 of those here.
Every Stage of Faith
Before we dive into the 4 tips, we want to re-emphasize the importance of this point: that these are tips that can work regardless of where you’re at on your faith journey. Whatever stage you’re at is valid—questioning or unsure about God, a new believer, someone who left and has returned, changing your beliefs, been following Jesus your whole life, or somewhere in between. No one is any better or worse because they seem to be ahead or behind. Now, of course, you may want to adapt each tip for your specific situation, but they are still worthy of consideration wherever you’re at with your faith.
Tip #1: One Thing at a Time
Oftentimes, when we want to grow in any area of life, we try to take on too much too fast and end up burning out quickly. Or, we get frustrated and overwhelmed and quit. Neither of which are great things.
The important thing, when it comes to growing on your faith journey, is to take it one day at a time, one step at a time, and one thing to focus on at a time. Consider this verse, 2 Peter 1:5-7: “Make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love.”
This verse is not saying you have to do those exact things or go in that order. But, it does focus on the point that you put your effort into one thing and then you can move onto the next in due time. Along these lines, starting small rather than feeling like you need to do something big is important to keep in mind.
If you’re feeling lost on knowing what to focus on, here are some things you could choose (remember, pick just one!):
- Bible reading (pick a realistic goal for you whether that’s 1x/week or 5x)
- Finding a faith community to belong to
- Serving in your church or community
- Practicing more kindness or patience
- Memorizing scripture to have to hold onto during tough times
- Seeking answers to a question you have
Tip #2: Take the Pressure Off Yourself
While, yes, we do have some responsibility for our decisions, overall life and growth, the good news is that it’s actually not all up to you. God does a big chunk of the work, through the Holy Spirit. Philippians 1:6 reminds us that “he [God] who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.”
I think one of the things that can prevent us from growing spiritually is that we put pressure or expectations on ourselves to be somewhere or someone else. While this second tip is less tangible or practical, we promise that keeping and practicing this mindset will help you grow more in the long run. Like an acorn that has everything it needs inside of it to become an oak tree, so do you have everything you need inside of you, with the help of God, to grow and become who you were created to be.
Again, looking to scripture, they’re called the fruits of the spirit (not fruits of self doing), and even Jesus said to follow him and he would make us into new people. So, celebrate yourself for every little step and for your endurance to keep going. Do your best—whatever that looks like in this season of your life—and trust God with the rest.
Tip #3: Read and Study Scripture
Reading and studying Scripture is probably one of the easiest ways to grow in our faith, regardless of what stage we’re at. The Bible is the inspired word of God, and much of the new testament is the story of Jesus, his life on this earth, and the way he showed us to live and love.
Scripture can always teach us something new or show us something in a different way than we had seen it before. It’s alive and active (Hebrews 4:12) meaning that even if you’ve read the Bible before, it still has something for you at every point of your faith journey.
If you’re new to faith, we recommend that you start in the gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John), specifically in the book of John. Otherwise, you can go in any order and jump around as you want. You’ll stick to reading the Bible more if it’s a topic or book that interests you or relates to what you’re going through.
Reading the Bible doesn’t have to just look like sitting down with a physical book and going through verses and chapters. Other alternatives include:
- Listening to scripture on audio
- Going to church and listening to the teaching
- Finding content that teaches (sermons, podcasts, blogs, etc.)
- Doing a devotional
- Hearing from different perspectives
- Join a small group where they discuss scripture
- Ask your friends or pastor questions
- Read different Bible translations
- Finding study materials (suggestions below)
Tip #4: Don’t Journey Alone
You might jump to the conclusion that you don’t need anyone on your journey, just you and Jesus. Or people have hurt you, maybe in your questions or doubts, and you want to isolate yourself away. But the truth is, any type of growth is going to be much more difficult alone than with others. Especially when it comes to your faith.
You see, the faith journey is messy. It’s full of ups and downs, strong faith and asking really hard questions in doubt. Can you get through on your own? Sure. Is it going to be easier (it’s never going to be easy) if you have people to love and support you along the way? Absolutely!
This doesn't have to mean you need a giant group of friends around you, though it can. A diverse community of people is helpful. But even just opening up to one or two trusted people with where you’re at on your journey will help tremendously. Consider inviting a parent or a sibling, a friend or a roommate, a pastor at your church or a mentor you trust to join you on your journey.
It’s important to have someone in your life to help you grow your faith because they can pour into you in so many ways—someone who can help hold you accountable, give you encouragement, study scripture with you, and discuss questions and different perspectives. It’s someone who supports you through the ups and downs and with whom you can experience life and have fun doing it with. Someone who is going to love you for who you are, not where you’re at faith wise.
Looking for help?
The faith journey is a life-long one, with many different stages and seasons in the process. But the good news is, you don’t have to do it alone. In fact, we highly encourage you not to do it alone. Opening up to someone allows them to help you with where you’re at and find something to focus on for your spiritual growth.
If you don’t have anybody in your life you feel you can open up to or you don’t know where to start, we can connect you with an individual at a local church near you. Once connected, you can ask questions, talk about where you’re at or any struggles you have, receive support and resources to further your faith journey, and so much more. Regardless of where you’re at in your faith journey, click below to get connected and keep growing today.
