Better or worse?

God’s power has given us everything we need to lead a godly life. All of that has come to us because we know the One who chose us. He chose us because of his own glory and goodness. He has also given us his very great and valuable promises. He did it so you could share in his nature. He also did it so you could escape from the evil in the world. That evil is caused by sinful longings. So you should try very hard to add goodness to your faith. To goodness, add knowledge. To knowledge, add the ability to control yourselves. To the ability to control yourselves, add the strength to keep going. To the strength to keep going, add godliness. You should possess more and more of those good points. They will make you useful and fruitful as you get to know our Lord Jesus Christ better. But what if some of you do not have those good points? Then you can’t see very well. You are blind. You have forgotten that your past sins have been washed away. My brothers and sisters, be very sure that God has appointed you to be saved. Be sure that he has chosen you.(2 Peter 1:3-10

No one stays the same. My former basketball coach from high school always reminded us of this fact: We either get better or we get worse. There is no staying the same! This is true for the CHRISTian as well. We either grow closer closer to the Lord or grow further apart from Him. There is no limbo! As we pray, study, read, worship together, etc, we grow closer to the Lord and the Body. The more we ignore our daily quiet time, put off prayer, become too busy with everyday life and forsake the fellow believers, we grow weary and get caught up in the things of this world. it is a simple fact.

All we have to do is examine our life: where are we going? . . . who are we hanging out with? . . . what are we spending time on? . . .

I learned at an early age that perfect practice makes perfect. Well, if we practice what God calls us to each day, He will perfect us! If we stay connected, we will grow as God intends for each of us. We improve as a Body and as individual believers. The best thing is that God does the work in us . . . all we have to do is stay connected and committed!

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work. (Ephesians 4 :11-16)