The following is an outline of a Spiritual Growth Overview that I created not long ago...thought I'd pass this along.

_____________________________

It is impossible to create a list of steps that will produce spiritual growth, however there are a few Biblical guidelines worth creating a summary about. The understanding that growth is not a result of systematic steps (but more about the disciplines, habits, and experiences that the steps promote), will help to place a person in position to discover how to respond to what we hear the Holy Spirit saying and to apply what Jesus was asking us to do when refering to our present situation.
Here are some Biblical guidelines established by Jesus and supported in the letters written by New Testament writers.

Who is your Priority?
•    Luke 9:57-62
>What/who do you put in front of following Jesus?

•    Mark 4 – Parable of the sower
-The SEED is the word of God (The Bible, The Holy Spirit)
-The SOIL symbolizes different hearts or areas of our heart.
>How much of your heart is uncovered and available to be impacted by Jesus?

•    Matthew 6:19-21
>Your heart is where your treasure is.

Prayer
Relational growth happens with communication. Spiritual Growth happens with communication with the Holy Spirit. We call this Prayer. Prayer is a 2 way street between God and us.

•    1 Thessalonians 5:16-18
>Pray with out ceasing

•    Luke 11:1-13
>Jesus teaches us principles of prayer

•    Colossians 3:1-2
>Set you hearts and thoughts on things “above”.

Obedience
As you obey what God has said, your trust in Jesus, your ability to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, and your discernment (your sense of right and wrong) will grow more.

•    James 1:19-25
>Don’t just listen but also do.

•    2 Corinthians 10:5
>Take every thought captive and force it to obey Christ.

•    Romans 7 15:25
>Obedience is only possible through dependence on Jesus.
-Jesus is our inspiration to obey because he obeyed through death.

•    Hebrews 5:11-14
Excel in the growth pattern that God designed. Don’t go through the growth periods at a mediocre speed. Allow God to grow you at his speed.

Community
The Holy Spirit teaches us so we can teach others. Allow your self to be teachable and willing to teach ...humbly.

•    2 Timothy 2:2    ---   1 Peter 5:5
>Allow yourself to be a teachable person. Pass on what you learn in humility.  Be a humble teacher.

Let me tell you about my perspective before went into this study because my perspective going in into this study looks different than me perspective coming out of it. I don't know what the title Crown Financial Ministries conjures up in your mind or what experiences the tile brings to memory, but for me I had preconceived ideas. Maybe, because it is such a big program, I thought there would a lot of "commercial" push within the course. While it is a huge program, it is definitely a well thought out and prepared course that gets to the heart of what God designed finances to look like. It presents a very honest Biblical perspective on money. I also wondered how practical the lessons and the complete process would be. As Kim and I went through this course we discovered that a lot of time and prayer had been put into this program...they really want you as a participant to gain a Godly perspective on your possessions, finances, and giving. The guy who designed the course doesn't even make any money from the tuition for the class.

Another very common assumption is that Crown is all about "tithing". While it does deal with the principle of tithing, the focus of Crown is more on the fact that God is in control of our money and possessions and we are the ones he has commissioned to use these resources for his work here on earth. The idea is to become debt free so that we are able to use more and more money for God's work as he directs us. God will provide everything we need when we submit to his design concerning money.

If you have never been involved in a Crown Ministries course before, i encourage you to sign-up for this course. There are many other stories like this one from people at The Quest who have taken the course.

*At the Quest we plan on leading this course on a reoccuring basis and we would love for you to sign-up for our next session. Tuition costs are only materials, The Quest Church makes no profit from the tuition and Crown Financial Ministries it self is completely non-profit.

I consider myself privileged to have been present for a conversation/presentation yesterday that explored the spiritual attributes of farming and plants. Maybe this affected me in such a substantial way because of different things I am going through in my life right now have made me sensitive the words i heard. It could also be because God knows my future and realizes that this set of principles will help me to focus on what he is doing and help me to get in sync with his timing.

This conversation was based on Mark 4. There are generally a few different ideas about what Jesus is talking about here. One of which is an idea about our final bloom, per se,  in heaven. There is also the idea of growth is slow in all areas of life.There are also a few others...none of which i want to address.

The idea that hit me in the middle of this talk was one of patience. When do I have patience and when do I move ahead in what I think God is directing me in. Asking this question can really get complicated, especially if other variables in the situation tend to create tension in and around the result. What I mean is, there are times when God speaks softly and other times when he speaks loudly and in each situation, it can somtimes be difficult to hear him. Does that make sense? It seems like the more we wait on God for his timing, the more actually wonder if we are hearing him at all.

mhnhmhmhnmhnm (clear throat)
"Enter from back stage, "Relationship".

Here is the key. How do you know what your friend is saying? How do you know what your spouse is actually implying? These kind of inferences, observations, and understandings come out of a relationship element. Patience for the sake of patience will only produce frustration. Patience for clarity can be a wonderful journey. The kind of  patience we ussually see displayed comes out of a short-term mentaliy...we just want the thing we're waiting on to happen "right now". Patience for clarity is a long-term investment. It is a decision based on the journey. Being patience for the sake of a result just makes you want to see the result more and more. But patience for clarity in the journey creates an appetite for the unexpected, simplistic, adaptation of your life to the plan of God. See, God wants us to be in a position for him to direct us. How can we be in that place of living out his direction if we are solely focused on the completion of what we think should be the out come?

My encouragement for us comes out of this idea of waiting with God through all that comes our way. We are unaware of what God has in store longterm. All we have is his faithfulness... his promises... and his love. He will never fail us or abandon us. Patiently develop your relationship with Jesus.

Join me For WE ARE ONE - FRESNO on April 16th 2010 as Fresno/Clovis join together to build awareness about local organizations that are in place to help the poor, needy, and abandoned in our community.

We are One is an event to create an awareness for the greater Fresno/Clovis area. We Are One was created around the vision of 3 local high school students to see young people, as well as people of all ages, connected with opportunities to make a positive difference in our community and around the world. So often we forget that worship isn't just vertical praise to God but also should include social action that demonstrates God's love for us all.

We would love to have as many people a part of this event as possible. There will be multiple community services present where we as a community can rally around and support. There will be a can food drive opportunities so bring your food. Also, these services can really use cash donations because, for example The Fresno Food Bank can take cash and turn it into a very large number of food and supply resource which they can distribute to people and families in need.

Involved in this event will be a number of public speakers talking about the concept of We are One. Speakers include, Ashley Swearengin, Paul Haroutunian from The Bridge, Dion Tate from Central Community Church, with possible addresses from Sheriff Mims, and Chief  Dyer.

Every single cent generated from We are One will go to local non-profits and community services including, Community Food Bank, One Campaign, ESA Love Inc. Samaritan Woman, Sanctuary Youth Center, Poverello House, Holy Cross, CARE Fresno, FIFUL, Fresno Rescue, Convoy of Hope, WOW JAM, Evangel Home, READ Fresno, Highway City Thrift Store, Neighborhood Thrift...