Spiritual Growth Resources
Whether you're new to faith or years into your journey, we want to help you keep growing.
NEW TO FAITH
We live in a time when accusations are thrown around freely, labels are used haphazardly, and truth is all but ridiculed. So when we talk about coming to Christ, or becoming a Christian, it just might be helpful to really define what we mean by those phrases. Whether you have a clear understanding of what the Bible teaches about all this, or you are just beginning to explore, HERE is a short and clear explanation of what the Bible teaches about God’s plan for all of us.
Are you interested in digging deeper into what the Bible says about the process of becoming a Christian? Download The Doctrine of Conversion, a short class by theologian Wayne Grudem and listen to it at your own pace.
While becoming a Christian is a simple concept and turning from sin and trusting in Christ is a one-time event, the ongoing life of loving Jesus above all else is anything but easy. God actually promises us that we will have hardship in this life! Nevertheless, God wants us to make Christ our greatest treasure, valuing, loving, and cherishing him above all else, and finding our greatest joy in our relationship with Christ. Take a look at this little BOOKLET to learn more.
Have you recently placed your trust in Christ? Tell someone! One of the greatest joys of the Christian life is sharing with others the hope we have in Christ. The Christian life is meant to be lived out in community with others to help us grow.
GROWING IN FAITH
God doesn’t just want us to come to Christ and stay where we are. Just like a child grows to adulthood, God wants us to grow in our faith after we place our trust in Christ. Below are some excellent resources to aid in your growth.
While you can certainly do a lot of studying, learning, and growing on your own, God intends for the Christian life to be lived out in community with others. We encourage you to find another Christian that might walk through life with you right now, and to join a small group that will connect you with others who also want to grow.
When I’m heading out somewhere the app on my phone shows me where I am and then the path to where I want to go. Where we’re heading is maturity in Christ, but the path is sometimes difficult to discern. We recognize that everyone’s life and path is as different as our individual experiences and personalities. Even the sufferings we go through often guide the growth process in our life. Nevertheless we want to provide some basic guidance for a Christian’s path to spiritual maturity.
The Discipleship Phases Circle and corresponding Roadmap below along with other resources will never replace the important role a one-on-one discipleship relationship plays in a believer’s life. Therefore we suggest you not just do these studies and struggle with growing closer to Christ on your own, but develop a friendship with the person that led you to Christ, or your small group leader, or another Christian you look up to and walk this road together.
Use this Discipleship Phases Circle and corresponding Discipleship Phases Roadmap to give you a little direction on what areas you might need To Know and what areas you might need To Do in your life. Then ask your friend to help you walk through those Things To Know and Things To Do.
Topical Studies
BOOKS DESIGNED FOR NEW BELIEVERS SEARCHING FOR ANSWERS ABOUT CHRISTIANITY
Growing In Christ: A Thirteen-Week Follow-Up Course for New and Growing Christians
Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should
Who is Jesus?
More Than a Carpenter
BOOKDS DESIGNED FOR GROWING FOLLOWERS OF CHRIST WANTING TO FOCUS ON LIVING BY FAITH
Know What You Believe
Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life
Living By the Book: The Art and Science of Reading the Bible
Before Amen: The Power of a Simple Prayer
BOOKS DESIGNTED FOR GROWING SERVANTS OF CHRIST WANTING TO FOCUS ON LOVING BY FAITH
Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God
Disciple: Getting Your Identity from Jesus
Radical Together: Unleashing the People of God for the Purpose of God
Relationships: A Mess Worth Making
BOOKS DESIGNED FOR GROWING LEADERS WANTING TO LEAD BY FAITH AND SHARE THE GOSPEL
Making Radical Disciples: Easily Make Disciples that Follow Jesus and Multiply in 60 Days or Less
Share Jesus Without Fear
Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands
The Invisible War: What Every Believer Needs to Know about Satan, Demons, and Spiritual Warfare
Baptism
After you come to Christ and start learning about what all this means for your life, you will want to get baptized. Baptism represents what happened to you when you came to Christ. It is a beautiful picture of the washing away of our sins and our identification with Christ in his death, burial, and resurrection. Attached below is a brochure written by Randy that describes baptism well.
Talk to your small group leader, a mentor, or a pastor if you have more questions about baptism or if you feel like you are ready to take this step.
Spiritual
As you continue in your journey of growing more Christ-like you will want to take advantage of all the means of growth God has provided. These are called spiritual disciplines. Just as an athlete exercises various disciplines to get ready for a game or race, so we as Christians have disciplines that train us for godliness and draw us toward maturity in Christ. (1 Timothy 4:7-8)
From Scripture we can discern several means of growth God has given us. They include among others solitude, silence, fasting, prayer, Bible reading, fellowship, worship, suffering, and giving.
Again, God does not intend for the Christian life to be traversed as a solo traveler. Seek out the person who led you to Christ, your small group leader, or another Christian you look up to and walk this road together.
Spiritual Gifts
God has provided for every Christian special abilities or talents that he intends to be used to help others and to see his Kingdom expand. The Bible gives us some lists of these gifts (see Romans 12:6-8, 2 Corinthians 12:8-10, Ephesians 4:11, 1 Peter 4:9-11).
Get started learning about these gifts, and use the online tool to assess for yourself what spiritual gifts you might have. Maybe God will use your gifts in the lives of others in some wonderful ways!
SHARING YOUR FAITH
Sharing the Gospel with someone sounds like a really hard task and can often seem like a very scary proposition. But there’s good news. It doesn’t have to! Much of sharing the Gospel is just sharing your own life story, how Christ has impacted you, and describing the essence of what it means to be a Christian. Not sure how to describe the essence of what it means to be a Christian? Sharing with someone the concepts from a tool like THIS will help you keep on track to share the core of the Gospel.
As you develop closer connections and relationships with your friends, co-workers, neighbors, and family members you will want them to know what Christ has done in your life. It is great to tell them, “Yeah, I’ve found Christ and he’s really awesome and you should believe, too,” but maybe there’s a more effective way to explain it to them. This is what we call your ‘testimony.’ It is the story of how you came to Christ and what he did in your life.
Here’s the essence of what to include in your unique testimony:
What your life was like before you met Christ.
How you committed your life to Christ.
The difference Christ made in your life.
This TOOL can help you work through how to write your testimony. After you’ve completed a draft of it share it with the person who led you to Christ, your small group leader, or another Christian you look up to. Yes, this is a theme in everything we do in the Christian life; to have some sort of a mentor in your life who will walk alongside you! Let that person speak into what you’ve written, giving you ideas, feedback, and improvements. When you have it in a form that is concise and natural, memorize it. Now you will be ready when you have the opportunity to share how Christ has changed your life.
Learn more about God’s charge to us to share his Good News with others in our Starting Point class.