"So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness."
Colossians 2:7a (NIV)\
You're working too hard at the wrong thing. Many believers exhaust themselves trying to force spiritual growth. They add more Bible reading, more prayer time, more service commitments (not that these aren't good, and they are.) But their roots stay shallow because striving replaces trusting. When you try to be your own gardener, you stunt the very growth you're desperate to see.
Striving and growing are not the same thing. Striving says, "I must produce results or I'm failing." Growing says, "God is at work, and I'm positioning myself where He works." Striving leads to burnout and spiritual exhaustion. Growing leads to FIRM roots that go deep without the pressure. One is rooted in fear, the other in grace.
Paul understood this when he wrote to the Corinthians. He planted seeds and Apollos watered them, but God made them grow. Neither Paul nor Apollos could manufacture growth through sheer effort. Only God makes things grow, and neither the planter nor the waterer is anything compared to Him. If spiritual giants like Paul and Apollos couldn't force growth, what makes you think you can?
When you strive, you're actually working against God's design. Roots grow slowly, quietly, and without fanfare. They don't respond to human pressure or frantic activity. They respond to consistent nourishment from the right source. When you frantically pile on spiritual disciplines without rest, you're like someone yanking on a seedling to make it grow faster.
God designed you to be "rooted and built up in him," not in your own effort. Notice the passive voice in Paul's words. You are rooted by God, not by yourself. You are built up by God, not through self-generated striving. You received Christ by grace, not by working for Him. So why would growing in Christ suddenly require you to manufacture what only God can produce?
The means of grace are not meant to be weapons of striving. God gave you His Word, prayer, and community as channels of His work. These aren't boxes to check or quotas to meet. They're places where you meet with God and He does what only He can do. When you show up consistently without the pressure to perform, God sends your roots deeper into soil you didn't prepare.
Godseekers, your striving is stunting your roots. Let go of the pressure to manufacture spiritual growth. Trust the Gardener who planted you in Christ. Position yourself where God works, and rest while He develops FIRM roots in you. The growth you can't force is the growth God freely gives.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, forgive me for trying to force what only You can grow. I confess that my striving has replaced my trusting, and my effort has become my idol. Help me release the pressure to manufacture spiritual maturity. Teach me to rest in Your work while faithfully showing up where You meet me. Grow FIRM roots in me according to Your wisdom and timeline. I surrender my need to control and trust You to do what only You can do. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Personal Reflection
- Where in my spiritual life have I been striving instead of trusting, and how has that affected my growth?
- What would it look like for me to use the means of grace (Word, prayer, community) without turning them into performance-based striving?
Step of Faith
Today, I will identify one area where I've been striving to force spiritual growth and intentionally release it to God, trusting Him to do what I cannot.
