Donna Naborsyour Spiritual jewelry box.

 

Projects

What project are you working on right now? This could be anything from a jigsaw puzzle on your dining room table to cleaning out your garage. Projects.

I’m always working on a project and usually several at once. Some projects are set aside in the closet for a future time, and some are being actively pursued. But I always have a project list.

My office at work is divided into different project zones. My house is the same. In fact, I have a declutter 100 list with a hundred different areas, cabinets, or drawers listed which I try to go through each year. If I do that, it keeps my house under control.

The start of a new year usually brings new projects.

• Personal projects might include weight loss, exercise, or education.
• Career projects might include new customers, new budgets, or a new job.
• Family projects might include vacation planning or kid’s school activities.
• Financial projects might include saving for a home or paying off debt.

But what about spiritual projects? Can our spiritual life be listed as a project?

We could list Bible reading, Bible study, going to church, prayer time, and other things as spiritual projects. Yet our spiritual life is much more than a group of set things to do, which is where we can get pulled away from the truth of what God wants for us.

While I believe spiritual projects, or practices, are a necessary part of spiritual growth, none of it matters without heart and relationship. I remember being in an organization as a child called GA’s. I learned the books of the Bible and memorized so many scriptures. I’m thankful for that foundation and its benefit to me today, but those things were tangible. Our spiritual growth is not a tangible project.

Many people refer to 1 Corinthians 13 as the love chapter. It’s considered a recipe for love. But it’s not a recipe. It’s a result. It’s a picture of love.

Galatians 5:22-23 lists the fruit of the Spirit as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. These are not things we aspire to exhibit as a spiritual project or an attempt to be spiritual but rather a fruit (result) of the Spirit living through us.

In John 15:5, Jesus says, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.” Heart and relationship.

Yes, abiding in Christ includes prayer, Bible study, and following his direction, which we only know by abiding in Him through prayer and Bible study. But we can’t just make it a tangible experience of checking off the boxes to complete the project. Spiritual growth starts from the moment of salvation until our life on this earth is done.

Spiritual growth is a 24/7 experience. We can wake up and pray and read our daily devotion to check off a box. Or we can take Jesus with us, abide in Him, and allow Him to abide in us all day long.

Are we growing every day? Ask God to take the tangible items of your mind and move them to your heart as you grow in relationship with Him.

Thoughts?