How to Grow Spiritually

When You Wonder If You’re Actually Growing

You know you’re saved. You believe the gospel. You read your Bible most days, pray when you remember, and genuinely want to follow Jesus. But when you look at your life honestly—the patterns that haven’t changed, the sins you keep committing, the spiritual disciplines you start and abandon, the doubts that linger—you wonder: Am I actually growing? Or am I just going through the motions, fooling myself into thinking I’m making progress when really I’m stuck in the same place I was a year ago, five years ago, maybe even since the day I got saved?

The gap between where you are and where you think you should be feels enormous. Other Christians seem to have it together—they talk about their “quiet times” with joy, quote Scripture naturally in conversation, respond to trials with unwavering faith. You, on the other hand, struggle to stay awake during prayer, forget most of what you read in the Bible by lunchtime, and wrestle with the same besetting sins that plagued you before you met Christ. You know you’re supposed to be “growing in grace and knowledge” (2 Peter 3:18), but what does that actually look like? And how do you get from here to there without burning out from trying harder or giving up because it all feels impossibly slow?

If this describes your experience, you’re not alone—and you’re not failing. The frustration you feel about your lack of visible progress is actually evidence of spiritual life, not spiritual death. Dead things don’t hunger for growth. The very fact that you’re dissatisfied with where you are, that you long for more of Christ, that you wish your life bore more fruit—these desires are themselves the work of the Spirit in you. Spiritual growth isn’t about achieving perfection or reaching some impossible standard that would finally make you acceptable to God. It’s about being progressively transformed into the image of Christ through the patient, faithful work of the Spirit—a work that began the moment you believed and won’t be complete until you see Jesus face to face.

The Foundation: What Spiritual Growth Actually Is

Before we explore how to grow spiritually, we need to understand what spiritual growth actually is—because most believers carry subtle but devastating misconceptions that sabotage their progress from the start.

Spiritual growth is not earning God’s approval through improved performance. You’re not climbing a ladder toward acceptance, accumulating enough good behavior or spiritual disciplines to finally deserve God’s love. You already have His approval—complete, unconditional, permanent—because of Christ’s finished work.

Your standing before God doesn’t improve as you mature; it’s already perfect because you’re clothed in Christ’s righteousness. Growth doesn’t change these realities—it brings your daily experience into alignment with what’s already true about you.

Spiritual growth is sanctification—the progressive transformation of your character to reflect Christ’s. The same God who justified you (declared you righteous) is now sanctifying you (making you actually righteous in how you think, feel, and act). Paul explains:

This is a gradual, lifelong process—”from glory to glory,” from one degree of Christlikeness to the next.

Peter describes spiritual growth as “adding” godly qualities to your faith with diligent effort (2 Peter 1:5-7). But notice: the foundation is faith, which is God’s gift. And the power comes from His “divine power,” which has “given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3). You’re not manufacturing growth through sheer willpower—you’re cooperating with what God is already doing in you. It’s like a seed growing: the life comes from within (God’s power), but healthy growth requires the right conditions (your faithful response).

This means how to grow spiritually is less about trying harder and more about trusting deeper. Yes, diligence and effort matter—Paul says to “work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). But the very next verse explains why this works: “for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure” (Philippians 2:13). God creates the desire for holiness in you, then empowers you to actually pursue it. Your job isn’t to generate spiritual life through discipline; it’s to position yourself to receive what God is giving.

Spiritual growth is also corporate, not merely individual. You don’t mature in isolation. God designed His church to be the primary environment for transformation—”from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:16). Other believers challenge you, encourage you, correct you, and model Christlikeness in ways you can’t experience alone. Lone-ranger Christianity produces stunted believers, no matter how impressive their private spiritual disciplines look.

Finally, spiritual growth always points toward love. Paul prays that the Philippians’ “love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment” (Philippians 1:9). The goal isn’t just to know more theology or master more disciplines—it’s to love God and people more deeply, more purely, more sacrificially. If you’re growing in knowledge but shrinking in love, you’re not growing spiritually—you’re just becoming a proud Pharisee. True growth makes you more like Jesus, who perfectly embodied both truth and love.

The Starting Point: You’re Already New

How to grow spiritually begins with understanding what God has already done in you. You’re not trying to become a Christian—you already are one. And that changes everything.

When you placed your faith in Christ, God did something radical and permanent: He made you a new creation.

This isn’t hyperbole or future hope—it’s present reality. Your old self died with Christ. Your new self came alive with Christ. This is your true identity now, regardless of how consistently your behavior reflects it.

You have a new nature that actually wants to obey God. Before salvation, you were “dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1), enslaved to sin, incapable of pleasing God. But now you’re alive to God, with His Spirit dwelling in you, creating desires you never had before—hunger for His Word, grief over sin, longing for holiness. When you want to grow spiritually but feel unable to change, you’re experiencing the tension between your new nature (which loves God) and your remaining flesh (which still pulls toward sin). This tension is evidence of life, not failure.

You’re already seated with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6), already blessed with every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3), already complete in Him (Colossians 2:10). Your position is secure. Your identity is settled. Your acceptance is permanent. Growth doesn’t change these realities—it brings your daily experience into alignment with what’s already true about you.

This is why growing spiritually must be grounded in gospel identity, not law-based striving. You don’t obey to become God’s child—you obey because you are His child. You don’t grow to earn His love—you grow because you’ve already received His love and it’s transforming you from the inside out. Starting from the right foundation determines whether your growth journey produces joyful transformation or exhausting performance.

Understanding Spiritual Growth Stages

Just as physical development follows predictable stages—infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood—spiritual growth typically progresses through recognizable phases. Understanding where you are helps set realistic expectations and shows you what healthy next steps look like.

How Spiritual Growth Actually Happens

Understanding the stages of growth is helpful, but it raises the crucial question: How does this transformation actually occur? How do you move from one stage to the next? What are the mechanisms God uses to change you?

The Means of Grace: God’s Chosen Tools

God has given specific means through which His grace flows to transform you. These aren’t magic formulas or mechanical steps—they’re relational channels God has ordained for your spiritual growth. Think of them like pipes carrying living water: the water (grace) is what changes you, but it flows through particular conduits (means of grace).

Scripture is the primary means of growth. “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). God’s Word doesn’t just inform you—it transforms you. Through Scripture, God exposes sin, corrects wrong thinking, reveals His character, and shapes your desires. You can’t grow spiritually without regular, sustained engagement with the Bible.

Prayer keeps you dependent on God rather than your own effort. It’s the ongoing conversation that deepens relationship. Through prayer, you confess sin and receive forgiveness. You bring your needs and weaknesses before the One who supplies grace. You worship and align your will with His. You intercede for others and participate in God’s work. Prayer reminds you constantly that spiritual growth is His work, not yours.

Christian community provides the context for transformation. “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some, but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching” (Hebrews 10:24-25). You need other believers to encourage you when you’re discouraged, correct you when you’re wrong, challenge you when you’re complacent, and model Christlikeness when you don’t know what it looks like. Isolation starves spiritual growth.

The Lord’s Supper (Communion) reminds you of the gospel that grounds everything. When you take of the bread and cup, you’re not just remembering Christ’s death intellectually—you’re proclaiming His death, examining your heart, and renewing your faith in His finished work. Regular communion keeps the cross central and prevents you from drifting into performance-based Christianity.

Trials and suffering, though painful, are means of grace God uses to refine you. “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (James 1:2-4). Suffering exposes what you truly believe about God, reveals where you’re trusting in things other than Christ, and produces endurance you can’t gain any other way. God wastes nothing—He uses even pain for your progressive transformation.

The Holy Spirit: The True Agent of Change

All these means of grace are effective only because the Holy Spirit works through them. You can read Scripture without the Spirit and gain only information. You can pray without the Spirit and only speak into empty air. You can attend church without the Spirit and experience only ritual. But when the Spirit moves, everything changes.

The Spirit convicts you of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). He opens your eyes to see what Scripture means. He creates desires for holiness that weren’t there before. He empowers you to obey when your flesh wants to rebel. He produces fruit in your life—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23)—that you could never manufacture on your own.

This is why spiritual growth must emphasize both your responsibility and God’s power. You’re commanded to use the means of grace—read Scripture, pray, gather with believers, take communion, endure trials faithfully. But progressive transformation comes not from your effort to use these means but from the Spirit working through them. You position yourself to receive; God does the actual changing. It’s cooperation, not competition, between human responsibility and divine sovereignty.

Why Spiritual Growth Feels So Slow

If God has the power to transform you instantly, why does spiritual growth feel so gradual, so painful, so frustratingly slow? Why does the same sin trip you up year after year? Why do spiritual disciplines sometimes feel like such a grind? Why can’t you just wake up one day mature?

First, remember that God’s timeline isn’t your timeline. “But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day” (2 Peter 3:8). What feels painfully slow to you is perfect pacing to God. He’s not in a hurry because He’s not anxious. He knows exactly how long your transformation will take, and He’s orchestrating every moment to achieve His purposes.

Second, slow growth protects you from pride. If God transformed you overnight, you’d probably credit yourself or start thinking you’ve arrived. The slowness keeps you humble, aware of your ongoing need for grace, dependent on God’s power rather than trusting your own achievements. Quick fixes produce shallow saints. Deep transformation requires time.

Third, character development can’t be rushed. Some lessons can only be learned through repeated failure and eventual victory. Some virtues only develop through long obedience in the same direction. Patience, for instance, requires situations that test your patience over extended periods. Faithfulness requires years of being faithful through varied circumstances. You can’t microwave spiritual maturity—it’s slow-cooked over a lifetime.

Fourth, you’re often making more progress than you can see. Growth isn’t always visible to you, especially when you’re in the middle of it. You notice your failures acutely but often miss your gradual victories. Ask someone who’s known you for years, and they’ll likely point out changes you can’t see yourself—how you respond to trials differently now, how your speech has become more gracious, how your priorities have shifted. The growth is real even when you can’t feel it.

Finally, God is working on multiple fronts simultaneously. He’s not just addressing one sin or developing one virtue—He’s transforming your entire person into Christ’s image. That’s a massive project. While you’re focused on conquering one particular sin, He’s also working on your motives, your thought patterns, your affections, your relationships, your understanding of Him. The slowness reflects the comprehensiveness of the transformation, not the inadequacy of the power at work.

Trust the process. God started this work in you when you believed, and He promises to finish it. The slowness doesn’t mean He’s failing—it means He’s being thorough. You’ll be finished growing only when you see Christ face to face and are finally, fully transformed into His likeness. Until then, give yourself grace for the journey and trust God’s faithfulness to complete what He started.

Navigating Dry Seasons Without Giving Up

There will be seasons when God feels distant, when Scripture seems lifeless, when prayer feels like talking to the ceiling, when serving others drains rather than energizes you. These dry seasons are normal parts of every believer’s journey, but they’re also dangerous—because in the dryness, it’s easy to conclude you’re doing something wrong or that God has abandoned you.

First, understand that dry seasons aren’t always caused by sin or failure. Sometimes God withdraws the felt sense of His presence to teach you to walk by faith rather than feelings. Like a parent teaching a child to walk by stepping back, God sometimes removes the immediate comfort of His presence so you’ll learn to trust His promises even when you don’t feel Him near. This is growth, not punishment.

In dry seasons, obey anyway. Keep reading Scripture even when it feels dry. Keep praying even when it feels empty. Keep gathering with believers even when you don’t feel like it. Keep serving even when it’s hard. Obedience during drought is more valuable than enthusiasm during abundance, because it proves your faith isn’t dependent on feelings. You’re learning to love God for who He is, not just for how He makes you feel.

Examine your heart honestly, but don’t assume the worst. Yes, sometimes dryness results from unconfessed sin or spiritual neglect. Ask the Holy Spirit to search your heart and reveal anything that needs addressing. But don’t automatically conclude you’re the problem. Sometimes dry seasons are God’s appointed means of weaning you off dependence on experiences and teaching you to trust Him when nothing feels true.

Remember God’s faithfulness in past seasons. When you can’t feel God’s presence now, recall times when you did. Review journal entries from vibrant seasons. Remember specific moments of His provision, answered prayers, clear guidance. Your feelings change, but God’s character doesn’t. His past faithfulness is evidence of His present faithfulness, even when you can’t feel it.

Don’t isolate. Dry seasons tempt you to withdraw from community because you don’t want to fake joy you don’t feel. But isolation makes everything worse. Tell trusted believers what you’re experiencing. Let them pray for you, encourage you, and remind you of truths you’re struggling to believe. Their faith can carry you when yours feels weak.

Wait with expectation. Dry seasons don’t last forever. “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning” (Psalm 30:5). Keep showing up faithfully, trusting that God is working even when you can’t see or feel it. Often the sweetest seasons of intimacy with God come right after the driest deserts—because the desert taught you dependence you couldn’t learn any other way.

Obedience Over Feelings: The Path to Freedom

One of the most liberating truths you’ll learn about how to grow spiritually is this: Obedience doesn’t require perfect feelings. You don’t need to feel like obeying to actually obey. You don’t need to feel close to God to read His Word. You don’t need to feel joyful to give thanks. You don’t need to feel forgiving to extend forgiveness. Obedience is a choice you make regardless of your emotional state—and often, the feelings follow the act of obedience rather than preceding it.

This is crucial because feelings are unreliable guides. They fluctuate based on circumstances, sleep, hormones, stress, and countless other factors outside your control. If you wait until you feel spiritual before acting spiritual, you’ll rarely obey. But if you choose obedience even when you don’t feel like it, you’re training yourself to trust God’s Word over your emotions—and that’s the path to genuine freedom.

Jesus modeled this in Gethsemane. He didn’t feel like going to the cross—He sweat drops of blood, asked if there was another way, admitted His soul was “exceedingly sorrowful, even to death” (Matthew 26:38). But He obeyed anyway: “O My Father, if this cup cannot pass away from Me unless I drink it, Your will be done” (Matthew 26:42). Feelings didn’t determine obedience; commitment to the Father’s will did.

When you obey without supportive feelings, you’re proving the genuineness of your faith. It’s easy to obey when you feel like it—that’s just following your desires. But when you obey despite contrary feelings, you’re demonstrating that your allegiance is to Christ, not to comfort. That’s when transformation happens, because you’re breaking the power of feelings to control you.

Here’s the beautiful paradox: Often the feelings you want eventually follow the obedience you choose. You don’t feel thankful, but you give thanks anyway—and gradually gratitude takes root. You don’t feel like praying, but you pray anyway—and over time intimacy develops. You don’t feel forgiving, but you choose to forgive anyway—and bitterness loses its grip. Obedience creates the conditions in which right feelings can grow.

This doesn’t mean becoming emotionally dead or pretending feelings don’t matter. Emotions are God’s gift—they’re part of being made in His image. But they’re meant to serve you, not rule you. When feelings align with truth, celebrate them. When they contradict truth, obey anyway and trust that alignment will come. You’re not denying emotions; you’re subordinating them to something more reliable—God’s revealed will.

So how do you obey when you don’t feel like it? Start with small, concrete actions. You don’t feel like reading Scripture? Read one verse anyway. You don’t feel like praying? Speak one sentence of thanks. You don’t feel like serving? Do one small act of kindness. Don’t wait for motivation—act despite its absence. And watch how often the feelings you want follow the obedience you choose.

Growth Through Suffering: God’s Refining Process

If you want to understand how to grow spiritually, you must come to terms with this uncomfortable truth: Suffering is one of God’s primary tools for progressive transformation. Not because He’s cruel or because He enjoys watching you hurt, but because some lessons can only be learned through pain, and some depths of faith can only be forged in the fire of affliction.

James doesn’t say “if” you face trials but “when.” “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (James 1:2-4). Trials are guaranteed. The question isn’t whether you’ll suffer but how you’ll respond when you do.

Suffering reveals what you truly believe about God. When life is comfortable, you can claim to trust God without those claims being tested. But when everything falls apart—when you lose what you love, when prayers go unanswered, when God’s purposes make no sense—that’s when you discover if your faith is genuine. Trials strip away pretense and expose the actual state of your soul.

God uses suffering to wean you off idols. Comfort tempts you to find satisfaction in things other than God—career success, financial security, relational harmony, physical health. When suffering removes these props, you’re forced to reckon with whether God alone is enough for you. Often you discover you’ve been trusting created things more than the Creator. Suffering reveals these idols and invites you to find your ultimate satisfaction in God Himself.

Trials produce endurance that can’t be gained any other way. Athletes don’t develop strength by lifting light weights—they grow by pushing against resistance that challenges them. Spiritually, you grow through successfully enduring difficulties that test your faith. Each trial you navigate faithfully builds spiritual muscle for the next one. Over time, you develop resilience that makes you steady when storms come.

Peter explains that trials refine your faith like fire refines gold. “In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ” (1 Peter 1:6-7). The fire doesn’t create faith—it proves and purifies what’s already there, burning away impurities and leaving behind what’s genuine.

How do you respond correctly to suffering? First, bring your pain honestly to God. Don’t pretend you’re fine when you’re not. The Psalms are filled with raw cries of anguish—God invites your honest emotion. Second, trust His purposes even when you can’t see them. Romans 8:28 doesn’t say everything that happens is good; it says God works all things together for good for those who love Him. Trust His sovereign purpose even when you can’t trace His immediate plans. Third, look for what God is teaching you. What weaknesses is this trial exposing? What truths is He pressing into your heart? What idols is He revealing? Fourth, lean into community. Don’t suffer alone—let other believers carry you when you’re too weak to carry yourself.

Finally, remember that suffering is temporary but transformation is eternal. “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Every trial has an expiration date. But the character developed through that trial lasts forever. What you gain through suffering far outweighs what you lose in the process.

Measuring Spiritual Growth Without Legalism

How do you know if you’re actually growing? What are the right metrics to assess spiritual maturity? And how do you measure progress without falling into legalism or performance-based Christianity?

First, recognize that external activities aren’t reliable measures. You can read your Bible daily, pray for hours, attend every church service, memorize whole books of Scripture, serve prolifically—and still be spiritually immature if your heart isn’t being transformed. The Pharisees excelled at religious activity while missing the heart of God entirely. External disciplines are means to growth, not evidence of it.

Instead, measure growth by the fruit of the Spirit. Paul lists nine qualities that the Spirit produces: “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). Are you becoming more patient? More kind? More self-controlled? More joyful despite circumstances? More loving toward difficult people? These character qualities are far better indicators of genuine growth than how many Bible verses you’ve memorized.

Ask yourself: How am I responding to trials and opposition? Spiritual maturity shows most clearly under pressure. When someone criticizes you unjustly, do you respond with grace or defensiveness? When your plans fall apart, do you trust God or spiral into anxiety? When someone wrongs you, do you forgive or nurse bitterness? Your response to difficulty reveals the actual state of your heart more accurately than your behavior when life is comfortable.

Consider: Am I growing in my love for God and people? Jesus summarized all the law and prophets in two commands: love God and love your neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40). Are you increasingly delighting in God for who He is, not just for what He does for you? Are you becoming more sacrificially concerned for others’ good, even at cost to yourself? If you’re growing in knowledge but shrinking in love, you’re not maturing—you’re just becoming proud.

Examine: Do I see sin differently than I used to? Mature believers don’t sin less than immature ones because they’re stronger; they sin less because their desires have changed. What once seemed appealing now grieves them. What once felt natural now feels foreign. Their sorrow over sin is deeper because their love for God is greater. If sin still feels normal and comfortable rather than grievous, growth may be stalled.

Reflect: Am I becoming more dependent on God or more self-sufficient? Counterintuitively, growth often manifests as increasing awareness of your weakness and need for grace. Paul grew to the point of declaring, “And He said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.’ Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9). If you think you’re doing pretty well on your own, you might be regressing rather than advancing.

Most importantly, don’t compare yourself to others. Your growth journey is unique to you. God isn’t transforming you into someone else’s image of maturity—He’s transforming you into Christ’s image through your particular circumstances, gifts, struggles, and calling. Some believers grow faster in certain areas; others in different ones. The goal isn’t to match someone else’s progress but to be more like Jesus this year than you were last year.

When You Feel Stuck: Breaking Through Spiritual Plateaus

You were growing steadily for months or years—making progress, seeing change, feeling alive spiritually. Then suddenly everything stalled. You’re still doing the spiritual disciplines, still showing up, still trying—but nothing seems to be happening. You’ve hit a spiritual plateau, and you don’t know how to break through.

First, understand that plateaus are normal, not evidence of failure. Even in physical training, growth happens in spurts followed by plateaus where your body consolidates gains before the next growth phase. Spiritual growth often works similarly—periods of visible progress followed by what feels like stagnation. The plateau doesn’t mean you’ve stopped growing; it means growth is happening underground where you can’t see it yet.

But plateaus can also indicate real problems that need addressing. Here are common obstacles and how to address them:

Unconfessed sin creates distance from God. “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear” (Psalm 66:18). When you’re holding onto known sin—refusing to confess and forsake it—spiritual growth stops. The solution is honest examination and repentance. Ask the Spirit to search your heart (Psalm 139:23-24). Confess specifically what He reveals. Make restitution where needed. Turn from the sin you’ve been tolerating.

Unbelief masquerades as maturity. Sometimes what looks like spiritual stability is actually hardness—you’ve stopped expecting God to surprise you, challenge you, or change you. You go through motions without genuine faith that He’s working. The Israelites couldn’t enter the Promised Land “because of unbelief” (Hebrews 3:19). Ask yourself: Do I actually believe God is transforming me? Am I expecting Him to work? Or have I settled into comfortable mediocrity?

Pride blinds you to ongoing need. When you start thinking you’ve “arrived” spiritually, growth stops. Paul says mature believers are those who “press toward the goal” (Philippians 3:14)—never satisfied with where they are, always pursuing more of Christ. If you think you’re doing pretty well and don’t need much correction or growth, you’re not mature—you’re proud. And “God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6).

Isolation starves spiritual life. You can’t grow healthy in isolation from the body of Christ. “As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend” (Proverbs 27:17). If you’ve drifted from meaningful Christian community—stopped going to church regularly, quit your small group, isolated from accountability—you’ve cut yourself off from one of God’s primary means of grace. Reconnect. Find a local church. Join a group. Get back into community where others can encourage, challenge, and correct you.

Comfort becomes an idol. When avoiding discomfort is your highest value, growth stops. Transformation requires being stretched beyond what’s comfortable—taking on challenges that expose weakness, serving in ways that cost you something, pursuing relationships that require vulnerability. If you’ve structured your life to avoid all discomfort, you’ve also blocked growth. Ask God to show you where you need to be challenged and stretched, then step into that discomfort trusting Him.

Burnout masquerades as disobedience. Sometimes what looks like spiritual plateau is actually exhaustion. You’re not disobedient—you’re depleted. You’ve been serving, giving, showing up, and striving without rest, and now you’re running on fumes. The solution isn’t to try harder; it’s to rest. Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). Take a Sabbath. Say no to some commitments. Let others serve you for a season. Rest isn’t laziness—it’s obedience when you’re weary.

To break through a plateau, try changing your approach. If you’ve been reading Scripture topically, try reading entire books. If you’ve been praying privately, try praying with others. If you’ve been serving in one area for years, try serving somewhere new that stretches you. If you’ve been studying theology, try memorizing Scripture. Sometimes different means of grace open different channels for the Spirit’s work.

Finally, bring your frustration honestly to God. Tell Him you feel stuck. Ask Him to show you what’s blocking growth—whether it’s sin, unbelief, pride, isolation, comfort, or just the normal rhythm of plateau before breakthrough. Then obey whatever He reveals, trusting that He’s faithful to complete what He started.

Practical Next Steps: Where to Begin Today

Understanding how to grow spiritually is valuable, but knowledge without action produces nothing. So where do you start? What specific, concrete steps can you take today to position yourself for transformation?

Start with one thing, not everything. Don’t try to overhaul your entire spiritual life at once. That leads to overwhelm and burnout within weeks. Instead, choose one area to focus on this month. Pick the area where you sense God’s conviction most strongly or where you see the greatest need. Maybe it’s daily Bible reading. Maybe it’s confessing a specific sin you’ve been tolerating. Maybe it’s finding a church or small group. Start there.

Make it specific and measurable. Instead of “I want to pray more,” say “I will pray for 10 minutes every morning before checking my phone.” Instead of “I should be more generous,” say “I will give 15% of my income to my local church this month.” Instead of “I need to grow in patience,” say “When my kids interrupt me, I will take a breath and respond kindly rather than snapping.” Specific commitments are easier to keep and measure.

Build habits, not isolated events. One inspiring quiet time doesn’t change your life—but 365 quiet times over a year transforms you. Focus on establishing sustainable rhythms rather than occasional spiritual highs. Build systems—daily Bible reading, weekly church attendance, regular service—that naturally produce growth over time.

Get accountability. Tell someone what you’re committing to and ask them to check in with you regularly. Accountability massively increases follow-through and provides encouragement when motivation wanes. Find one friend who will text you weekly to ask how your quiet times went, or join a small group where you can share honestly about your growth journey.

Use resources designed to help. You don’t have to figure everything out alone. Use a Bible reading plan that guides you systematically through Scripture. Download a Bible study guide that teaches you how to observe, interpret, and apply. Join a discipleship group or find a mentor who can model mature faith. Take advantage of tools that support your growth.

Track your progress. Keep a simple journal where you record what you’re learning, how you’re obeying, where you see fruit, and where you’re still struggling. Over time, this record becomes encouragement—you’ll be able to look back and see clear growth even when present circumstances make it feel like nothing’s changing.

Expect setbacks and extend grace. You will fail. You’ll miss days. You’ll stumble into old sins. You’ll have weeks where everything falls apart. That’s normal. The question isn’t whether you’ll fail—it’s how you respond when you do. Will you give up, declaring yourself hopeless? Or will you confess, receive forgiveness, and keep going? Growth isn’t linear perfection—it’s persistent faithfulness despite repeated failures.

Most importantly, remember the gospel. Your value doesn’t depend on how well you’re doing spiritually. God’s love for you doesn’t increase when you’re growing or decrease when you’re failing. You’re already fully accepted in Christ. Growth is your grateful response to grace already received, not your attempt to earn favor you’re desperately trying to deserve. Start from security, not from striving. And let the love that saved you be the love that transforms you.

Ready to take the first step? Here are three simple commitments you could make today:

1. For Scripture engagement: “I will read one chapter of the Bible each day this week and write down one thing God is teaching me.”

2. For prayer: “I will spend five minutes each morning thanking God for specific blessings and asking Him to help me with one specific challenge today.”

3. For community: “I will contact one believer this week to ask about joining a small group or finding an accountability partner.”

Pick one. Start today. And trust that God is faithful to work through your imperfect faithfulness to transform you into Christ’s image.