Mature in Christ

I don't know about you, but with the start of school, I am already feeling the busyness of life again. After a great summer with extra family time, we find ourselves thrust back into the full range of the opportunities God has put before us: LeAnn teaching (more than) full-time, our youngest son headed into his senior year, and me taking advantage of the wonderful "doors" God has opened for me into the lives of people in the Riverwood family and out in the community.

This full family calendar requires our household to have a conversation almost every evening of what we can expect for the next day:

• Who is headed where at what time.
• Who needs a car at which specific time of day.
• Who is in charge of making dinner.
• Who can run which errand.
• and on and on...

However, as important as that almost-daily conversation is, when LeAnn and I got married a little over 30 years ago, we didn't exchange vows that said, "I will commit to making sure you can have the car for your evening meeting every Tuesday." The purpose of our marriage wasn't for convenience, or to simply help each other out. The reason we got married is because we loved each other, sensed we could do more together than we could as individuals, and believed God was calling us to marriage. God has a far higher purpose for our family than just making sure we are in sync on the daily particulars.

The Purpose for God's Family

This past Sunday, Jake and I shared about Riverwood's renewed emphasis on spiritual growth. The reason Jake and I (on behalf of the Elder Team) made a big deal about things like Growth Groups, one-on-one discipleship, Bible reading, prayer, serving, and more is that we are convinced that God has a higher calling for the Riverwood family than just attending Sunday Worship Gatherings or being nice people. As good and as important as those things are, God has a far higher purpose for your life and for the Riverwood family as a whole.

Jake and I talked a lot about the "how" we, as leaders of the Riverwood family, are going to encourage you to mature into Christlikeness. This coming Sunday, Ed Pavelec is going to take the conversation even deeper, helping us see the "why" this is of the utmost importance. (Feel free to read Colossians chapters 1 & 2 in preparation for Ed's sermon.)

What's Your Depth?

One of the things Jake and I emphasized, though, was that in order for you to truly appreciate the "why" and take advantage of the "how" is to take time to figure out where you are in the "river" of Christ. With Ezekiel 47 as inspiration, ask God to reveal to you where you are spiritually. Are you...

• On the Shore? (Not a Christ-follower yet, but investigating)
• Ankle-Deep? (New/young in your faith)
• Knee-Deep? (Growing but have much to learn and do)
• Waist-Deep? (Following Jesus almost fully, but sense God has more)
• or Immersed? (Leading others)

Knowing where you are will help you know what to do or study next. Just as the current of a river keeps pulling a swimmer deeper downstream, God desires for you to go deeper spiritually and give your entire life to Him, because He can do more in you and through you than you ever thought possible.

I look forward to watching God work among our church family to help each of us grow spiritually by His grace, so that you may "abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight" into the goodness and graciousness of God. (Philippians 1:9-11)