This fall I started a series of posts to address a tension many of us feel in leading a group; "How do I grow spiritually if I'm the most mature person in my group?"
I wanted to write one final post to conclude my thoughts and give some potential next steps for you as you wrestle with that question.
The first post defined the end goal of spiritual growth as "looking like Christ."
The second post shared how relationships are 1 of 5 things that God uses to help us grow to "look like Christ".
The point of the second post was to highlight that relationships are part of what grows our faith, but that our spiritual growth is not contingent solely on the people we are surrounded by.
The third post talked about how God uses both more and less mature Christians to help us grow in our faith.
The point of the third post was to highlight that there is no one person we will have in our life that will lead us to full maturity...we grow in our faith in community.
All that being said, you may still be saying, "I've got plenty of spiritually immature people I can learn and grow from, and I need to be more humble about learning from them, but I'd love to also have some more spiritually mature people in my life who can help me grow. How can I find that? If there are not many or any in my group, what do I do?"
Where can we find spiritually mature people to help us grow?
That's what we want to talk about in this final post.
While each Community Group would ideally have a good number of mature Christians in addition to immature, groups are not the only pool for finding mature Christ followers to rub shoulders with.
So, if you find yourself hungering for connection with other Christians who are serious about growing in the faith, here are some ideas.
8 Ways To Find Mature Christians Who Will Help You Grow
1. Develop them in your group.
You have “potentially mature” Christians already in your group. Don't look past them too quickly.
Yes, this takes effort, but you may be surprised that some of the people in your group will welcome additional connections to grow their faith:
a weekly accountability breakfast
memorizing Scripture together
reading a book together
discussing theology together
2. Grab a meal or coffee with your Community Group Coach or a Northridge staff member.
We'd love to share with you what we are learning as we seek to grow in our own faith. We're all in process!
3. Ask for a connection.
Some of you have requested help to find another mature Christian you can connect with.
While we are not match-makers, your Group Coach or a staff member may be able to help you make a connection with another mature Christ follower.
In fact, if you respond to this post it may give us a list of people we can pair together who are seeking mutually beneficial connections.
4. Serve alongside other Christ followers.
The most mature Christians are already investing their lives in serving others.
If you want to learn from them, find out what they are doing and serve alongside of them.
Join the Care Portal Team or find a role to serve at your campus.
5. Attend an Equip class with other Christ followers.
Those attending a class are taking an intentional step to grow. Get to know them and grow with them by participating in an a class together.
6. Connect with leaders from your former group.
Just because you are not in a group with them anymore doesn't mean you can't do life with them.
Some of my closest friendships are with previous group members and leaders.
7. Take an online class from a Bible college or seminary.
Not only will you increase your knowledge but you'll be able to build relationships with Godly classmates and professors.
8. meet them through a book.
I've heard it said that books are like good friends who help guide and counsel us.
When we read, we get to know the author and hear their thoughts. The more we read, the more their ideas and their lives begin to influence our own.
This may be a one-sided friendship, but a friendship with a book/author in addition to our other friendships can help.
Need a recommendation? Check out our staff suggestions: www.northridgeequip.com/books
Our spiritual growth is a process, but He who began a good work in us will complete His perfect work (Philippians 1:6).
I'm looking forward to the day when the process of becoming like Christ will be complete.
What did I miss in these posts? What questions do you still have? How have these posts helped you? I'd love to hear your thoughts. Email me HERE.
Let's keep learning and growing together.
