Growth Is Intentional
by Cynthia Jennings on January 22, 2020Growth Is Intentional
When you’re unhappy on the inside you usually take your frustrations out on those close to you. How many days, months, and or years have you spent feeling bitter, being angry with or feeling sorry for yourself?
Have you or are you allowing others to stop you from growing? Are you in a place in your life where you say “I need to stop being angry with and feeling sorry for myself and I know I need to grow in this area?” Yet you find yourself continually doing and thinking that “same” thing in the area you say you need to grow.
I thought back to a situation that made me bitter. I know being bitter is no good for me because it stunts my growth and is contrary to God’s Word. The funny part is, I know what it takes to overcome bitterness. But I’m human and it took me a while to shake this, because at that time I wanted to shake someone. {Just being transparent}.
I found myself asking myself why am I allowing bitterness to make a home thus causing my growth to be stunted in that area? Why is it so easy to grow in some areas, so difficult in other areas and why can’t I just pull the trigger on making this change?{at the time I was experiencing this bitterness I had no idea God would use my test to be a testimony to help someone else….lol}.
During one of my frustrating moments in prayer I asked God to show me where the hinderance is. As God often does, He gives me my answer in an analogy. God’s answer to me: “you must be intentional in feeding what you want to grow otherwise if you don’t feed it expect stunting, or worse deterioration. In order to grow past bitterness, you must feed it.” What???!!! Feed the bitterness? Was my reply. “Yes, be intentional in feeding it with the nutrients that are beneficial.” I can see the perplexed look on your face..lol. I was perplexed too. After that prayer I didn’t’ receive any more explanations. For weeks all I heard was growth is intentional. Then the light bulb went on. Ahhh… I can either feed the negativity of bitterness or I can feed the positivity of bitterness with the thought process of love, revised expectations, patience and mercy.
I thought about the food I put in my body and the intentionality used to ingest the best nutrients. The best nutrients will yield positive effects that will lead to correct growth verses unhealthy nutrients that will yield negative effects and the possibility of stagnation and deterioration.
This analogy took away the excuse or belief of saying I can’t grow and equipped me the with knowledge that the only thing stopping your growth is the lack of intentionality.
PEARLStoPONDER: What are you feeding yourself?
2 Peter 3:18-- But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
2 Peter 1:5-8--5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
When you’re unhappy on the inside you usually take your frustrations out on those close to you. How many days, months, and or years have you spent feeling bitter, being angry with or feeling sorry for yourself?
Have you or are you allowing others to stop you from growing? Are you in a place in your life where you say “I need to stop being angry with and feeling sorry for myself and I know I need to grow in this area?” Yet you find yourself continually doing and thinking that “same” thing in the area you say you need to grow.
I thought back to a situation that made me bitter. I know being bitter is no good for me because it stunts my growth and is contrary to God’s Word. The funny part is, I know what it takes to overcome bitterness. But I’m human and it took me a while to shake this, because at that time I wanted to shake someone. {Just being transparent}.
I found myself asking myself why am I allowing bitterness to make a home thus causing my growth to be stunted in that area? Why is it so easy to grow in some areas, so difficult in other areas and why can’t I just pull the trigger on making this change?{at the time I was experiencing this bitterness I had no idea God would use my test to be a testimony to help someone else….lol}.
During one of my frustrating moments in prayer I asked God to show me where the hinderance is. As God often does, He gives me my answer in an analogy. God’s answer to me: “you must be intentional in feeding what you want to grow otherwise if you don’t feed it expect stunting, or worse deterioration. In order to grow past bitterness, you must feed it.” What???!!! Feed the bitterness? Was my reply. “Yes, be intentional in feeding it with the nutrients that are beneficial.” I can see the perplexed look on your face..lol. I was perplexed too. After that prayer I didn’t’ receive any more explanations. For weeks all I heard was growth is intentional. Then the light bulb went on. Ahhh… I can either feed the negativity of bitterness or I can feed the positivity of bitterness with the thought process of love, revised expectations, patience and mercy.
I thought about the food I put in my body and the intentionality used to ingest the best nutrients. The best nutrients will yield positive effects that will lead to correct growth verses unhealthy nutrients that will yield negative effects and the possibility of stagnation and deterioration.
This analogy took away the excuse or belief of saying I can’t grow and equipped me the with knowledge that the only thing stopping your growth is the lack of intentionality.
PEARLStoPONDER: What are you feeding yourself?
2 Peter 3:18-- But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
2 Peter 1:5-8--5 And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge;
6 And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; 7 And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity.8 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.
