Vulnerable

Re:Verse passage – 2 Thessalonians 1:3; 1 Peter 2:2; 2 Peter 3:18 (day four)

Take a moment to think back on your walk with Christ so far. What has caused the most growth in your spiritual life? Was there a particularly moving sermon? A helpful Bible study? A retreat?

All of those things can be helpful in my spiritual growth. But I have found that the conversations and prayers I have shared with my brothers and sisters in Christ have propelled some of the most profound growth in my life. Second only to daily time in prayer and Scripture reading, relationships with other believers is essential to becoming more like Christ. When we are willing to be vulnerable and move beyond Sunday morning pleasantries and invite others into our questions, hopes, and fears, we will find that Christ meets us there. When we open ourselves to the encouragement, exhortation, and correction of other believers, we will be challenged to grow in ways we never would on our own.

Who in your life encourages and challenges you? How might you take a step to deepen your relationship with someone so that they can encourage and challenge you? Who has allowed you into their life to do the same? Spiritual growth requires deep relationships. Deep relationships require vulnerability. Vulnerability requires trust. Fortunately, when Christ is at the center of a relationship, we can move in confident trust that he will use that relationship to form us into his likeness.