Memorise: “But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever Amen’ (2 Peter 3: 8).

Read: 1 Samuel 2:18-19,26
“And the child grew; and waxed strong in spirit and was in the deserts till the day of his showing unto Israel” (Luke 1:80).

All the mighty men and women of God started small and began to grow. 1 Samuel 3:19 says, Samuel grew. Luke 1:80 says John the Baptist grew. In Luke 2:40, the greatest of all men – Jesus Christ, also grew. God could have sent Jesus from Heaven a full grown adult just as He created Adam an adult.

But He allowed Him to be born as a little baby. As a baby, Jesus cried as babies cry. He went through what we go through. If you were blessed with a baby today and you opened his mouth and found that he had his complete set of teeth ready to start eating meat and bones, how would you feel? I am sure you will be scared.

In the Christian faith, God also makes room for growth from babyhood to adulthood. There are some Christians who immediately after they are born again want to reach the height of spiritual achievement tomorrow.

They do not want to grow. You cannot be saved today and the same day have your faith grow to that of Abraham. Abraham took time to grow his faith; you cannot do otherwise.

“But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen” (2 Peter 3:18). God’s graces are given to everyone of us in a measure. But through the process of consistent growth, you can increase your measure. God reveals Himself progressively to us.

To tell the truth, comparing what we know about God already with what we have not known, we have not started at all. God wants you to grow non-stop. Keep growing in every good thing.

If you could pray one hour daily as at last year, and you have not gone beyond that this year, you are stagnant. You are a backslider. If you have not beaten your one-soul-a- month record, or one chapter of the Bible daily or one hour per day praying in the spirit,

you are already backsliding – not necessarily because you have committed any physical sin, but the sin of stagnancy. From today, the Lord will take you to the heights. Take a look at your life and find out where you have been stagnant. Take steps to amend this today.

Ask God to make you grow in grace and in the knowledge of Jesus.

Pray for perpetual babies’ in our parishes to grow into maturity.