God Grows You One Step at a Time - Daily Hope with Rick Warren - July 15, 2021

God Grows You One Step at a Time
By Rick Warren

“So get rid of your old self, which made you live as you used to—the old self that was being destroyed by its deceitful desires. Your hearts and minds must be made completely new, and you must put on the new self, which is created in God’s likeness and reveals itself in the true life that is upright and holy.” Ephesians 4:22-24 (GNT)

Although God could instantly transform you, he has chosen to develop you slowly. 

This is how you see him work throughout the Bible. God allowed the Israelites to take over the Promised Land “little by little” so they wouldn’t be overwhelmed (Deuteronomy 7:22). Jesus was deliberate in developing his disciples. In the same way, God prefers to work in incremental steps in your life.

Why does it take so long to change and grow up? There are several reasons:

We are slow learners. People often have to relearn a lesson 40 or 50 times to really get it. The problems keep recurring, and you think, “Not again! I’ve already learned that!” But God knows better. The history of Israel illustrates how quickly we forget the lessons God teaches us and how soon we revert to our old patterns of behavior. We need repeated exposure.

We have a lot to unlearn. Since most of your problems—and all of your bad habits—didn’t develop overnight, it’s unrealistic to expect them go away immediately. There is no pill, prayer, or principle that will instantly undo the damage of many years. It requires the hard work of removal and replacement. The Bible calls it “taking off the old self” and “putting on the new self” (Romans 13:12; Ephesians 4:22-24; Colossians 3:7-10, 14).

Growth is often painful and scary. There is no growth without change, no change without fear or loss, and no loss without pain. Every change involves a loss of some kind. People fear these losses. Even if your old ways were self-defeating, they were at least comfortable and familiar, like a worn-out pair of shoes.

Good habits take time to develop. Your character is the sum total of your habits. You can’t claim to be kind unless you are habitually kind. Your habits define your character.

There is only one way to develop the habits of Christlike character: You must practice them—and that takes time! There are no instant habits. Paul urged Timothy, “Practice these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress” (1 Timothy 4:15 GW).

PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick

For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!

Experience More of God’s Presence in 2025!

Prayer has the power to transform your year and that’s why we hope you’ll request a copy of the brand-new Daily Hope Prayer Journal!

This year’s theme, Resting in the Great I Am, will help you experience more of God’s presence in the year ahead as you learn to pray with greater passion and purpose.

Request your Daily Hope Prayer Journal: Resting in the Great I Am when you give below, knowing your gift will be DOUBLED by the $100,000 Match to help reach more people with the hope of Jesus in 2025.

Thank you!

*All gifts will be doubled up to the full amount of the grant. Thank you for your generous support!

*The USA IRS code permits you to deduct the amount of your financial gift to Daily Hope that exceeds the fair market value of materials you received from Daily Hope.

This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.