Growing Up in Christ

A couple of months ago, I had the chance to share my testimony. Putting that talk together reminded me of something important: the experiences of my life have shaped who I am today. In other words, I am not the same guy I once was.

That shouldn’t surprise anyone—change is inevitable in life. As long as we’re breathing, we’re changing. The real question is, what kind of change is happening? For followers of Jesus, the goal isn’t just to grow older but to grow deeper. Our calling is maturity—to become more and more conformed to the image of Christ.

The Apostle Paul put it this way:

“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.”

—2 Corinthians 3:18 (NIV)

Lessons from Immaturity

When I look back on my younger years, I see a long list of foolish decisions and immature perspectives. In high school history class, I once wrote an answer to an essay question on a test that praised Hitler’s economic policies—something that horrifies me today. In another paper, I compared President Theodore Roosevelt to Larry Bird, calling him “the Larry Bird of presidents.” Now, I consider him to be one of the worst. I am thankful for my teacher Mr. Vige, who not only required these writing assignments (that helped develop my love of writing) and was gracious enough to read my immature thoughts.

Then there’s the time I got caught stealing political signs as a freshman. That sort of behavior might be dismissed as teenage stupidity, but imagine if a 52-year-old pastor like me tried the same thing today—it would be career-ending!

Looking back, I can see how those experiences weren’t just embarrassing memories; they were opportunities for growth. Foolishness gave way to wisdom. Immaturity matured into intentional living. Bit by bit, my life was being shaped.

The Role of Intentionality

Here’s the truth: maturity doesn’t just “happen.” We don’t stumble into Christlikeness by accident. Growth requires intentionality.

Over the years, I’ve wrestled with what it means to actually live out what I say I believe. That process has reshaped my political views, refined my convictions on things like women in leadership, and—most importantly—forced me to ask hard questions about how I follow Jesus day to day.

It’s been a continual process of aligning my life with the gospel. I am not the man I was ten years ago—or even last year. And that’s a good thing.

Extending Grace

Here’s where this lands: if change and growth are part of the journey, then we need to give grace—to others and to ourselves.

We need to extend grace to the younger generation, remembering that they are still learning. Yes, they’ll say and do foolish things, but so did we. We also need to extend grace to our past selves, realizing that immaturity doesn’t mean we were evil or hopeless—it just means we were still growing.

The challenge isn’t whether or not you will change. Change is guaranteed. The question is: Are you becoming more like Jesus?

So, keep leaning in. Keep learning. Keep being intentional. And trust that the Spirit who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion (Philippians 1:6).

Paul’s Ponderings is a blog dedicated to reflecting on Scripture and encouraging believers to live out their faith with love and purpose.