IT TAKES TIME !

Philippians 1:6

For I am sure that God who began this good work in you, will carry it on until it is full the day of Christ Jesus.

Recently showed that children musical " Friends of God " . The theme song has this refrain : " I want to be a friend , the friend of God ."

But did you know that it takes time ?

Become a Friend of God is a process . There is no shortcut. Only through a process is that it gets to be a friend of God .

For a person reaches adulthood , it takes several years ... for a fruit, the mango for example, grow and mature , it takes a whole season ... it takes time ! Spiritual growth , like physical also requires time .

When you try to ripen the fruit quickly , it loses the taste . It's like a banana supermarket . Bananas are usually harvested before maturity , it allows them to be carried away . Then , when they are still green , are vaporized with Azetil gas , which is a mixture of ethylene and nitrogen , it makes the banana stand with mature appearance instantly .

Steamed bananas are edible , but one thing : you can not compare the taste of a banana with the banana that this bunch that was left to mature naturally.

In the book 49 Days Encounters With the Father are learning something important : to gain intimacy with God or a maturity similar to Jesus , it is a process !

Maybe you worry about growing rapidly , but God is interested in you grow stronger .

And how to grow naturally and achieve spiritual height of Christ (Eph. 4:13 ) ? Because the Bible says : " So we all come to be one in our faith and in our knowledge of the Son of God . And so we will be mature and reach a spiritual height of Christ. "

Become like Jesus is your goal - is the goal of every believer ... but this task requires a lifetime ....

Involves relationships up, inside and out! Ie involves honoring God , loving people and cultivate holiness.

The fact is that God wants every day you become more like him .

Today we like a lot of speed, but God is more interested in power than by speed.

Maybe you want a little way , a shortcut , an immediate solution ... a sermon or a board that instantly solve all your problems . But the true maturity , intimate friendship with God , not only comes with experience , though it may be exciting or powerful .

Become a Friend of God takes time .

Why does it take time ?

If God wanted us to transform instantly , he would! But God chose us to mature naturally.

Why it takes time to change and grow ? There Vari- reasons .

The first is that ... :

We learn slowly.

It is quite common that a lesson is explained several times until it is actually learned.

Back home , now Ana Beatriz woke for cycling ... but first she has to learn ... now that aroused then and I will learn ... and her mother are there , repeatedly explaining the same thing: where safe , look forward ... and here becomes unbalanced and falls and trunk ... but there is this: the problem needs to be repeated periodically , in order to learn .

Normally we say : " Ah ! No, Not again! " , But God knows what we need.

The history of Israel in the past , shows how the lessons God teaches are quickly forgotten - God taught the people returned to their old habits .

We are well . Slow learners . So the problems are repeated because we need to learn.

Second ... why look like Jesus takes time , that is :

We have much to unlearn .

Many people seek a counselor because they are personal or relational problem that took a while to grow on their lives .

These people said the counselor , "I need you to give me a way . And I only have an hour . " They expect a quick solution to a problem that has been growing.

But most of our problems did not arise overnight , so it makes no sense to expect them to disappear immediately.

It is necessary to work hard for disposal and replacement habits . The Bible calls it put off the old man and put on the new man .

It is written in Colossians 3.7-10 : "Before your lives were dominated by those desires , and you lived in accordance with them . 8But now get rid of all these : anger, passion and feelings of hatred . And do not get out of your mouths no insult and no indecent talk . 9Não lie to each other , for you have laid aside the old self with its habits 10e dressed with a new nature . This nature is the new person that God , your creator, is always refreshing for it to become like him in order to make you know him completely . "

According to the Bible we have many things to unlearn old habits are ... , standards and practices that need to be removed and replaced .

A third reason ... because it takes time to mature is that :

We are afraid to humbly face the truth about us .

The truth liberates , but often the fear of facing squarely the defects of our coráter binds us .

But it is necessary that God's light shine upon our faults and failures , otherwise they will never be overcome. That's why we can not grow without a posture of humility before the teachings of God .

Fourth reason ... and because it takes time to grow and change , is that :

New habits take time to develop.

Your character is the sum total of your habits . You can not tell who is kind , unless you are habitually kind ... you can not say that it is intact , unless you have a habit of being honest. Habits define character .

Therefore , there is only one way to develop the habits of character like Jesus is to practice them ... and that takes time !

There is no hab- tos snapshots . Paul urged Timothy : Practice these things . Dedicate your life to them , so that everyone can see your progresso.7

With practice time , you get good at anything!

... Here's what you should do during the process of becoming God's friend :

Believe that God is working in your life even when you do not feel anything.

Look forward to progress step by step ... with a gradual improvement .

The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 3.1 : " Everything in this world has its time , every thing has its time " ... everything on earth has its own time and its season.

In the spiritual life also has stations : Sometimes you have a short and intense burst of growth (it is the season of spring ) , then comes a period of stability and trials ( 's autumn and winter ) .

You can pray for a miracle . They happen ! But do not be disappointed if the answer comes through a gradual change over time ... is that a small bud becomes a giant tree .

Else ... you should do :

Be patient with God and with himself .

One of the frustrations of life is that the pace of God is rarely the same as ours . Ours is almost always rushed , not God's .

Perhaps you feel frustrated with the apparently slow progress you're doing in life, but do not forget one fact: God is not late.

God took Moses treating eighty years ... were forty years in the desert ... 14,600 days ! ... Finally ... the Lord spoke to Moses " face to face , as one who speaks with his friend ." It was worth it !

Someone remarked that when God wants to make a mushroom , He does the overnight , but when you want to make a giant oak tree , takes a hundred years.

Have patience with the process . James counseled ( 1:4): " Be , But let patience have her perfect work , that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing . "

Finally ... :

Do not be discouraged .

When Habakkuk became depressed because he thought God was not acting fast enough , God said to him ( Hab 2:3) : " It's not yet the right time for the vision to be fulfilled , but it will be fulfilled without fail . The right time will come soon , so wait, even if it seems long, because the vision will come at the right time . "

So do not be discouraged ... Remember how much you've spent , not how much you will have to spend ...

You are not everywhere , but it is not where it used to be . Do not be discouraged .

conclusion

There is no shortcut to get to be intimate friend of God , spiritual maturity .

But God began doing a good work in you , and He will continue until complete .

You just need to abide in Him .

In what area of ​​your life , you need to be more patient and persistent , remaining in the Lord ?

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be in your life and the lives of his family forever.