Spiritual maturity does not happen overnight. Pastor Rick Warren from Saddleback Church says everything that is truly worthwhile takes time to develop. As such, young Christians must learn how to be patient and work hard for their spiritual growth.
"It takes years for us to grow to adulthood, and it takes a full season for fruit to mature and ripen. The same is true for the fruit of the Spirit. The development of Christ-like character cannot be rushed. Spiritual growth, like physical growth, takes time," he writes on his website.
Before people come to accept Jesus Christ into their lives, Warren says He will allow people to experience problems first so that He can get their attention. More often than not, the problems ensue because people build their lives based on a faulty foundation, he says.
"Jesus demands that we surrender all of our life to him. He doesn't want a small portion of who you are. It's like this: When you're trying to climb out of a river that has a steep bank, you have to get a foothold on something to start the climb. And once you get the foothold, you can climb up the bank and walk all around," he explains.
Warren says whenever people invite Jesus into their lives, they only give Him a foothold and resist all of His efforts to gain access to their lives. But the pastor says Jesus is not contented to stand merely on the foothold, because He wants people to give Him their whole lives.
"You may think you've surrendered all your life to Him, but the truth is, there are parts of your life that you're still hanging onto. Jesus isn't upset with you. He simply wants to work with you to help you uncover areas that you still need to surrender to Him," says Warren.
The pastor is telling Millennials that they will definitely face struggles and battles, but with God on their side, he assures them that the outcome will never be in question.
