I wouldn’t say I’m an authority on the issue, but it seems to me there’s a natural pattern of progression and growth Christians follow.
Before I get into that, I feel it’s important to state God works according to His plan and schedule, not ours. If someone spends much more time in a given phase than someone else does, it could be because God wants it that way. It could also mean they’ve stalled in their growth, but if that’s the case I feel it’s the Holy Spirit’s job to hound them, not ours (though I’ll concede there’s a difference between lovingly confronting someone and hounding them).
I’m going to describe the Christian’s progression in five phases. Again, I’m not an expert on this, it just seems like this is a regular pattern based on my observations. The lines can easily get blurred. People might skip ahead, revert back, or repeat some of them, but in general, it seems to consist of the following pattern.
The first of the Christian’s phases is conversion. No surprise here. This is the switch from Satan’s kingdom to the Lord’s kingdom. It’s that recognition and acceptance of reality: “I’m a sinner, and I can’t meet God’s standard of perfection.” It’s here they recognize their shortcomings and their need for Christ’s sacrifice. Hell lost another one, and it makes the angels celebrate.
The second phase is thankfulness to God. Often there’s a sense of “there’s nothing I can do to repay Christ for the gift He’s given to me.” That can be very difficult for some people to accept, especially those who’ve worked hard to earn what they’ve got. Those people may spend the rest of their lives in this second phase. A heart full of genuine thankfulness and praise is often a hallmark of this phase. Think of the thief on the cross next to Christ. He spent a small fraction of his life as a believer, yet it seems to perfectly dovetail with God’s plan.
Third is a dedication to living a God-honoring life. People in this phase read the Bible and soak up its lessons, becoming a new creation in Christ. This phase can look very different for people. While Christ breaks the bonds of addiction for some almost instantly, others walk a long road toward recovery (with Christ walking alongside them every step of the way, even if they never fully get there). Some people turn their backs on their old ways or non-Christian friends and leave their surroundings while others become infused with Christ and bloom right where they’ve been living. For some this could mean fleeing an oppressive environment for one more conducive to cultivating a Christian life. I think of converts to Christianity in areas of the world where such declarations are dangerous; once you can no longer hide your conversion even if you might want to, you’re probably at least in this third phase.
The fourth phase is stepping into one’s calling. All Christians are empowered by the Holy Spirit with spiritual gifts at the moment of salvation. Taken together with their natural inclinations and interests, these characteristics generate opportunities for Christ-followers to roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty. It’s when they step into the role they were made for. This is where they live out Romans 12:1, becoming a living sacrifice. A big part of getting to this step is realizing you don’t need more training. You don’t need to pursue any more degrees. You already have everything you need to start doing what you’ve been called to do. It’s time to get out there and impact the world through your God-given calling, whatever that is. It’s not your job to feed the 5,000; it’s your job to bring the loaves and fish.
Finally, phase five is mentoring. Christian mentors have been believers long enough to offer the benefit of their experience as they see brothers and sisters in Christ struggle with various challenges. It’s difficult to overstate how life-giving it can be when, while facing something incredibly difficult, you find someone who’s been where you are and perfectly understands your fight. I think of infants’ moms wrestling with post-partum depression, overwhelmed immigrants in a strange new land, couples struggling to adapt to their new marriage, and young pastors getting ready to throw in the towel. The beauty of this phase is it doesn’t take any special training. You probably already possess the hard knocks experience required for the role. You just need to be open to coming alongside someone who needs you.
Again, I want to emphasize the importance of not turning this into an ego thing and judging success by the phase number reached. Each of these phases has their own brand of challenges and God custom-builds different people for different roles. Maintain humility and do your best to live a God-honoring life in whatever phase you find yourself. Do your best to do what God made you for, and phase numbers won’t matter.