God employs loss and its accompanying grief to strip me of inferior objects of trust and sources of joy and anchor my soul more securely to Christ. Fear is a powerful enemy and an opponent of childlike faith. Suffering is the most powerful instrument of the Spirit for exposing my heart’s sin and false trust.

In the early months of 1984, the Holy Spirit caused me to be born again in Christ through a home Bible study in the Gospel of John. In some ways, it’s hard to believe four decades have passed. In other ways, it seems the time has flown. So many life changes during that time stimulated reflection—from a single young man to a husband to a father to a pastor and now to a grandfather! Most of all, though, I’ve reflected on the new person I have become and am becoming, since I have a long way to go in growing in Christlikeness.

One morning last week, I opened an empty page in my journal and spent a couple of hours writing random one-sentence biblical principles or convictions that have become part of my thinking as a follower of Christ. It was a random, unorganized mind dump about salvation, sanctification, emotions, leadership, and the Christian life.

I grouped them into broad topics to make the list more presentable. As time goes on, for example, I will probably add to the list and create more categories such as marriage and parenting. But, for now, maybe one or more of these sentences will provoke thoughts of your own and encourage your growth in the grace and knowledge of Christ.

Genuine Salvation and Progressive Sanctification

• Conversion to Christ, i.e. salvation, entails a fundamental shift in the posture of our heart toward the authority of Christ and his Word.
• Genuine salvation is not the addition of Jesus to my life, but the progressive replacement of my lordship with his.
• God alone saves by his grace; a dead man can do nothing to contribute.The Holy Spirit will continue to sanctify me in Christ, but I must be willing and obedient.
• No believer will grow to maturity in Christ without habitual Sunday worship alongside other Christians.
• Meditating on the Word daily has been the single most significant, life-transforming spiritual discipline.
• Some sins are killed soon after conversion, but others have more stubborn roots that require a lifetime of mortification.
• If my heart is beating, there remain nooks and crannies of my heart that need to be exposed as being still ruled by Self and, therefore, need to be surrendered to God.
• Hunger and thirst for God will mark genuine salvation and produce personal righteousness and growth in biblical truth.
• Staying on course in the Christian race requires vigilant, Christ-centered focus and self-discipline.
• Every day I die to myself is a day I make progress in becoming like Christ.
• Meditating on the cross of Jesus keeps my heart tender toward him and sensitive to my sin.
• Sin ravages the human soul, but God forgives and progressively restores through his grace.
• Sanctifying grace aims to renovate my whole being—mind, emotions, will, and affections—not merely my external behavior, though that will also become holy as I walk in the Spirit.
• True saving faith in Christ produces a desire and willingness to be reconciled to personal enemies even when they repeatedly refuse, resulting in prayer being our only remaining option.
• I am set apart by God, for God, and to God.
• God is more committed to my sanctification than I am, regardless of how laser-focused I may be, and I must learn to rest in his daily supply of grace.
• To be like Jesus means growing toward the perfect balance of grace and truth.

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