Do you ever find yourself throwing around phrases without stopping to consider what they really mean? For example, how often do we say things like:

“Growing in my relationship with the Lord.”

“Growing closer to God.”

“Getting to know God better.”

“Becoming more like Christ.”

But what do we actually mean? How are we actually growing? What does it look like to know God better? How do I become more like Christ?

Here’s what it all boils down to:

To become like God, I must think like God. To think like God, I must be under the influence of the Holy Spirit and invest time reading His word. Then as I learn to think like God, my desires line up with His desires and I begin to act more like Him.

Thinking and acting like God will lead to steps of faith. As I trust Him and experience Him coming through for me, I get to know Him more intimately–not just a head knowledge, but experientially. I get to know Him as the God who sees, the God who provides, the God who guides, etc.

Paul summed it all up in Romans 12:1-2…

Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.