Do you know where you are on your maturity map? Here’s a questionnaire that will help you assess your overall progress… not to cause you to feel ashamed, to strive or to perform, but to show you how to cooperate with God and even enjoy the specific classroom that you are in right now.
Please answer the following questions honestly, tallying the responses that best characterize how you feel about each statement:
1 = strongly disagree
2 = disagree
3 = neither agree nor disagree 4 = agree
5 = strongly agree
- I know that my sins are forgiven. 1 2 3 4 5
- I feel forgiven. 1 2 3 4 5
- When I fail, I run boldly to God rather than away from Him. 1 2 3 4 5
- I believe that I am a new creation, a child of God. 1 2 3 4 5
- I identify with my true identity more than my false identity or my behavior. 1 2 3 4 5
- I feel connected to God as my perfect Father. 1 2 3 4 5
- I hear His voice and know His leading in my life. 1 2 3 4 5
- I feel more like an overcomer than a victim. 1 2 3 4 5
- I view obstacles and hardships in my life as opportunities to overcome.
1 2 3 4 5 - I believe that I will overcome. 1 2 3 4 5
- I believe that I am one with God and that as He is, so am I in this world. 1 2 3 4 5
- I know I am not limited to the laws of this earth and that nothing is impossible for me. 1 2 3 4 5
Now add up your Total Score: __________
If you scored between 40 and 60: you have a firm foundation in the word of God, in knowing your Father and in knowing your true identity. You have grown strong in the storms of life and know what it is to overcome. You have either begun to experience the eternal, heavenly realm through dreams, visions and encounters or this is the classroom you are currently stepping into. Because you have a firm foundation, He is calling you to journey with Him on the heights. Can you hear Him saying to you, Arise, My love, and come away?
If you scored between 20 and 39: you have been faithful to allow Him to lay a solid foundation in your life. You might be finding yourself in a season of transition, where you feel your Father stepping back, allowing you to grow strong and to overcome. Find comfort in knowing that He cannot and will not ever abandon you, and realize that He is more interested in your maturity and your destiny than He is in your comfort. Take a deep breath, look in the mirror and say to yourself, “I am at the mercy of no one or nothing. I am safe within the hands of my perfect Father. I am not a victim. I am an overcomer.” Offer Him thanksgiving in your most difficult times, knowing that all things are working together for your good, whether you can see it now or not. Like Joshua and Caleb, there may be giants in your promised land, but the fruit of that land is well worth it!
If you scored between 1 and 19: you might be a new believer or there may be deep wounding in your life or developmental gaps in your spiritual foundation that are preventing you from seeing God as He really is and seeing yourself as you really are. Be patient with yourself and spend time in the written word of God, allowing His truth to set you free. Don’t focus on doing, but on learning to BE who you really are. Your classroom of this season is to eat from His hand and to be loved. Stay steady, as He allows you to walk through situations where He proves Himself faithful to you. Remain connected to the body of Christ, as imperfect as it may be, and ask Holy Spirit to connect you to those who are more mature. Receive from others, but never allow them to be your source. He alone is your Source of life, and He will use others as He pleases, according to what He knows is best for you. Stand before the mirror, look long and hard at this one He died for and say, “I choose to love all of me.” Soak in His presence, just receiving His love. When you sin, run to Him, not away. And be encouraged… many glorious exploits await you!
This is just a guideline. You may find that you are more mature in some areas than others or may even feel different on different days. The most important thing is to let your Father speak to you about where you are in your growth in Him and let Him lead you into the classrooms He has planned for your life.
Remember, God is your perfect Father. He is more concerned with your maturation and destiny than He is your comfort, therefore He has put you in the specific classroom that will help you grow. If you are a child, He will be focused on revealing His true identity and your true identity as His offspring. He is interested in you knowing, beyond all doubt, that you are forgiven and unconditionally and unshakably loved. If you are a young man, you are being strengthened and are undoubtedly facing obstacles that He is not removing for you. He is shifting you from victim to overcomer, and that happens first within. Be encouraged and know that these momentary afflictions are working for you an eternal weight of glory. If you are a father or are learning how to be one, you are stepping into the eternal realm, where there are no limitations or impossibilities… where you see Him face to face in the realm that is outside of time and space. Don’t try to figure it out with your carnal mind. Just enjoy the never-ending journey.
This is an excerpt from my new book, Miracles Are Normal. To purchase a hard copy or e-book, click here: Miracles Are Normal
And to purchase on Amazon, click here: Miracles Are Normal on Amazon
