How Spiritual Growth Happens
Do you want to grow in your faith but aren’t sure what spiritual growth actually looks like?
In the second message of our Taking Your Next Steps series, Pastor Steph explores Jesus’ picture of the vine and branches in John 15: 1–8. Real growth doesn’t happen simply by showing up or trying harder—it comes from remaining connected to Jesus, being willing to learn through failure, and growing alongside others.
Message Summary
In this sermon, Pastor Steph explores what it means to grow as a disciple of Jesus, drawing from John 15 and the image of the vine and branches. She defines a disciple as one who intentionally orders their life around Jesus, abiding in Him, on a journey toward perfect love for God and neighbor. True growth requires two key things: commitment to remaining in Jesus daily, and a willingness to fail and get back up, because it is through failure that we learn, grow, and are shaped more into the likeness of Christ.
Pastor Steph also emphasizes that discipleship is not a solo journey. Just as plants thrive when grown together, we grow best in community with others who are different from us, encouraging one another, sharpening one another, and helping each other see blind spots. Prairie Creek Church is actively cultivating this kind of growth through 2-4-2 home groups rooted in Wesleyan class meeting tradition, table groups built on intimacy and accountability, and a Wednesday Night Live study on practicing the way of Jesus. The challenge to the congregation is to take a next step and get involved in at least one of these community growth opportunities.
Intro Prayer
Heavenly Father, we come before you today with open hearts and willing spirits. As we gather to discuss what it means to grow as your disciples, we ask that you would quiet the noise of our busy lives and draw us close to you. Holy Spirit, move among us in this group. Open our eyes to the areas where you are calling us to grow, and give us the courage to be honest with one another and with ourselves. May this time together not simply be a conversation, but a moment where you do something real and lasting in each of us. We trust you, Lord, and we want to remain in you. In Jesus name, Amen.
Ice Breaker
What is something you have tried to learn or do recently that did not go as planned, and what did you take away from that experience?
Key Scriptures
– John 15:1-8
– Hebrews 3:13
– Proverbs 27:17
– Matthew 22:37-39
– Galatians 2:11-13
Questions
– Pastor Steph defined a disciple as someone who intentionally orders their life around Jesus, abiding in Him, on a journey toward perfect love for God and neighbor. How does that definition compare to how you have previously thought about what it means to be a disciple?
– In John 15:5 (ESV), Jesus says, ‘I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.’ What does it practically look like for you to abide in Jesus in your daily life?
– Pastor Steph shared that even good things, like exercise or rest, can become harmful when they are taken out of their proper place and begin to replace Jesus at the center of our lives. Can you think of a good thing in your own life that has at times taken too much space? How did you recognize it?
– The sermon highlighted that commitment and a willingness to fail are both essential to growth. Which of those two things is harder for you personally, and why?
– Peter is held up as an example of someone who failed publicly, was corrected by a friend, and kept growing. How do you typically respond when someone points out a blind spot or area of failure in your life? What makes it easier or harder to receive that kind of correction?
– Proverbs 27:17 (ESV) says, ‘Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.’ Who in your life is currently sharpening you, and who are you sharpening? If you cannot think of someone, what might that tell you?
– Pastor Steph described how her plants grew far better when placed together rather than spread apart, because they created the conditions each other needed to flourish. How have you experienced that kind of mutual growth in a Christian community? What made it possible?
– Prairie Creek is offering 2-4-2 groups, table groups, and Wednesday Night Live classes as ways to grow together. What is one honest barrier that has kept you from going deeper in community, and what would it take to move past it?
Life Application
This week, take one concrete step toward growing in community. Whether that means joining a 2-4-2 home group, attending a table group, or signing up for the Wednesday Night Live class, choose one and follow through. Before you do, spend a few minutes in prayer asking Jesus to show you any good thing in your life that may have quietly taken His place at the center. Confess it, give it back to him, and ask him to help you remain in him as you take that next step forward with others.
Key Takeaways
– A disciple is someone who intentionally orders their life around Jesus, abiding in Him, on a journey toward perfect love for God and neighbor, which is the goal of all Christian growth.
– Remaining in Jesus requires daily commitment and intentionality, including turning away from good things that have been allowed to take His rightful place at the center of our lives.
– Failure is not the opposite of growth. It is often the very means by which God shapes us, as seen in the life of Peter, who failed publicly yet became one of the most fruitful leaders in the early church.
– We are not meant to grow alone. Just as branches grow together and plants thrive in community, we need companions who are different from us to encourage us, sharpen us, and help us see our blind spots.
– The Wesleyan tradition of small group accountability, rooted in John Wesley’s class meetings, offers a proven and powerful model for helping believers answer the question: how is your life in God?
Ending Prayer
Lord Jesus, thank you for this time together and for the truth of your word that you are the vine and we are the branches. We confess that we too often try to grow on our own, and we ask you to forgive us for that. As we leave today, we ask that you would stir in each of us a deeper hunger to abide in you and to do life alongside one another. Give us the courage to be committed even when it is hard, and the humility to get back up when we fail. May the fruit we bear in our lives point others to you and bring glory to your name. We love you, Lord, and we trust you with the journey. In Jesus name, Amen.
5-Day Devotional Guide
Day 1: Rooted in the Right Place
Devotional
What are you actually growing toward? It is a question worth sitting with. As followers of Jesus, we are not just trying to be better people or check off spiritual boxes. We are pursuing something specific: a life so rooted in Jesus that love for God and neighbor becomes our natural response to everything. Jesus paints a vivid picture of this in John 15. He is the vine. We are the branches. And here is the beautiful truth: a branch does not strain and struggle to produce fruit. It simply stays connected to the vine, and fruit comes naturally. The same is true for us. Fruitfulness is not something we manufacture through sheer willpower. It flows from staying close to Jesus, day after day. This is what it means to be a disciple. Not perfection, but intentional connection. Ordering your life around Him. Returning to Him when you drift. Letting Him be the source of everything you do and everything you are. You do not have to have it all figured out today. You just have to stay connected. That is where growth begins, and it is more than enough.
Bible Verse
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” – John 15:5 (English Standard Version (ESV))
Reflection Question
What does your daily life actually revolve around, and how closely does that center align with Jesus?
Quote
A disciple is one who intentionally orders their life around Jesus. Abiding in him is a journey toward perfect love for God and neighbor.
Prayer
Lord, help me to stop striving in my own strength and simply stay connected to You. Remind me today that fruitfulness begins and ends with You. Amen.
Day 2: What Is Taking Up Space in Your Heart?
Devotional
Most of us are not walking away from Jesus in dramatic, obvious ways. We drift slowly. A hobby becomes an obsession. A relationship becomes an idol. A routine becomes a substitute for time with God. Good things, quietly, take the place of the best thing. Abiding in Jesus requires honesty. It means regularly taking inventory of what has settled into your heart and asking whether those things are still in their proper place. This is not about guilt or shame. It is about staying free. When something good starts to consume you, the invitation is simple and grace-filled: bring it back to Jesus. Acknowledge it. Release it. Ask Him to restore it to its right place in your life. That kind of daily surrender is what keeps the connection strong. You do not have to wait until something becomes a crisis to bring it to God. He welcomes the small, honest moments just as much as the big ones. Today, take a quiet moment to ask yourself what might be crowding Him out, and then hand it over. He is ready to receive it.
Bible Verse
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” – John 15:5 (English Standard Version (ESV))
Reflection Question
Is there something good in your life that has quietly started to take more space in your heart than Jesus does?
Quote
It means that we have to keep an inventory of the things that are in our hearts and pay attention to those things and then turn them over to Jesus when they become something that they’re not.
Prayer
Jesus, show me what I have allowed to take Your place, even unintentionally. I give it back to You today and ask You to be the center of my heart again. Amen.
Day 3: Permission to Fail
Devotional
Here is something that might surprise you: failure is not the opposite of growth. It is often the beginning of it. Think about how a baby learns to walk. They fall. They get back up. They fall again. Nobody expects them to walk perfectly on the first try, and nobody gives up on them when they stumble. That same grace is extended to us by a God who is far more patient than we are with ourselves. Peter is a powerful example of this. He stumbled publicly and painfully. Fear led him to act against everything God had shown Him. But that failure was not the end of his story. A trusted friend lovingly pointed out his blind spot, and Peter kept growing. The letters he wrote later in his life are some of the most encouraging words in all of Scripture, and they exist because he did not let failure have the final word. You are allowed to stumble. You are allowed to get it wrong. What matters is that you get back up and keep going. God is not finished with you, not even close.
Bible Verse
“But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today,’ that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” – Hebrews 3:13 (English Standard Version (ESV))
Reflection Question
Is there a past failure that you have allowed to convince you that growth is no longer possible for you?
Quote
We have to be willing to fail. I am a firstborn daughter. I am a latchkey kid. I am a girl that took on a lot of responsibility at a very young age. And failure was not a part of my vocabulary.
Prayer
Father, thank You for being a God who redeems failure and uses it for growth. Give me the courage to get back up and keep walking with You. Amen.
Day 4: You Were Never Meant to Do This Alone
Devotional
There is a quiet lie that many of us believe: that faith is a private matter, something we work out on our own between us and God. But Jesus never described it that way. When He talked about branches in John 15, He used the plural. Multiple branches, growing together, twisting around one another, bearing fruit side by side. We need each other. Not just for encouragement on the good days, but for the honest, loving conversations that help us see what we cannot see in ourselves. Proverbs puts it plainly: iron sharpens iron. That kind of sharpening does not happen in isolation. It happens in community, when people who genuinely love you are willing to speak truth into your life. This is not always comfortable. Being known deeply enough for someone to point out a blind spot requires vulnerability and trust. But that is exactly the kind of community that produces real growth. It is where we are seen, loved, challenged, and carried. Take one step today toward that kind of connection. A small group, a trusted friend, a discipleship class. You do not have to go it alone, and you were never meant to.
Bible Verse
“Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17 (English Standard Version (ESV))
Reflection Question
Who in your life knows you well enough to lovingly point out your blind spots, and are you letting them?
Quote
The differences between us allow us to encourage one another. They help us to see each other’s blind spots. And when we speak to these things in love, we sharpen one another.
Prayer
Lord, give me the humility to be known and the courage to be in community. Surround me with people who will help me grow closer to You. Amen.
Day 5: The Journey Is the Point
Devotional
There are moments when the weight of this life feels heavy and the longing for what is ahead feels overwhelming. We catch a glimpse of what perfect love for God and neighbor could look like, and we wonder why we are not there yet. But here is the truth: the journey matters. How we live today, how we love God and the people around us right now, it all matters deeply. We are not just waiting for a destination. We are being shaped by the road we are walking. Abiding in Jesus daily, giving ourselves permission to fail and get back up, doing it all in the company of others who are on the same path. These are not just steps toward something better. They are the something better, lived out in real time. You are not behind. You are not too far gone. You are on the journey, and that is exactly where you are supposed to be. Keep going. Keep abiding. Keep growing together. The fruit that comes from a life connected to Jesus is worth every stumble, every honest conversation, and every day of faithful, imperfect effort.
Bible Verse
“By this my Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples.” – John 15:8 (English Standard Version (ESV))
Reflection Question
How might shifting your focus from reaching a destination to embracing the daily journey change the way you follow Jesus this week?
Quote
Journey before destination. Like, we have a destination. And there are times I long so deeply for that that I want to just like escue everything that’s on this earth and just take me there, right? But the journey matters. It matters deeply how we live this life, how we love God, how we love those around us matters.
Prayer
Jesus, thank You that You are with me on every step of this journey. Help me to love You and others well today, trusting that You are producing fruit in me along the way. Amen.
Join Us This Sunday
We’d love to welcome you in person at Prairie Creek.
Join us this Sunday as we worship, grow in faith, and continue learning what it means to follow Jesus together.