Marks for the Measuring Sonship Maturity

Cyndi’s Broken Wrist Recovery and Measuring Sonship Maturity

I have been so incredibly proud of Cyndi’s efforts to rehabilitate her hand. She had a major break including both main bones of her wrist broken and out of place. On April 10th she had surgery and a metal plate inserted to hold the bones in place.

I think we both understood it would take time to get all the movement back, but we never imagined how big of a process it would be. On our flight to Vietnam, May 7th (a month after surgery), she would try and pick up an individual peanut and bring it to her mouth. It was so painful it brought tears to her eyes. It still brings tears to mine thinking about it.

Now it’s the middle of July and Cyndi has made huge progress and yet still does not have full range back. She does the exercises diligently everyday realizing that everyone heals differently.

Therapist Measuring Cyndi’s Hand

The physical therapist Cyndi works with has quite a number of precise tools that measure every conceivable direction of wrist and finger movement. This is so valuable to Cyndi in helping her reach her goal. It gives her clarity on how far she’s come and what’s left to accomplish.

What about Measuring Sonship Maturity?

Are you active in developing your Christian growth like Cyndi is with her wrist?

Often Christian growth is viewed through the lens of fasting, praying enough, or actively evangelizing enough – our outward activity.

Yet the foundation of outward Christian activities, done in grace and not striving, has to do with character and emotional maturity. In a word, it’s about sanctification – the maturing process God is seeking to bring in our lives through everything we face in life – our inward activity.

Measuring Sonship Maturity

• Can you recognize triggers?
  • Are you able to recognize when you are triggered, when your heart goes “off line”?
  • How quickly do you notice when your peace and joy is disrupted? Does a day go by before you realize you’ve retreated to a cave or developed impatience and agitation at little things?

• Can take responsibility for your triggers when they arise?
  • The truth is, no one can make you mad (sad, hopeless, rejected…) unless you let them. It doesn’t mean that others don’t display bad behavior at times, but it does mean that my heart is my own responsibility and I can’t control what others do.
  • Regardless of what life throws at you there is a place of responding to it in God’s rest and setting boundaries as needed.
  • When triggers do happen, do you gravitate toward blaming others or blaming the devil/warfare rather than taking responsibility for how your heart responds?
  • Do you always look for intervention over taking steps of growth? Intervention means that others have to change before you can be okay, or that you want God to touch you at the altar and make your problem disappear without taking any steps yourself.

• How quickly and diligently do you work through the issues of life that arise?
  • Are you diligent in the way Cyndi is with her wrist exercises? This is a measure of Sonship maturity.
  • Do you quickly get before God, journal and pray and wait on Him to workout what is happening in your heart? Or, if you are not getting progress, how quickly do you get Christian counsel?

Remember “Progress not Perfection”

No one has “arrived” at perfect maturity in these things I’m describing, and no one ever will. Yet, if we can see the target, have some measurement as to where we are at, we can more effectively cooperate with God’s sanctifying work in us.