Spiritual Growth

It has been a VERY long time since I have posted.  It's hard to keep up with when I am already writing so much for my classes.  I also don't like posting unless I have something to say.  Seeing as we just celebrated Easter, perhaps more than ever the person of Christ is on my mind.  I have been digging more into what it means to be Christlike.  The obvious answers are to be a moral person who prays and reads the Word, but He was much more than that.  I recently dealt with the WWJD craze on a Wednesday night, stating that we can't do what He would do if we aren't living the way He lived.  His life was one of discipline and attention to the spiritual things that surround this world.  He focused on spending quality time with His Father, He took times of solitude to honestly reflect on what His purpose was, He fasted, He humbled Himself to serve others, He developed deep relationships with men who He had a special bond with, and above all, He lived a life of worship.
Obviously, we can never be as Jesus was (God), but we can mimic Him as much as possible with our lives.  If we do that, than we won't have to ask WWJD, because it will be our natural reaction.  Recently I heard that most new converts drop out of church after about four years.  There are all sorts of reasons for this to be true, but I have to think maybe it is just because they never grow.  You can only be a baby for so long.  The lack of spiritual maturity in the Body of Christ may be the reason for the fall out.  John 15:1-8 is a passage where Christ refers to Himself as the vine, with the believers being the branches.  Parts of this passage are used for many illustrations.  I encourage you to read it thinking about what it actually means to "abide in Christ".  If we abide in Him we will bear fruit, we will get what we desire, and we will be known as His disciples.  I have set my life's goal to becoming a better imitator of Christ.  There is no higher calling.