I have a favorite wall in my home. It’s in the den, and the whole room, ceiling included, is wrapped in diagonal pine paneling. Now before you feel sorry for me, and my lack of taste at not ripping out what must be horrific wood paneling (70’s! What was she thinking?!), please know that we both chose to keep it because we like its really cool vibe and the way it’s set off by a wall of windows and cozy fireplace. It feels very cabin-y, and we love it. However, it’s really not about the wall itself, but what’s on the wall.

I had canvases made of some of my favorite photos of our family throughout the years we’ve been married. They range from our wedding to a professional family photo we had taken last summer. Our girls are shown in all different stages, together and separate, and with each of us. It’s a wall that reminds me of how we’ve all changed and grown, and I plan to keep adding to it until the whole wall is covered.

When the girls were small, I used to wish I could just hold them wherever they were in age. There was always something I loved so much about each stage of growth (except for maybe age 15, but I digress…) that I wanted to just hold it captive, thinking it could never get any better. I think all parents probably feel that way. But when I look at this wall, I realize that it did get better…and better. The wonderful things about each stage seemed to compound as they grew, and make them into two incredible women. In the end, I would never have really wanted them to stop growing…nor do I want them to stop continuing to grow.

Sometimes I wonder if God keeps a wall like this, adding to it as we grow spiritually, encouraged by each advance we make toward maturity. I think He probably enjoys each step we make in the same way parents delight in the halting steps of a toddler, or the more confident strides of a high school graduate crossing the stage. He made us to move forward, and though He cherishes each step, I think He’s likely as concerned if we become stagnant as we would be with our own kids. We were all made to grow physically, certainly, but also (and perhaps most importantly) in faith.

Fill a mental wall, today, with snapshots of where you’ve come from, and how you’ve grown. Be encouraged, and give a shout out of thanks.

Oh, and leave some room on that wall for more. You’re going to need it.

“Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation.” 1 Peter 2:2 ESV

“Do not be children [immature] in your thinking; continue to be babes in [matters of] evil, but in your minds be mature [men].” 1 Corinthians 14:20 AMP

“Grow in grace and understanding of our Master and Savior, Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 3:18 MSG