The Power of Thankfulness: Gratitude for Spiritual Growth and Progress

Look Back. You're Not Who You Used to Be.

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“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, and overflowing with gratitude.” — Colossians 2:6–7

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Growth is slow. That’s one of the things that frustrates people most about the Christian life. We want the dramatic transformation. The overnight change. We want to look in the mirror on Monday and see someone noticeably different from who was there on Friday.

But that’s not how it usually works. Most spiritual growth is quiet. Gradual. Barely visible until one day, often when someone else points it out, you realize you’re not the same person you used to be.

And that is something to be deeply thankful for.

Look Back Before You Look Forward

Paul’s instruction in Colossians 2:6 begins with something important. He says “just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to walk in him.” The word he uses for “received” — parelabon in the Greek — is the same word used for receiving a tradition, a teaching passed on with care. It points back to the moment of obedient commitment, the moment of baptism, when you confessed Jesus as Lord, were buried with Him in the waters, and were raised to begin a new life (Romans 6:3–4). That was the entry point. That’s what Paul is anchoring them to.

Here’s why that matters: Paul is saying don’t drift from what you started with. Don’t wander away from the foundation. And tucked inside that instruction is an invitation to remember, to look back at who you were when you first came to Christ and measure it against where you are now.

Maybe you’ve done this exercise with people before. You’ll ask someone, “Tell me who you were five years ago.” And what comes out is almost always the same thing — a quiet kind of awe. “I used to be so angry all the time.” “I couldn’t go a day without lying.” “I had no patience, no peace, nothing.”

And then you ask, “What about now?”

The growth they couldn’t see while they were living it becomes clear when they look back. That’s not accident. That’s God at work.

Rooted, Built Up, Established

Paul uses three powerful images in verse 7. They’re worth focusing on one at a time.

Rooted — this is agricultural language. Think of a tree that’s been in the ground for twenty years. The roots go down deep, they spread wide, they anchor everything above ground. You can’t blow over a deep-rooted tree. Paul says that’s what your connection to Christ is like. The word is in the perfect tense; it happened at a specific point in the past, and the effects are still present. Your roots were established when you came to Christ. You’re drawing life from Him, whether you feel it in the moment or not.

Built up — now the language shifts to construction. A building goes up over time, layer by layer, course by course. Every study you do, every Sunday you show up, every temptation you resist, every act of obedience, it’s a brick going in place. Some days it feels like you’re laying one brick. But over years? You’ve built something.

Established in the faith — this word (bebaioō) carries the idea of being confirmed, made firm. Like a contract that’s been notarized. It suggests stability, certainty, and a settled confidence. That’s not arrogance… that’s maturity.

Now, you may not feel all three of these operating in your life right now. Growth rarely announces itself. But Philippians 1:6 promises that God is not done yet. “He who began a good work in you will carry it to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” That’s a promise worth claiming.

What Growth Actually Looks Like

Spiritual growth shows up in places we don’t expect. It doesn’t always look like a mountaintop moment. More often it looks like:

A guy who used to blow up at his kids, sitting down and actually listening. Not perfectly, but noticeably. That’s growth.

A woman who used to be consumed with anxiety learning to hand her worries to God before they consume the whole day. Not every time, but more often. That’s growth.

Someone who used to avoid the hard scriptures now sitting with them, wrestling with them, asking questions instead of shutting down. That’s growth.

Romans 8:28 grounds the whole process: God is working all things together for good for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Even the hard seasons. Even the setbacks. Even the failures. They are not wasted in God’s economy… they are curriculum.

James 1:2–4 just lays things out: trials produce endurance. Endurance produces maturity. Maturity leaves you lacking nothing. There’s a straight line from suffering to growth if you’ll walk it with God rather than walk it alone.

And Colossians 3:10–11 reminds us that the process of transformation is ongoing. We are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of our Creator. That present tense matters. It’s still happening. God is still working.

The Gratitude That Overflows

Notice how Paul ends verse 7. After rooted, after built up, after established, he says you should be “overflowing with gratitude.”

That word “overflowing” (perisseuō) means more than enough. Beyond what was asked for. The image is a cup that’s been filled past the brim, spilling over the sides. That’s the picture Paul wants for your thankfulness.

Not just a quiet appreciation somewhere in the background. Not a gratitude that gets squeezed in between complaints. An overflow.

But here’s what produces it: looking at where God has taken you. Not comparing yourself to someone else. Not measuring yourself against an ideal you haven’t reached. Just an honest look at the distance between who you were and who you are now, and recognizing that distance as grace.

Take Stock Today

Here’s your challenge: before the weekend is out, take thirty minutes and do an honest inventory. Not a guilt list. A grace list.

Think about who you were when you first came to Christ, or ten years ago, or five. What did your anger look like? Your fear? Your faith? Your relationships? Your prayer life?

Now look at what’s changed. Write it down if it helps.

Then thank God for it. Not because you did the work, you didn’t, not alone. But because God, in His faithfulness, rooted you, built you up, and kept you moving.

That’s worth an overflow of gratitude.

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Monday: we’ll look at the gift of our local church family — why the fellowship of the church is something to give thanks for, not take for granted.