No matter how messy or complicated our story may feel, God is the one who begins, sustains, and completes the work within us. Even in seasons of wandering, failure, or doubt, His grace remains active—reshaping our hearts and drawing us closer to Him. This devotional highlights the powerful truth that we are continually being transformed, and God is faithful to finish what He started.

Highlights

• God Initiates Growth: Our transformation begins with God, not our own efforts (Philippians 1:6).

• Jesus Rescues: We cannot save ourselves—Christ is the one who pulls us out of sin and restores us.

• Messy Testimonies Matter: Faith journeys aren’t always clean or simple, but God is still writing the story (Hebrews 12:2).

• God’s Faithfulness: Even when we fall short, He remains constant and committed (2 Timothy 2:13).

• Sanctification is Ongoing: Spiritual growth happens over time through Scripture, prayer, and obedience.

• Renewed Mindset: The Holy Spirit transforms our thinking, helping us focus on eternal priorities.

• Progress Over Perfection: God is continually shaping us into Christ’s image, step by step.

Intersecting Faith & Life

It’s easy to become discouraged when your spiritual growth doesn’t look the way you expected. But God never asked for instant perfection—He invites you into a process. Every step of obedience, every moment in Scripture, and every prayer contributes to the work He is doing in your life.

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Full Transcript Below:

You Are God’s Work in Progress

By: Emily Rose Massey

Bible Reading:

“…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6, NIV).

A new friend recently asked me, “Emily… how long have you known the Lord?”

I wanted to be as concise as possible but also transparent. I explained that I have been coming to grips recently that I was most likely a false convert when I was a teen into my early 20s and didn’t truly start following Christ until the summer after I graduated college. It’s the only way I can seem to make sense of the mess I lived in for six years after my profession of faith, after responding to an altar call at a youth conference.

As I walked the aisle at that church, I responded to the news that Jesus died for my sins to be forgiven then eventually ran right back into the same ditch like a dumb sheep thinking I could rely on my own works and not Christ’s finished work of the cross, and God allowed me to fail, fall, and create a home in my pit of self-righteousness and sin for six years. But thanks be to God, that wasn’t the end of my story- the Lord didn’t leave me in that pit because one day, I was rescued.

We must first remember that we cannot rescue ourselves out of a pit of sin- Jesus is the Great Shepherd who rescues His sheep. It is God who begins the work in our hearts, turning them from a heart of stone to a heart of flesh, and the longer we walk with Him, the more He will continue to mold our hearts.

I don’t believe all our testimonies of coming to faith in Christ can be packaged up into a nice little box with a bow. It’s because we aren’t the author of the story- our Sovereign Lord is the author and finisher, or perfecter, of our faith (Hebrews 12:2).

Scripture tells us that He is faithful to complete that work that He began in us:

 “…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6, NIV).

Intersecting Faith & Life:You may also have a messy and complicated testimony and cannot fully explain all of what you think the Lord was doing in your heart and when, but I can tell you that even when you have been faithless, God has been incredibly faithful (2 Timothy 2:13). Even when I’m extremely dumb, hard-headed, and rebellious, He is wise, patient, and perfect on my behalf. He doesn’t give up on His children! And just as God is sovereign in salvation, He is also sovereign in our sanctification as we learn to partner with Him in our growth in Christ. He is the one who is in charge of seeing us mature on our walk with Him.

The same grace that saved us is the very same grace that keeps us and molds us into the image of Christ, each new day. We will never be perfect this side of heaven, which is why we rest in the finished work of the cross of Christ, but we should be walking in holiness little by little each passing day. One way this occurs in our lives is through studying the scriptures and other spiritual disciplines such as prayer, serving others, and consistent discipleship and evangelism. The Spirit of God guides us into all truth and convicts our hearts of sin.

The more we study the Bible and exercise spiritual discipline, the more the Holy Spirit renews our minds. This renewal of the mind helps us to think on eternal matters, and soon, worldly thinking and fleshly desires become less of a temptation for us the longer we walk with the Lord. Our behavior and attitude begin to change, and God gives us a desire to love, obey, and serve Him with fervor!  From the moment of your conversion, you became God’s work-in-progress, and the greatest news of all is that He doesn’t grow weary, stressed, or exhausted with you. He will complete the work He began in you!

Further Reading:

Galatians 2:20

1 Thessalonians 5:23

2 Peter 1:2-