One day I told my employer's four year old son that we should start marking his height on the back of the closet door.

Each time he came to visit he would ask, "Have I grown any since last week?" He would back up confidently, very straight and tall, as I took my pencil and marked the noticeable progress. When it came time for him to leave, I would always say, "See you later, alligator." He would reply, "After while, crocodile."

Several visits later, he came by to see me after he and his mom had finished shopping for new school clothes. He came running in, breathlessly, and begged me to stop my work and see how tall he had gotten.

Sure enough, over the summer, he had gained several inches and had outgrown his clothes. He was so proud. I asked, "Adam, what are you doing to get so tall?" He said, "Oh, I eat bananas!" As he got ready to leave that day, he must have noticed that I had gained some extra pounds too. I said, "See you later, alligator." And he replied, "In the fall, butterball!"

After the laughter in the office died down, I started to think about how important growth is to our well being. While Adam had grown tall and slender, I had gotten physically and spiritually lazy. God expects us to be good stewards of our life and to always be ready to give an account of our growth.

Can you imagine how pleased God would be if we would run excitedly to him in our devotional time, and say, "Father, have I grown spiritually today?" Are we reading the Bible and spending time in prayer to ensure that we are on track with God's plan for our life? How would we measure up?

2 Peter 3:18 teaches us to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Each day as we spend time with him in fellowship and prayer, we become stronger Christians and better equipped for service.

Colleen Capes Jackson is the director of the East Metro Atlanta Christian Writers and can be reached at (404) 444-7514.