Is This All There Is?

“But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.”
2 Peter 3:18 NIV

Discovering that God loves us can begin something wonderful. But what happens when that excitement fades? The prayers continue, familiar Bible passages are read, and life goes on much as before. Sometimes we may wonder whether something has been lost. What about someone who never felt that initial excitement? Have they missed something? Whether faith began with great joy or a quieter hope, the question can be much the same. Is this all there is?

Writing to Christians facing questions about their faith, Peter offers another possibility. He urges them to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Notice what he doesn't say. He doesn't tell them to recover the feelings they had when they first believed. Instead, he speaks of growing in a relationship that has already begun. Could it be that the excitement we felt at the beginning was never meant to measure how much our relationship with Him could grow?

But what does it actually mean to grow in knowing God? Paul prayed that believers would be “bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10). The two belong together. As we come to know God better and discover what matters to Him, that relationship can begin to shape what matters most to us and how we live. We may begin by discovering God's love, but then come to care more deeply about loving and serving others with Him. And what if that begins to change not just what we believe, but what we want our lives to be about?

Paul's prayer reaches even further. He asks that believers might be filled with “the knowledge of his will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives” (Colossians 1:9). But how do we know what matters to God? Perhaps the clearest place to look is at Jesus. Think of someone who stood beside us when others walked away, or cared when we had nothing to offer in return. Those experiences can stay with us for years. Jesus lived with that kind of love, reaching toward people others had given up on. What if growing to know Him means that kind of love begins to emerge and find a place in us, too?

Maybe the answer to “Is this all there is?” is simpler than we imagined. The kindness we once needed may become kindness we now have within us to share. Paul prayed, “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else” (1 Thessalonians 3:12). Can the love that first drew us toward God begin to change what we notice, what matters to us, and how we see others? We may never feel exactly as we did at the beginning. But what if the most wonderful part of that beginning is that God is still growing something in us today?

Prayer

Lord Jesus, thank You for loving me from the very beginning. Help me to keep growing in knowing You, until what You love shapes what matters more to me each day. Amen.