There are primarily 3 level of spiritual growth as it relates the individual Christians. Each of which corresponds to the three levels of natural growth. The three levels are: Babyhood, Childhood, and Manhood. Just as everyone is at a different level in their natural growth so to everyone is at a different level of their spiritual growth.
How long you've been born-again has very little to do with where you are currently in you spiritual progress. Being a believer for 20 years does not necessarily means you're at the Manhood level of your spiritual growth. Neither is being a believer for 2 years indicates you're a spiritual baby. I'm sure we all know others who've been saved for many years and yet are still either spiritual infants or spiritually immature children.
Your spiritual development is not up to anyone else but you. It's not even up to God. The responsibility rest squarely on your shoulders. Of course, you can get others involved who can have a positive influence and impact on your spiritual life. And yes, there are others whom you should avoid because they will most certainly retard your progress as a Christian. (2 Cor 6:14-18).
Now that we've established the three levels of spiritual development, let consider the four different types of people or personalities we will encounter on our spiritual journey.
The Starter: The starter is a brand new believer who is eager, zealous, willing, passionate, and yet unskilled, unlearned, undeveloped, and very naive in the ways of their new life in Christ. The most important and strategic action the starter can make is to link up with other more developed and mature disciples who can walk with then through the first weeks, months, and even the first year.
The Struggler: The struggler is generally a disciple who has been following Christ for only a short time (less than a year) but is yet having trouble navigating through the common difficulties every believer faces. Again the most important action a struggler can make is to partner with strong and health disciples who can walk with him and instruct him on becoming an overcomer as it relates to his specific issues.
The Stagnant: The stagnant person is the individual who has found themselves to be stuck spiritually. The root cause of their stagnation is neglect. It's possible they began their spiritual journey in the company of fellow disciples who worked with and walked with them. But over time they lost sight of the importance of being connected to and with fellow Christians. As a result they grew cold in their relationship with Christ. If they want stagnation to keeps it distance, they too must return to their fellow laborers in Christ.
The Stable: Stable disciple are those who faithful and constantly growing in their relationship with Christ. They are committed to things such as training, giving, serving, encouraging, and continued discipleship. Stable people give direction to the starters. They willingly stand with the struggler. They reach out to the stagnant providing encouragement to rekindle the flame of passion for Christ.
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