Deeper Thought on Spirituality and The Church
To be spiritual is one of the features that set humanity apart from the rest of the living beings. However, a holistic understanding of humanity should include spirituality and not just the physical and intellectual face.
There are examples of different pathway designs for spiritual growth; Leading voices, self-improvement, study, rituals etc. The pathway’s aim is to achieve self-knowledge, control and fulfilment over our troubles of daily life.
The Gospel of the church (The Bible), gives a unique path for spiritual growth the primary witness to Jesus life and teachings. The Bible writer makes it clear that the gospel is the foundation for spiritual growth. Although, it does not necessarily mean foundation is a start but also the primary support of a structure 1 Corinthians 15: 1-5
“Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word, I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that he appeared to Cephas, and then to the Twelve”.
The holy spirit is the spirit of God that dwells within people to empower them the moment they believe in the good news. The good news is also referred to “New Birth” in the new testament. The holy spirit guides people into all truth and promote spiritual growth when repented of their sin and believes in the gospel.
The Holy spirit does not only save our soul but, also motivates us to obey God and begin the spiritual journey, Galatians 5: 22-23.
“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!”
Tim Keller, describes below fruit of the spirits:
Love: To serve a person for their good and intrinsic value, not for what the person brings you.
Joy: Delight in God and his salvation for the sheer beauty and worth of who he is.
Peace: Confidence and rest in the wisdom and sovereignty of God more than your own.
Forbearance: Ability to take trouble (from others or life) without blowing up. To suffer joyfully.
Kindness: Practical kindness with vulnerability out of deep inner security.
Goodness (integrity): Honesty, transparency. Being the same in one situation as another.
Faithfulness: Loyalty. Courage. To be principle-driven, committed, utterly reliable. True to one’s word.
Gentleness (humility): Self-forgetfulness.
Self-Control: Ability to choose the urgent over the important thing.

Christians are called to walk in the spirit, to be fuelled with the holy spirit and seek Gods wisdom for dwelt in their everyday life. When the holy spirit work in the life of a Christian, the result is spiritual growth. The spiritual growth transpires as a result of God’s guidance and the believer’s gospel driven efforts. For an individual to pursue a spiritual transformation, he /she needs to practice the most important things which are to read the scriptures and pray. As our greatest problem in any situation is sin and our greatest needs in any situation is the pure heart and God honouring conduct, 1 John 5:14.
“This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us”.

The Church Community and Spirituality
It is important to note that, the normal Christian life is not a function of an individual believers’ relationship to God. Hence, the Christian community is central to a Christians’ spiritual identity.
Religion is a set of rules, regulation, and rituals created by human beings that were supposed to help the people spiritually. Hence, religion has become imperfection due to human corruption, politics, division, and a tool for a power struggle.

Spirituality is not theology or ideology, it is simply a way of life, pure and original as given by the Jehovah, the universe and each other (Haile Selassie).
The church community is supposed to be a spiritual family in which spiritual growth is encouraged. When the church gathers, members inspire one another to go deeper with God through worship, reading, hearing the bible and prayer.
Nevertheless, the word community could be perceived as a body of individuals who unified around something they hold in common. (Christian common unifier is the Gospel)
Therefore, the goal of all Christian communities is to meet, coming together with the message of God to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ salvation to help individuals orient themselves to the gospel Ephesians 4:12-13.
“To equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ”.

Even though sin hinders the growth of the community, the Church remains the best context for spiritual formation and growths. However, sins stop the church from growing together as the body of Christ, our private or secret sins may also affect the church community.