this has been giving me a lot to chew on this week

AWARENESS OF GOD. Mature persons stand in awe before God as creatures and are aware of their Creator. Mature persons express awareness of their dependence upon the Creator, but also recognize their capabilities. Mature persons show humility in the face of life's besetting problems and have a realistic awareness of their own creaturely limitations but do not deny their own capacity for productive action. Mature persons worship God as an expression of reverence and of love toward God. Mature persons pray as a means of spiritual sustenance and communion with God and as a way of honestly expressing concerns.

ACCEPTANCE OF GOD'S GRACE AND STEADFAST LOVE. Mature persons view God as loving them unconditionally. Mature persons use God's love and forgiveness as an impetus for new life and responsible action. Mature persons appreciate God's love and manifest this through a sense of joy and gratitude. Mature persons have the ability to find meaning in the suffering and difficulties of life. This meaning is based on trust in God and His goodness.

BEING REPENTANT AND RESPONSIBLE. Mature persons accurately accept personal responsibility without denying other factors, such as the environment, in personal difficulties and in sin. Mature persons' attitudes toward repentance are based on constructive sorrow which leads to a concern to correct the situation. Mature persons are aware of their inner impulses and accept them as a legitimate part of their humanness. Mature persons are able to request and to accept forgiveness from others without feeling threatened or self-depreciating. Mature persons are forgiving of others without experiencing continued resentment toward them.

KNOWING GOD'S LEADERSHIP AND DIRECTION. Mature persons express trust in God's leadership for life yet also recognize their role in that process. Mature persons express an optimistic, yet realistic, hope based on trust in God. Without denying present problems, mature persons are confident that God is in control of life. Mature persons have a positive sense of role identity that provides meaning in relation to faith.

INVOLVEMENT IN ORGANIZED RELIGION. Mature persons experience regular weekly involvement with others in religious worship, prayer, study, and service. Mature persons evidence active involvement and commitment to religious activities. Mature persons are involved in church or in a religious group as an index of their desire to grow in their faith.

EXPERIENCING FELLOWSHIP. Mature persons experience relationships at various levels of intimacy including interdependent, growth-oriented relationships with other believers. Mature persons identify positively with the family of God and have a sense of community with other believing persons as well as with people everywhere. Mature persons have a sense of commonality with all of God's creatures and with God's creation.

BEING ETHICAL. Mature persons follow their ethical principles in a flexible but committed manner. Mature persons' religious faith strongly underlies and guides their ethical behavior. Mature persons show a concern for personal and social ethics. Their acts evidence that they have a concern for both and are concerned about individual responsibility and social justice. Mature persons have a sense that they are serving others through their work or vocation.

AFFIRMING OPENNESS IN FAITH. Mature persons' faith provides a directive for life as a whole. Mature persons spend a significant time reading about their faith and discussing it with others as an expression of a desire to grow in faith. While expressing confidence in their own view, mature persons show a tolerance for other viewpoints and evidence a willingness to examine others' beliefs in an honest manner. Mature persons' faith is differentiated and is composed of a relatively large number of categories and elements.