Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back

My cousin has an 8 year old with a learning disability who is having a really rough time learning how to read.  Today when when I talked on the phone with my cousin, he was re-learning the "gl" and "ab" combinations.  He understood them last week but today he finds them to be thoroughly perplexing.  My cousin commented, "Just when he's taken a few steps forward he suddenly takes a big step back..."

I feel the same way with potty training.  My 18 month old is so close to being potty trained, but just sometimes its like she suddenly forgets everything she's learned and pees in her pants 7 times in a row.  But then the next day she does something new - like poop in the potty on demand, or willingly "go" in a public potty, or have almost no accidents all day.  I read somewhere that potty training is just like that - a couple steps back for every three steps forward.

And that gives me hope when I think about the continuing growth of us as adults.  Sometimes, just when I think I'm making really good progress in dealing with a problem or a weakness in my heart, it's like I suddenly am right back where I started.  Or just when I think I'm seeing progress among the people of God at church, people start getting mad at each other over something and divisions start to occur.  But maybe its like potty training or learning to read.  Scripture says that we are being transformed from one degree of glory to the next.  If a lot of human learning seems to involve a back-and-forth motion as we move closer to the goal, then noticing a set-back shouldn't lead to despair.  My cousin's son will learn to read.  My daughter will be potty trained.  And one bright day, all of us, together, will live in the fullness of Christ's resurrection.