I have been reading about how humans develop physically, emotionally, and mentally. This may have to do with the fact that I am growing one inside me. These all answer the question: ‘How do you become a complete human being?’ I started to think about how we develop spiritually. What is the process to becoming a spiritually developed person? I will explore the ideas of what a complete spiritual being is and how to develop that being, focusing mainly on beliefs that I hold dear but also bringing in ideas from other religions.

What is the goal?

A Complete Human Being

“The outward manifestations of the brain development are the child’s self-formation as an individual of growing independence, coordinated movement, language, and a developed will.”

Montessori from the Start” by Paula Polk Lillard and Lynn Lillard Jessen

What is a completely developed person? There are entire fields of study devoted to understanding how humans develop in different areas: physical, cognitive, and social. The adult human generally shows a competence in all these areas, but even then they can be improved. A developed human has control and understanding over their physical body, their emotional self, and their interactions with others. They also have a capacity to reason and think about abstract ideas.¹

A Complete Spiritual Being

“You will be a humane being. Nothing is greater than that.” 

Ajaya : Epic of the Kaurava Clan” by Anand Neelakantan

If a fully developed human means a person who has reached a certain level of competence over their physical self, a fully developed spiritual being must also have reached a certain level of competence over their spirit. What is the level of competence that we should be striving for? Many religions strive for spiritual development. They describe a spiritually complete person as someone who:

• searches “for the true, the good and the beautiful in life” (Hindu) Hindu Concept of Human Freedoms
• “bring[s] happiness to people through… love, compassion and service” (Hindu) – “Ajaya : Epic of the Kaurava Clan” by Anand Neelakantan
• is “free from worldly desires and suffering of life” and who overcomes selfishness, doubt, ill will, lust, conceit, restlessness, greed, and ignorance (Buddhism) Four Stages of Nirvana, Fetter Buddism
• has become what God made him to become (Christianity) The Stages of Spiritual Growth
• has “become more and more like Christ” and shows qualities like “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, [and] self-control” (Christianity) How important is spiritual growth in Christian life?
• “compliments a balanced, trained and healthy mind, with a pure, good, and open heart” (Judaism) Spiritual Development
• “[has been spiritually] awakened” and has “rid himself of this outer shell of moral grime and revert[ed] to the upright nature he was born with” (Islam) Spiritual Development Islam

These are surprisingly similar goals despite the differences in religion. Christ gives us the simple yet daunting answer “Be ye therefore perfect” (Matthew 5:48). He also defines this a little more in his Sermon on the Mount earlier in the same chapter, encouraging us to be humble, be meek, seek righteousness, be merciful, be a peacemaker, and love everyone. The Book of Mormon prophet Alma also gives us a list of some other attributes: “…ye should be humble, and be submissive and gentle; easy to be entreated; full of patience and long-suffering; being temperate in all things; being diligent in keeping the commandments of God at all times… And see that ye have faith, hope, and charity, and then ye will always abound in good works” (Alma 7:23-24).²

The complete spiritual being, then, is a person who has developed the qualities that God values. This person must have also developed enough in all the other areas of development (physically, cognitively, and socially) in order to have the capacity to develop these spiritual qualities. A person cannot have faith if their brain is not developed enough to think about abstract ideas.

Where do we start?

I am going to delve deeper into how the spirit begins and continues to develop, but only from a Latter-day Saint perspective. The variety in ways that other religions seek spiritual development is too large to cover in one sitting, but it can be enlightening to keep them in mind. It begins with gaining our ability to choose and to choose good over bad. We can then progress to learn about God and to follow Christ by becoming more like Him.

Learning to choose

Long before we were born physically, we were born spiritually. That is when our spirits started to develop and progress. We knew who God was and we decided to follow Him and come to earth. That means our spirits developed enough to be able to choose (Jeremiah 1:5 and Abraham 3:23).

When we are born, our bodies continue to develop and our minds begin to try to understand the world around us. We forget what we learned in our premortal life, but there are some things that are natural to us. We begin at an early age to understand that there is a difference between right and wrong. The author, C.S. Lewis, argues that, “the human idea of decent behavior [is] obvious to everyone” and it is actually instinctual and comes from God.³

Learning to choose good

Children become aware of morality as they grow. You can see it in a child who argues that something is hers because she had it first or one who pities an animal they see mistreated. A parent can be there to explain and, at times, enforce, this morality, but it is there innately. As children become aware of morality, their spirit strengthens as they learn from the good and bad choices they make. I distinctly remember learning about guilt and repentance when, as a child, I stole candy from a store and then later returned it. I also learned how helping people around me made me feel happy.

Speaking with Adam, the Lord taught that as people grow older they learn about the difference between right and wrong. He said that “when they begin to grow up, sin conceiveth in their hearts, and they taste the bitter, that they may know to prize the good. And it is given unto them to know good from evil; wherefore they are agents unto themselves…” (Moses 6:55-56)

Learning that God exists

The next step for a person to develop spiritually is to understand that there is a being greater than themselves and to learn about His nature. When someone first learns about God, they may have different reactions, varying from disbelief or indifference to blind faith. As a person continues to learn about God and decides to believe in Him, they will gain greater understanding about who He really is; turning blind faith or disbelief to faith with understanding. This can happen through study of His word or learning from the testimonies of others. They will learn that He is an all-powerful and omniscient being who created the universe. They will learn that He is also an all-caring, loving, and merciful Father. This knowledge is essential for developing faith and can lead to actions that will increase spiritual development. These actions can be things like personal prayer, study, and surrounding yourself with others who believe.⁴

Learning to follow Christ

One of these actions is baptism. Naturally, learning about God will lead someone to Christ and His teachings. When Christ tells Nicodemus that he must be born spiritually, he was teaching him that he must forsake his carnal self and become a new spiritual being (John 3). In order to become this new spiritual being a person must understand morality and make the choice to follow Christ by being baptized in water and receive the Holy Spirit as a constant companion. The Holy Spirit, a member of the Godhead, opens the way for us to increase in our spiritual capacities and become sanctified (3 Nephi 27:20). He is our personal guide to developing the qualities that God values.

What are the indicators that we are progressing?

“If the spirit of man is properly cared for… [it] becomes more confident and waxes strong in the presence of God.” 

Spiritual Development

Once we decide to forsake our carnal self and follow Christ, we need to work at doing so. Let’s take one of the first attributes that Christ commands us to develop as an example: humility. President Ezra Taft Benson gives us some ideas on how to do this. “We can choose to be humble by conquering enmity toward [others]… by receiving counsel and chastisement… by forgiving… by rendering selfless service… [and] by confessing and forsaking our sins.” ⁵ All of these take conscious efforts to overcome the natural man, choosing over and over to be humble in situations where it is easier to have pride. When our conscious efforts to become better begin to become our natural response, we know we are progressing.⁶

This is true for any of the attributes of Christ that we would like to develop. The first step is to learn about the attribute that we find deficient in ourselves. As we find examples of others who demonstrate it and try to emulate those, we can progress. We can start to notice in ourselves when we need to be better.

I have been noticing that sometimes in the past I have been judgemental of others who are not like me in a way that is negative and not of God. Upon recognizing this weakness, I started listening to a discourse by Elder Oaks on the subject. I have started to catch myself when I need to repent and change my viewpoint on those around me, thinking of them more of the son or daughter of God that they are. This is going to take a while for me to be good at this, but I can already see a shift in my perspective.

“The spirit that dwells within each of us can be enriched with enthusiasm and enlightened by the Almighty”

President Russell M Nelson

President Russell M. Nelson has said that even “hobbies can aid in spiritual development. Worthy music, dance, art, and writing are among the creative activities that can enrich the soul. A good hobby can dispel heartache and give zest to life.” He continued to say, “the spirit that dwells within each of us can be enriched with enthusiasm and enlightened by the Almighty. The process of spiritual growth is revealed in the scriptures… ‘That which is of God is light; and he that receiveth light, and continueth in God, receiveth more light; and that light groweth brighter and brighter until the perfect day. (D&C 50:24)’” Spiritual Capacity. As people cleave unto the things that are good and of God they will naturally see the spiritual growth they desire.

A Note About Being Perfect

There are so many admirable attributes of Christ that we can work on. It seems overwhelmingly impossible. Moroni encourages us in this quest saying we must, “come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny [ourselves] of all ungodliness”. (Moroni 10:32-33) Becoming perfect would be a daunting and unattainable goal if it were not for our Savior Jesus Christ. Moroni says that it is only by the “grace [of God that we] may be perfect in Christ” and that people are “sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of [our] sins, that [we] become holy, without spot”. Nephi also says that we cannot have eternal life without “relying wholly upon the merits of him who is mighty to save” (2 Nephi 31:19-20). We don’t need to be perfect immediately. We only need to work on becoming more Christlike, forgiving ourselves, and continually starting over when we make mistakes.

C.S. Lewis, in a rather dramatic way, describing from God’s perspective what He wants with us:
“Give me all of you!!! I don’t want so much of your time, so much of your talents and money, and so much of your work. I want YOU!!! ALL OF YOU!! I have not come to torment or frustrate the natural man or woman, but to KILL IT! No half measures will do. I don’t want to only prune a branch here and a branch there; rather I want the whole tree out! Hand it over to me, the whole outfit, all of your desires, all of your wants and wishes and dreams. Turn them ALL over to me, give yourself to me and I will make of you a new self—in my image. Give me yourself and in exchange I will give you Myself. My will, shall become your will. My heart, shall become your heart.” Mere Christianity

I am eternally grateful for my Savior, Lord and Redeemer who suffered beyond belief to make it possible for me to become who God has envisioned me becoming. As I continue to develop spiritual capacities, I have noticed more love and light in my life. I know this is the love and light of Christ. I pray we can all attain the level of spiritual competence that God designed us to achieve.

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My brilliant husband created an online version of the Attribute Activity missionaries use to see how well they have developed some spiritual attributes. You may find this an interesting way to give you an idea where you stand. You can also read what he has to say about getting your own Spiritual Check-up.

Footnotes

1. In the limited research that I did, here are the key points that many theories share about what is a completely developed human being:
   • Physical development requires control over large muscles, control over bodily functions, coordinated movement, and the development of fine and gross motor skills. Domains of Development, Developmental Psychology
   • Complete cognitive development includes strengthening of the rational part of the brain, independence, being able to understand abstract ideas and have deductive reasoning, spoken and written language, and having a developed short and long-term memory. Understanding the Teen Brain, Domains of Development, Piaget Stages of Development, Cognitive Psychology
   • Social development refers to how we connect with others around us. Social development characteristics include being able to trust others, recognizing your own abilities, expressing and controlling your emotions, and understanding the social context in which you live. Domains of Development, Stages of Psychosocial Development

2. Other scriptures that contain ideals of spiritual development are: 
   • Deuteronomy 10:12-15 love the Lord, obedient, love
   • Joshua 22:5 diligent, obedient, love God, serve Him with all your heart
   • Psalm 24:4 clean hands, pure heart
   • Micah 6:8 good, just, mercy, humble
   • Zephaniah 2:3 meek, righteousness, meekness
   • Galations 5:22 love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance
   • Colossians 3:12-14 holy, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness, meekness, longsuffering, forbearing, forgiving, charity
   • 1 Timothy 6:11 righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness
   • Titus 3:2 speak no evil, gentle, meekness
   • 2 Peter 1:4-8 escaped corruption through lust, diligence, faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, charity
   • 1 Nephi 19:9 loving kindness, long-suffering
   • 2 Nephi 31:19-20 faith, steadfast, hope, love
   • Mosiah 3:19 submissive, meek, humble, patient, love, willing
   • Alma 13:28-29 humble, meek, submissive, patient, love, long-suffering, faith, hope
   • Moroni 7:42-45 faith, hope, meek, lowly in heart, confesses Jesus is the Christ, charity, suffereth long, kind, envieth not, not puffed up, seeketh not her own, not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, rejoiceth in truth, believes, hopes, endures
   • Moroni 8:26 meekness, lowliness, hope, perfect love, prayer
   • D&C 4:5-6 faith, hope, charity, love, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, brotherly kindness, godliness, charity, humility, diligence
   • D&C 107:30 righteousness, holiness, lowliness of heart, meekness, long-suffering, faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, charity
   • D&C 121:41-42 persuasion, long-suffering, gentleness, meekness, love unfeigned, kindness, pure knowledge, without hypocrisy, without guile
3. C.S. Lewis also says that although there may be differences in cultures or religions, “these have never amounted to anything like a total difference” and that although it may seem like this sense of morality is taught from parents, it is innate and divine. Mere Christianity 
4. The Second of the Lectures on Faith shows us “how it was that the first thought ever existed in the mind of any individual, that there was such a being as a God.” God has made very distinct efforts to make sure we know about Him since Adam was on the Earth.
5. “Let us choose to be humble.
   We can choose to humble ourselves by conquering enmity toward our brothers and sisters, esteeming them as ourselves, and lifting them as high or higher than we are. (See D&C 38:24; D&C 81:5; D&C 84:106.)
   We can choose to humble ourselves by receiving counsel and chastisement. (See Jacob 4:10; Hel. 15:3; D&C 63:55; D&C 101:4–5; D&C 108:1; D&C 124:61, 84; D&C 136:31; Prov. 9:8.)
   We can choose to humble ourselves by forgiving those who have offended us. (See 3 Ne. 13:11, 14; D&C 64:10.)
   We can choose to humble ourselves by rendering selfless service. (See Mosiah 2:16–17.)
   We can choose to humble ourselves by going on missions and preaching the word that can humble others. (See Alma 4:19; Alma 31:5; Alma 48:20.)
   We can choose to humble ourselves by getting to the temple more frequently.
   We can choose to humble ourselves by confessing and forsaking our sins and being born of God. (See D&C 58:43; Mosiah 27:25–26; Alma 5:7–14, 49.)
   We can choose to humble ourselves by loving God, submitting our will to His, and putting Him first in our lives. (See 3 Ne. 11:11; 3 Ne. 13:33; Moro. 10:32.)
   Let us choose to be humble. We can do it. I know we can.” Beware of Pride Ezra Taft Benson
6. We can see the progress of our spiritual talents the same way we see the progress of other talents. We hope that we can respond to events in a way where, without even thinking about it, we are more like our Savior. This reminds me of the stages of competence or learning that I learned in school. “In unconscious competence, the individual has enough experience with the skill that he or she can perform it so easily they do it unconsciously.” The Four Stages of Competence