{"id":17361,"date":"2026-03-10T14:11:21","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T14:11:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/uncategorized\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T06:03:31","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T06:03:31","slug":"guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/","title":{"rendered":"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God"},"content":{"rendered":"

I was feeling great.<\/p>\n

Looking out the jet airliner\u2019s window, I marveled at the sparkling emerald waters of the Mediterranean. It was August, 1978, and my family and I were on our way to a long-awaited two-week vacation in the Holy Land<\/a>. I smiled at Gloria, my wife, who was engrossed in a book, and reached over and wrapped my arm around Paige, our eight-year-old daughter.<\/p>\n

We had just completed a four-day crusade in Taiwan that had been successful beyond our wildest dreams. For me, the experience represented a spiritual milestone. More than 100,000 people had attended the four evening services where I performed as the guest singer, and thousands had given their lives to the Lord. I could still feel the joy that emanated from that hot, crowded stadium.<\/p>\n

What a difference performing in a Christian concert had been! There were the same hassles, problems, foul-ups as in any other concert\u2014but what a different spirit. There was a time I used to be in a constant state of anxiety and anger while on the road or performing. And my temper, which had been a life-long problem, could explode at any moment into violence.<\/p>\n

I had been known to wreck hotel rooms and start brawls; once I even pulled a knife on one of my best friends. Ironically, such stunts were really desperate cries for help<\/a>; but when you\u2019re the boss, few people have the guts to grab you and say, \u201cStop.\u201d So the cries got louder, my behavior more bizarre, and soon I was on a downhill slide toward inevitable self-destruction.<\/p>\n

Just three years ago I was living in darkness, hopelessly hooked on drugs. Once a top pop singer\u2014a healthy guy with a great future\u2014I had become a walking skeleton, a wasted addict<\/a>. I had lost everything\u2014my marriage, friends, career and money\u2014to dope. It brought all the dark sides of my character to the surface: self-indulgence, anger, violence.<\/p>\n

Then, thanks to Gloria and her Christian friends, I learned about the Lord, and asked Him into my life. He gave me a peace and purpose for living I had never known before. By His grace<\/a>\u2014that\u2019s the only way I can explain it\u2014I quit drugs cold turkey, and never went back.<\/p>\n

That crusade in Taiwan proved to me that I was a new person. I congratulated myself on my success at achieving self-control.<\/p>\n

Yup, B.J., I thought, tightening my seat belt as the plane began its descent, you\u2019ve finally got yourself together. For the first time in my life, everything seemed in order. Gloria and I had never enjoyed a better relationship, and Paige was a happy little girl. My records were topping the gospel music<\/a> charts and I had a new book coming out in the fall.<\/p>\n

I was looking forward to this trip to the Holy Land\u2014to the home of the Man Who had so dramatically changed my life. I wanted it to be perfect.<\/p>\n

Our first morning in Tel Aviv, we breakfasted on the terrace of our hotel room, which overlooked the beach and sea. Gloria and I excitedly pored over the pile of travel brochures we had collected, planning the day\u2019s activities. Paige, I noticed, was rather quiet\u2014a little bit sulky Figuring she was still tired out from the trip, I didn\u2019t say anything. There was no sense in starting the first day of our vacation with a fuss.<\/p>\n

But as the day went on, Paige\u2019s behavior didn\u2019t get any better. She remained moody the entire morning, and by lunchtime, she was downright ornery. Still, I didn\u2019t say anything. It was so rare that we ever enjoyed full days together as a family\u2014I didn\u2019t want to spoil this one.<\/p>\n

That evening, we returned to the hotel hot, tired, hungry, and loaded down with souvenirs. Fumbling for the key to the door, I asked Paige to hold a package. She looked the other way.<\/p>\n

\u201cPaige,\u201d I said severely.<\/p>\n

She turned to regard me with mischievous brown eyes, testing me, trying my patience.<\/p>\n

\u201cPaige,\u201d I repeated, \u201cI\u2019m not in the mood.\u201d<\/p>\n

She giggled\u2014and I could feel my temper rising.<\/p>\n

Then Gloria spoke up. \u201cHoney,\u201d she said, \u201cif you\u2019d straightened Paige out this morning, this wouldn\u2019t be happening.\u201d<\/p>\n

That did it. Gloria\u2019s words added fuel to my already hot temper<\/a>, which shot up like a skyrocket.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t,\u201d I bellowed, kicking the door open with my foot, \u201ctell me what to do!\u201d<\/p>\n

My face was red with rage, and for the next 10 minutes I ranted and raved<\/a> around the hotel room like some tyrant. Unable to control myself, I couldn\u2019t believe my behavior. Paige started crying. Gloria fell strangely silent.<\/p>\n

I glanced over at her, and my heart sank when I saw the expression on her face. I hadn\u2019t seen that look in years; a horrible combination of disappointment and pity.<\/p>\n

Suddenly, a million nightmarish memories came flooding back. More than once in the past I\u2019d wake up in the hospital after some drunken brawl. Gloria would always be there, wearing the same sad expression she had now.<\/p>\n

I tried to say something, tried to break the tension-filled silence, but no words came out. I felt confused, bewildered, as if a rug had been pulled out from under me. True, my outbursts weren\u2019t public anymore, but this was worse; I had hurt my family, the ones I loved the most. Besides, if I planned to spend the rest of my life \u201cpraising the Lord\u201d in one breath, then losing my temper in the next, what kind of example was that?<\/p>\n

How can this be? I thought. I\u2019m different now; I\u2019ve changed. I am, supposedly, a new man.<\/p>\n

But, it was painfully clear, I was a new man face-to-face with an old problem. My temper<\/a>, like an old demon in hiding, had surfaced again with a roar.<\/p>\n

Finally, I couldn\u2019t stand the silence.<\/p>\n

\u201cGloria?\u201d I said. She was sitting at the desk writing a postcard. Paige was at her feet, flipping through a comic book. Both looked up at me warily:<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m sorry,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s okay,\u201d Gloria said, resting her hand on Paige\u2019s shoulder.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know what to do,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

Again, the room was quiet.<\/p>\n

\u201cWell,\u201d said Gloria thoughtfully, \u201cwe could try pray<\/a>ing. I mean, that\u2019s never failed to help us before, no matter what the problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

I had to agree.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet\u2019s do that,\u201d I said.<\/p>\n

The three of us sat cross-legged on the big king-size bed. And a beautiful peace settled over our once-turbulent little family as we joined hands in prayer<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cLord,\u201d I said, \u201cI confess I\u2019ve got a bad problem here with my temper. I\u2019m sorry, and I want to be rid of it. Please give me the right attitude; give me Your patience, tolerance and love. And please bless this vacation and make it a special time for all of us to get closer to You<\/a>, just as we originally planned. Thank You. In Jesus\u2019 name\u2014Amen.\u201d<\/p>\n

We all felt better. I slept like a log that night, secure in knowing that, now I\u2019d turned the problem over to the Lord, He would somehow take care of it.<\/p>\n

I have to admit the next morning wasn\u2019t easy. Little things still annoyed me. We overslept, missed breakfast, and had to rush to get ready to meet our car and tour guide, which we had hired for the day But each time I felt myself losing my cool, I\u2019d quickly say a short prayer<\/a>. It worked. For the remainder of our vacation I never lost my temper, and each night we returned to our hotel a happy, tight-knit little family.<\/p>\n

We did a lot of walking during our days in the Holy Land and with each step\u2014from the dusty path lined with ancient olive trees leading to the Garden of Gethsemane<\/a>, to the crowded city streets of Nazareth\u2014we felt ourselves growing closer to the Lord. And, by the time our two weeks were nearly over and we were packing to go home, I felt I had come to a full understanding of what had happened that first night in our hotel room.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s probably the most important lesson I\u2019ll ever learn. And that is: Once you welcome the Lord into your life, you embark on a journey of Christian growth<\/a> that never ends. It is a constant step-by-step refining process that works to transform you into the kind of person He wants you to be. Like a spotlight, He shines His healing love on the dark troubled areas of your life and asks that you release them\u2014one by one\u2014to Him.<\/p>\n

Looking back, it\u2019s exciting to see how lovingly and patiently the Lord has worked His will<\/a> in my life. Once I had a problem with drugs; He took care of it. Then Gloria and I had a broken marriage to contend with; He mended it. I\u2019ve still got this problem with temper; He\u2019s working with me on that one, and won\u2019t let me be satisfied until the job\u2019s done. And, when that time comes, you can be sure there will be something else.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s fine with me\u2014I\u2019ll be ready and willing.<\/p>\n

For more inspiring stories, subscribe to <\/em>Guideposts<\/strong><\/a> magazine<\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I was feeling great. Looking out the jet airliner\u2019s window, I marveled at the sparkling emerald waters of the Mediterranean. It was August, 1978, and my family and I were on our way to a long-awaited two-week vacation in the Holy Land. I smiled at Gloria, my wife, who was engrossed in a book, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":27370,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[185],"tags":[],"ppma_author":[1817],"class_list":["post-17361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories-of-faith-and-hope"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGuideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God - Guideposts Articles<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I was feeling great. Looking out the jet airliner\u2019s window, I marveled at the sparkling emerald waters of the Mediterranean. It was August, 1978, and my family and I were on our way to a long-awaited two-week vacation in the Holy Land. I smiled at Gloria, my wife, who was engrossed in a book, and […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Guideposts Articles\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-10T14:11:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-10T06:03:31+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/articles.guideposts.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1540\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"866\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"B. J. Thomas\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Neeraj Rai\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be\"},\"headline\":\"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-10T14:11:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-10T06:03:31+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1588,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Stories of Faith and Hope\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/\",\"name\":\"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God - Guideposts Articles\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-10T14:11:21+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-10T06:03:31+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg\",\"width\":1540,\"height\":866},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Inspiring Stories\",\"item\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Stories of Faith and Hope\",\"item\":\"http:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/inspiring-stories\\\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/\",\"name\":\"Guideposts Articles\",\"description\":\"Strengthening Faith. Providing Hope.\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Guideposts Articles\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/gp-logo-white.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/01\\\/gp-logo-white.svg\",\"caption\":\"Guideposts Articles\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be\",\"name\":\"Neeraj Rai\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=gc7d9b87677b7a32d038be4d79f46df21\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Neeraj Rai\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/gpbookstore.org\\\/articles\\\/author\\\/neeraj\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God - Guideposts Articles","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God","og_description":"I was feeling great. Looking out the jet airliner\u2019s window, I marveled at the sparkling emerald waters of the Mediterranean. It was August, 1978, and my family and I were on our way to a long-awaited two-week vacation in the Holy Land. I smiled at Gloria, my wife, who was engrossed in a book, and […]","og_url":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/","og_site_name":"Guideposts Articles","article_published_time":"2026-03-10T14:11:21+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-10T06:03:31+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1540,"height":866,"url":"http:\/\/articles.guideposts.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"B. J. Thomas","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/"},"author":{"name":"Neeraj Rai","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be"},"headline":"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God","datePublished":"2026-03-10T14:11:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-10T06:03:31+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/"},"wordCount":1588,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg","articleSection":["Stories of Faith and Hope"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/","url":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/","name":"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God - Guideposts Articles","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-10T14:11:21+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-10T06:03:31+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/bjthomas_0-1.jpg","width":1540,"height":866},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/guideposts-classics-b-j-thomas-on-growing-with-god\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Inspiring Stories","item":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Stories of Faith and Hope","item":"http:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/inspiring-stories\/stories-of-faith-and-hope\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Guideposts Classics: B. J. Thomas on Growing with God"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#website","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/","name":"Guideposts Articles","description":"Strengthening Faith. Providing Hope.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#organization","name":"Guideposts Articles","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/gp-logo-white.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/gp-logo-white.svg","caption":"Guideposts Articles"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/#\/schema\/person\/f0862e0bfb5f72f571ea4d005001f0be","name":"Neeraj Rai","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=gc7d9b87677b7a32d038be4d79f46df21","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/18c0b5a06458f26c764f5a7451f1774cfb282943f2f36a00c9a801809489005c?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g","caption":"Neeraj Rai"},"url":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/author\/neeraj\/"}]}},"authors":[{"term_id":1817,"user_id":0,"is_guest":1,"slug":"b-j-thomas","display_name":"B. J. Thomas","avatar_url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=https%3A%2F%2Fgpbookstore.org%2Farticles%2Fwp-content%2Fthemes%2Fguideposts%2Fassets%2Fimages%2Fdefault-avatar.png&r=g","0":null,"1":"","2":"","3":"","4":"","5":"","6":"","7":"","8":""}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17361","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17361"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17361\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27370"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17361"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17361"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17361"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gpbookstore.org\/articles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/ppma_author?post=17361"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}