There are occasions when plants that seem to be in excellent environments at first glance do not grow as expected. Justus von Liebig, a German botanist and chemist, found out through his studies that plant growth may slow or even stop because of the scarcest amount of a nutrient among essential plant nutrients. Considering that nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium are nutrients necessary for plant growth, no matter how rich phosphorus and potassium are, if nitrogen is insufficient, the plant will no longer grow after its nitrogen is all used. This is called the “law of the minimum.” On the other hand, the plant will grow if you make up for the deficient nutrient through fertilizer.
Look back on yourselves when you feel like your faith is stagnant. If you fill and practice the parts that you feel like you are somewhat lacking in, such as love, humility, patience, courage, and gentleness, through God’s teachings, you will be able to possess more firm and mature faith.
. . . so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Eph 3:17–19)