In my last piece, I spoke about the common feeling we as Believers encounter where we feel like we’ve entered a season where we are spiritually desolate. We cannot feel God’s presence the way we once did, or perhaps we cannot bring ourselves to open our Bibles or speak to God through prayer. Often times this is occurring because our circumstances around us have become wildly difficult or perhaps we’re frustrated due to a lack of answered prayers. It can also occur from feeling burned out in our faith; a feeling of hopelessness or doubt may begin to creep in and God begins to feel further and further away. We find ourselves desperate to reconnect with the Source that promised to never leave us thirsty again but don’t know what to do in order to accomplish this. We feel hopeless, but take heart, there is hope! We know that Jesus never changes (Hebrews 13:8), He is with us in the dark valleys (Psalm 23:4) and never leaves us (Matthew 28:20) so we, therefore, can conclude He is always the Source that will satisfy us, even in times that feel like we are experiencing drought. We need reminding that He is the source and here I’ll share three practical steps I believe can help us find replenishment in these times of feeling spiritually dried up.
Words To Live By
One of the most obvious steps to take in these types of seasons is to dive into reading the Word of God, aka The Bible. Our current generation is the one with most access to God’s Word, yet it’s often an afterthought. But even the most scholarly, stalwart believer in Christ will experience times where it will be difficult to even open up the Bible, let alone study it or let it permeate your life. Trust me, I concede, from personal experience that opening the Bible is often the last thing I want to do when I’m feeling spiritually dry. I’d much rather turn on Netflix than engage in God’s Word in these times. It feels fruitless. But it isn’t. Jesus said “The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you—they are full of the Spirit and life.” (John 6:63) When we are looking to bring back the rich fullness of a healthy spiritual life, Jesus says His words are full of life.
One practice I’ve found to be helpful in difficult seasons is to turn to the book of Psalms. Psalms is such a unique book in that it gives us a real-time look at King David and a few other authors’ spiritual lives. From the highest of highest to times where they were definitely in the midst of spiritual drought. These authors may not have been experiencing the same exact things you and I face today, but the feelings remain the same. Hearing King David and the other authors of Psalms cry out to God and share their disappointment or question where He is in the midst of their pain is a refreshing, because if these great heroes of the faith were experiencing the same feelings that I am now, I have proof that God continued to work in and through their lives beyond the pain they were experiencing at the time.
Regardless of what part of the Bible we choose to read during these times, it promises to replenish us and be an invaluable resource in these seasons, so dig in and start reading, even if just a verse or two each day.
Friends Like These
The second refuge we can find during these tough times is in the community of fellow believers with whom we share our lives. Group life is a pivotal, but often undervalued part of life in Christ. We were designed to do life with one another. We are commanded to bear one another’s burdens. So when we experience a season of spiritual dryness, our fellow believers that are walking beside us are oftentimes those best prepared to provide nourishment. I can’t tell you how many times in the past several years, a time of significant pain, uncertainty that I’ve found myself in a spiritual drought, only to have my friends Andy, Greg, Jeremy, Pat, Beresford, and many others step in to remind me of God’s goodness, to pray for and with me, and to just sit with me in the midst of my difficult season. Take it from me, having a core group of Godly friends that are there to speak truth and life into our difficult seasons will help us to feel like we’ve found an oasis in the desert. If you don’t have a Godly community of your own, there’s no time like today to join one of our groups here at Epic and start walking with others on your journey through life.
Take It To The Lord In Prayer
The third of my practical steps to finding the Source of Living Water in the midst of a dry season is the act of prayer. While it may sound clichéd, it is absolutely true that prayer changes everything. Often times, prayer will not magically change our circumstances, nor helicopter us out of a difficult season, but it can change our hearts and attitudes in the midst of those seasons.
There’s an old saying that goes “prayer should be our first response, rather than our last resort.” I like how one of my favorite hymns puts it:
What a friend we have in Jesus
All our sins and griefs to bear
And what a privilege to carry
Everything to God in prayer
Oh, what peace we often forfeit
Oh, what needless pain we bear
All because we do not carry
Everything to God in prayer
Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged
Take it to the Lord in prayer
Have we trials and temptations?
Is there trouble anywhere?
We should never be discouraged
Take it to the Lord in prayer
Can we find a friend so faithful
Who will all our sorrows share?
Jesus knows our every weakness
Take it to the Lord in prayer
We often continue in these seasons of spiritual drought for longer than necessary, because we attempt to bear the burdens on our own as opposed to allowing the One who asks us to cast our cares on Him to share in them. Personally, there are times where I just don’t feel like going to God. It may feel like it won’t make any difference, but it is pertinent in these times to press forward. As I mentioned in my last piece, our feelings betray us and are often based in fear, or lies from the enemy designed to keep us distant from our Creator. I spoke to someone recently who compared it to the same choice that those are married make each day. You may not always feel like loving your spouse. Some days you may feel like it’s a fruitless endeavor and that you’d much rather put effort anyplace else. However, just as it is in a marriage, pressing in during those times where our feelings tell us otherwise, engaging in your relationship with God during times when you’re not feeling it will produce results that will eventually bring you to a place of refuge in the midst of the dry season.
Whether you’re in a season of dryness right now, or whether you’re looking to prepare for your next encounter with one, remember you are not alone in experiencing this and that God will never leave, nor forsake you. Jesus Himself endured real abandonment from God so that we would never have to face it ourselves. If you’re experiencing a season like this right now, we here at Epic would love to talk with you about it. . It’s important to remember, no matter what our feelings tell us, The Well of Living Water never runs dry, so hold on, and keep seeking Him.
Written By: Cal Renner, Communications Team
