At the Well is the place where women gather to discuss and share godly wisdom between one another. Today's At the Well is hosted by Heather at Emotional Purity. The discussion questions for today are:
* Have you noticed a pattern of when you find yourself spiritually dry?
* What do you do to move quickly through that season of dryness?
These are fantastic questions and I am excited to read what others are sharing on this topic.
Spiritual dryness is a difficult time for a Christian and can be difficult to understand. It is a time when you feel alone and frustrated and feel a lack of peace and joy and just cannot put your finger on what is wrong. As you pray and continue in God's Word, but feel as if you just "can't get through". You just don't "feel" the presence of the Lord. Now we know that we walk by faith and not by sight - or by feelings. When spiritual dryness comes, our emotions can kick into high gear! Thoughts and questions can bombard our minds and send us scurrying in many different directions. But it is important to remember where our help comes from - "our help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth."
In my life I have found that a pattern for spiritual dryness comes when I am busy about too many things - even good things. First a slipping of the continual drawing on the presence of the Lord happens, then my mind becomes cluttered with distractions and busyness and finally I notice myself acting irritated, not peaceful or content and extremely stressed. Once I recognized that I have moved away - not God, and entered a dry land, I confess to Him that I have not been putting Him first. It helps to read praise and worship Scriptures, many are found in the Psalms and simply pray them aloud. Through the day it helps to surround myself with God's Word, uplifting music and a pattern of thankfulness. Even counting aloud blessings can stir my heart and help get my thinking turned back around.
The most important thing in a dry period is to recall God's Word, He is faithful, read His truths and continue moving towards Him. We cannot rely on our emotions or thoughts, but rely on His truth. When we hold on to Him, even when we can't "feel" Him, our faith is strengthened. We must use our faith to remember that His Word promises that He will never leave us or forsake us, He will hear when we call, He is aware of everything we feel and that He is still in control. When my heart and thinking get right, there are showers of blessings that will come and as we enter into refreshment we can look back and know that we have been strengthened and have grown in grace.
Spiritual dryness is a difficult time for a Christian and can be difficult to understand. It is a time when you feel alone and frustrated and feel a lack of peace and joy and just cannot put your finger on what is wrong. As you pray and continue in God's Word, but feel as if you just "can't get through". You just don't "feel" the presence of the Lord. Now we know that we walk by faith and not by sight - or by feelings. When spiritual dryness comes, our emotions can kick into high gear! Thoughts and questions can bombard our minds and send us scurrying in many different directions. But it is important to remember where our help comes from - "our help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth."
In my life I have found that a pattern for spiritual dryness comes when I am busy about too many things - even good things. First a slipping of the continual drawing on the presence of the Lord happens, then my mind becomes cluttered with distractions and busyness and finally I notice myself acting irritated, not peaceful or content and extremely stressed. Once I recognized that I have moved away - not God, and entered a dry land, I confess to Him that I have not been putting Him first. It helps to read praise and worship Scriptures, many are found in the Psalms and simply pray them aloud. Through the day it helps to surround myself with God's Word, uplifting music and a pattern of thankfulness. Even counting aloud blessings can stir my heart and help get my thinking turned back around.
The most important thing in a dry period is to recall God's Word, He is faithful, read His truths and continue moving towards Him. We cannot rely on our emotions or thoughts, but rely on His truth. When we hold on to Him, even when we can't "feel" Him, our faith is strengthened. We must use our faith to remember that His Word promises that He will never leave us or forsake us, He will hear when we call, He is aware of everything we feel and that He is still in control. When my heart and thinking get right, there are showers of blessings that will come and as we enter into refreshment we can look back and know that we have been strengthened and have grown in grace.
"He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restores my soul."
"He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restores my soul." That is the perfect verse for spiritual dryness isn't it? We just need to remember, as you explained in your post, that we need to keep our focus on Him and let Him lead us. Thanks for sharing :)
ReplyDeleteBeautiful, passionate post. It is definitely His Word that will draw us back to Himself. Thank you!
ReplyDeleteOh, wonderful, wonderful, wonderful post sister!
ReplyDeleteYES! YES!!! I love what you said, the thing to remember is always to turn to God's word and never rely on our feelings alone!
Bless you dear sister!
Sunny
Thank you for sharing your heart with us today and I love that scripture you quoted "He leadeth me beside the still waters, He restores my soul" - God will lead us out of our dry spell as we lean upon His restoration. Thanks for sharing today. -Blessings, Laurie
ReplyDeleteI loved what you wrote about not relying on our emotions but relying on His truth. That's what it's about - 100%! Great post! You hit the nail on the head. Thanks for sharing with us At the Well.
ReplyDeleteWhen we build our lives on the foundations of the Truth - those storms of emotions can come and go but we will remain firm. Thanks for the reminder.
ReplyDeleteI don't like it when I feel this way. I know that I am the one who moved, not Him. I try to listen to worship music and spend time just thinking about the Lord and praising HIm and reading His word. That usually helps me to get back close with Him.
ReplyDeleteHugs, Sharon