While the term “spiritual fatigue” may seem odd, the idea that we can become stagnant in our faith and in our study of Scripture is quite real. As humans who lead busy and often complicated lives, with health issues, family conflicts, and work demands, it is possible to lose sight of the prize, so to speak, which is the gift of eternal life with God the Father and Jesus Christ. So, how does a true Christian deal with this?
In the world of the written word, it is not uncommon for an author of a book, article, a business memorandum, or even a church message, to experience what is commonly referred to as writer’s block. Wikipedia describes this as finding oneself in the situation in which the person is unable to create, think of the next sentence in a story, or make the next brush stroke. Most of us have experienced this to some degree and understand that it can be frustrating. The Russian painter, Leonid Pasternak (father of the poet and author, Boris Pasternak), created a painting that captured the utter frustration of a writer clutching his forehead while holding his pen as the manuscript lay before him.
Let us note Ernest Hemingway’s approach to dealing with this challenge. He wrote: “All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know.” This is just his example as to how he would combat his own writer’s block. He believed that starting with a single, honest statement could help break through the barriers of creativity and lead to productivity. In his memoir, A Moveable Feast, he recounted how he would look out over the rooftops of Paris and remind himself of this principle when struggling to write.
One can utilize this strategy when facing moments of stagnation, but what does this have to do with our faith and study of Scripture? Again, with the pressures of everyday life, it is easy to be distracted and cease to nurture our connection with God and Jesus Christ—in essence, to become spiritually frozen. Perhaps our adherence to God’s commandments falters, and we avoid our Bibles and the lessons we desperately need.
Let’s consider our first Scriptural example from Deuteronomy 6:4-5 (New International Version throughout): “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.” This is a remarkably simple and yet complete Scripture. It communicates that our God, our Creator, is indeed one… It is a foundational Scripture to God’s commandments and tells us all that we need to do to follow Him. We must be obedient to Him by loving Him with all of our heart, soul, and strength. At times we may use such superlative phrases to embellish our writing. When describing our relationship to God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ, it is appropriate and essential to do so. If one is suffering from a lack of spiritual zeal we ought to focus on such basic tenets of our true Christian faith in order to move forward once again.
It is important, however, that we understand Deuteronomy 6:4-5 correctly. As we point out in our free booklet, “God Is a Family,” this passage does not tell us that God is just one being. We state the following: “There is only one God. But in our thorough study until now, we have learned that God is a Family, consisting of more than one being. Since God does not contradict Himself in His Word, what can we learn from Deuteronomy 6:4? ‘Yahweh’ [the LORD] is one being. The being who dealt directly with Israel was Jesus Christ. He was called ‘Yahweh’—He was and is one being. So, it is true that ‘Yahweh’—Jesus Christ—is one being. In addition, ‘Yahweh’ refers to the Father as well—and the Father is, of course, also one being. Thirdly, since ‘Yahweh’ refers to both the Father and the Son, they are also ‘one’—one in purpose, goal, mindset, willpower and determination. They are unified. There is no division in the God Family.”
We need to seek Scriptures that derive from those such as Deuteronomy 6 above [correctly understood] and keep our study concise, focused, and do not move on unless we comprehend the intent of the passage. We need to review our literature, and we might also consult, at times, biblical commentaries and concordances for necessary context for the Scripture. Let’s build on this by considering2 Peter 1:3-8. Here we have a perfect foundation and recipe for igniting zeal in our Christian lives.
“His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Romans 12:2 further amplifies this point: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Whenever we become stuck at work or with a Church assignment, we may walk and pray. We should seek inspiration from God and understand that if we are sincere and our request is righteous, we will somehow always find the pathway forward. It may not be a perfect path as we are human, but if it is inspired by God, then we are moving in the right direction.
Another meaningful method of moving forward in our faith and study is to focus on serving in some way; to focus on serving others rather than ourselves. We can certainly help those in our families, and our communities, but we must also and foremost serve the Church. Whatever our skill or our abilities, when we act on this, we are blessed and can find inspiration for further study. We see this in James 2:17: “In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” We know that we are not justified by our actions, but are saved by the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ, if we honor and obey the Father’s commandments. Still, we must not be selfishly stagnant, but allow our faith to shine and our service to be clear. We must never be lukewarm in our faith and study, but passionate in the ways we obey and honor God.
We pray that God would remain close to us. Similarly, in John 15:4 we read: “Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.”
If we are feeling stale and blocked in our faith, we need to pray to the Father with sincerity, asking for help and wisdom so we may serve and honor Him more effectively. Instead of writing that truest sentence, let us pick a favorite Scripture and delve into it with all our heart. Isaiah 9:6-7 might fill our heart and refocus our attention on the majesty of God and the greatest gift that is the life and ministry of Jesus Christ; We can draw on the zeal of the Almighty to move us ever forward: “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David’s throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.”
As humans, we will stumble and sin, but when we repent and honor God and Jesus Christ, and ask that they abide with and in us, we can regain the pathway and the inspiration.
Lead Writer: Frank Bruno