It’s great when we’re on fire in our faith, but few of us never experience times when we feel we’re going through the motions. Today we’ll talk about this and a few reminders for keeping the faith.
Isn’t it great when you go about your day fired up? You know you’re loved by God; you can feel His presence. And everything you do—from reading your Bible to smiling at that person who grates on your nerves—is totally for Him as a natural expression of love. You’re rockin’ the whole “keeping the faith” thing.
Yeah, it’s pretty awesome.
Then other days I struggle with feeling like I’m just going through the motions. I can’t feel the closeness when I pray, and getting past my natural standoffish nature to talk to others is awkward no matter how hard I try. It’s almost like I have the spiritual energy to . . . get by.
I’m guessing if you’re reading this, you’ve either had your own not-feeling-it days and/or you’re in them now because most things in life have ups and downs, even our Christian walks.
Maybe that’s because our feelings are cyclical—constantly flipping from good to bad and back again. Which can be a good thing sometimes. Because we’ve been in this place before, we can look back to when it ended before.
Simple Reminders for Keeping the Faith
#1 – He is near
I’m sure you’ve never heard this before: our feelings aren’t reliable. That’s a joke, of course, since I’m sure you’ve heard that saying so much it’s probably cliché, but it’s amazing to me how feelings can color even what we know deep inside.
In these times we just have to follow the truth of God’s Word; God is always present even when we don’t feel Him.
#2 – For better and worse
I recently read the verse below from 1 Timothy, and I saw something I hadn’t before. It brought to mind my wedding ceremony—where I vowed to honor, cherish, and love my husband for better or worse—and placed that image beside my baptism, when I professed much the same to Christ.
Not in a sacrilegious way but in the way that God’s design for marriage mirrors our relationship with Him.
And like marriage, we won’t always feel like being nice or helpful or sacrificial, but that’s a crucial part of the relationship—showing faith and love by action.
#3 – We have this hope
It’s true that we all have highs and lows to keeping the faith, but I’ve noticed that the highs inch higher each time around and descend to lows on a more gradual curve. Like a line graph that steadily moves up even with the ups and down of the data.
Because the Holy Spirit is molding our hearts to love and reflect Christ more and more, there is improvement even with the dips.
And I know the cycle won’t end on a low. It’ll end on a higher note because it’s gonna end with eyes on Jesus—faith made sight.
I’m not sure about you, but it’s a relief to me to know that how I feel in this moment will change. I’ll feel better in a little while because I’ve seen this cycle many times. The low doesn’t last.
And, in fact, even the lows will disappear one day so there’s nothing left but the high. Forever.
What helps you keep the faith on the days you’re just not feeling it? Let me know in the comments below.
*** This post was revised from the archives. Check out the original here. ***
More Reading
- 10 Verses for When You Need a Little Faith from HISsparrowBlog
- To New Beginnings: 5 Encouraging Reminders of Hope from HISsparrowBlog
- 6 Crucial Truths I’d Love to Have Known Sooner from HISsparrowBlog
I frequently link up with the following: Grace & Truth with Embracing the Unexpected, Tell His Story with Jeanne Takenaka, and Let’s Have Coffee with Joanne Viola.
Yes–I have definitely experienced this and learned my spiritual condition isn’t measured or dictated by my feelings. Thank God! That’s a neat analogy about weddings vows–I hadn’t thought of it quite that way, but it fits. The Christian life isn’t one long spiritual high, and God often does things we don’t understand. But the better we know Him, the more we can trust Him through the highs and lows.
“And I know the cycle won’t end on a low. It’ll end on a higher note because it’s gonna end with eyes on Jesus—faith made sight.” Amen!!
Beautiful words full of hope! I needed this today. Thank you, Ashley!
Afflictions on this planet are indeed “light and momentary “ when our perspective is eternal. Thanks for helping us get there!
Thank you for reading, Michele!
Beautiful hope in a world of upheaval.
Thank you for stopping by, Debbie!
Yes, I have had cycles as well over the course of my life. But like you, “I’ve noticed that the highs inch higher each time around” and the lows don’t go as low any longer. Each cycle serves to strengthen our faith and deepen our walk with God. This was such a wonderful reminder that whatever we face will be “light and momentary” when we keep our eyes focused on Jesus. Thank you for sharing this, Ashley!
Thank you so much for reading, Joanne!
Such wonderful encouragement here this morning. Thank you!
I’m so glad you were encouraged, Cheryl. Thank you for commenting!
Amen! So encouraging!
Thank you, Susan!