When Faith Feels Dry

When Faith Feels Dry

Two tips for when you experience dry seasons

Earlier this week I got a text from a friend of mine asking if we could grab coffee. As we got together at one of our local coffee shops we got to talking about faith and making disciples. One of the things I appreciate about this friend is his heart for sharing the gospel with others and walking alongside them as they explore what life in Christ is like. He is not a pastor in his 9-5 job like I am… but he is in his calling. He takes it seriously. I find these conversations to be refreshing as we challenge one another to push beyond the status quo to make an impact for Jesus.

As we were talking he asked me an interesting question: Why do we have seasons of life where things just feel dry? Why does it feel like there are times where we are just going through the motions and things lack the excitement they once had?

What a great question! Here are two things I think are important for us as we experience dry seasons.

Dry Seasons Are Normal

This is something I think we all need to understand. So often when we are experiencing a dry season we think there is something wrong with us. Maybe we didn’t have the faith we thought we did? Maybe this whole thing is just a big illusion and we are beginning to see things for the way they are? We think we are broken. We think we are the only ones who are experiencing something like this. When we buy those lies… we tend to either hide it and pretend or we walk away completely.

It is important to see that we all go through these seasons. I know I have, even recently. Even some of the “greats” from throughout church history experienced seasons of dryness. Saint John of The Cross writes about this at length in his “Dark Night of the Soul”. That doesn’t make them any less scary… but I think there is hope that can be found in community. Dry seasons do not need to be something we go through in isolation.

When we experience seasons of dryness, my first tip is to find people to walk through it with. This can be a trusted mentor, a small group, or a pastor whom you trust. Sometimes we need others to help us see the things we are blind to. Who knows, you might end up being a blessing to others who are going through the same thing!

Rely on the Spiritual Disciples

One of the most important books in my library (other than the Bible) is a book by the name of Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster. I have read through this so many times it is literally falling apart. This book has provided me with a whole tool kit for seasons of dryness. Through the spiritual disciplines (things like fasting, meditating on scripture, prayer, times in solitude amongst many others) I am able to do the hard work of maintaining my inner life.

You might be wondering, what exactly do these spiritual disciplines do? I think the best way to think about them is a way for us to work on the soil in our lives. If you have ever grown a garden or grown up around farming you know that it takes a lot more than just throwing seeds in the group to yield a bountiful harvest. Farmers invest major dollars in exploring the make up of their soil. You need to think through all kinds of things from nitrogen levels to depth of workable soil. After things start growing you need to add precautions so animals and bugs don’t ravish your yield before you can harvest. This is what the spiritual disciplines do for our spiritual lives. It works the soil and makes it so that growth is possible. God does the actual growing of course… but have we created an environment where that is possible?

Sometimes seasons of dryness come about when I grow apathetic in my pursuit of the disciplines. Sometimes these seasons come when I have been too narrow, only relying on one or two things. A change of habit while exploring some of these disciplines can be a huge difference maker in helping us experience life.

If you are experiencing dryness… try these two things and see if you can begin to shift your perspective. In the end, it is in these seasons where we can develop maturity. We grow in things like patience as we push through. But know this… there is life on the other side of dryness.