A Prayer When Your Spiritual Health Is Struggling
By Vivian Bricker
Bible Reading:
“But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” - Hebrews 10:39
Read or Listen Below:
Days went by, and nobody replied. Each of them had seen the message since the read receipt was on, but nobody had replied. They each left me reading, not caring enough to answer or offer any support. This caused me to start questioning Christianity because if Christians couldn’t be kind enough to help me in my darkest days, then maybe there was no God. This led me into a downward spiral where I slowly started distancing myself from others and God.
In truth, I wasn’t mad at God; I was angry at my so-called friends. They made me question God’s goodness because they claimed to be followers of Him, yet they couldn’t even reply to a simple message. Over time, I have slowly stopped talking to these individuals, partly because they never reach out. It helped me to see that they never truly wanted to be my friends, and they certainly weren’t going to go out of their way to help me while I was recovering.
As I’m recovering, I have found my most excellent help has been God and my sister. God has helped me to see myself as He sees me. I don’t have to strive for unrealistic standards or listen to the compulsions in my head. Instead, I can sit at the feet of the Lord and rest in His love. Of course, there are days when I struggle, but I can manage things better because of God. My sister has also helped in many ways and has greatly supported my recovery process.
In reflecting, I can see that I don’t need to give control of my spiritual health to others. Rather than associating Jesus with people at church, we need to associate Him with Himself. Christians are followers of Jesus, but they are not Him. We don’t need to discredit Jesus or question Him when Christians hurt us. This is hard, but we don’t need to view the Lord negatively because those who claim to follow Him have been mean to us. Instead, we need to separate Jesus from His followers and focus on Him rather than the people at church, Christian college, or a Christian organization.
Faith in Jesus, Not in People
Hebrews 10:39 says, “But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.” As the writer of Hebrews tells us, we do not belong to those who fall back and are destroyed. Instead, we belong to those who have faith and are saved. When someone does something that makes us question God, we need to turn to Him in prayer and weigh what they did against Scripture.
Christians can do many terrible things, but we cannot associate their sinful actions with the Lord. We must continue to believe in Him because we have faith in Him, not in people. Salvation comes from placing faith in Jesus, not in Christians. Whenever we start doubting Christ, Christianity, or our salvation, we must go to the Bible, turn to Jesus in prayer, and remember His goodness. By doing this, we can help our spiritual health get back on track and grow stronger.
Let’s Pray:
Dear Jesus, please help my spiritual health grow rather than struggle. I have recently gone through a period where my spiritual health is struggling, but I’m choosing to turn matters over to You. No longer will I allow other Christians’ actions to define You. I am choosing to define You by You. I also ask that You help others seek You out rather than trying to find their faith in others. You are the answer we all need, and I praise You. Please help me never forget this truth and continue growing in You. I know you are capable of all things. Thank You for always being with me. Amen.
Photo Credit: ©Patrick Schneider/Unsplash
Related Resource: Let God Reframe Your Year: A Psalm 107 Year-End Reflection
As we wrap up our year together, I want to invite you into this meaningful spiritual practice: looking back on the year through the lens of Psalm 107 to identify the “fingerprints of God’s faithfulness. In this episode, we'll walk through four redemptive storylines found in Psalm 107—each representing a way God rescues, restores, and reorients His people. Whether you felt lost, trapped, wounded, self-destructive, or overwhelmed by storms, I encourage you to reflect on how God met you in weakness and brought deliverance. This episode is part of our How to Study the Bible Podcast, a show that brings life back to reading the Bible and helps you understand even the hardest parts of Scripture. If this episode helps you know and love God more, be sure to subscribe to the How to Study the Bible Podcast on Apple or Spotify so you never miss an episode!
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