How To Walk Through Seasons of Spiritual Dryness

Oh, how we long to hold onto seasons overflowing with joy and blessing as the Lord works in our lives. We walk closely with Him. We take in all of the ways He molds our hearts and minds and reveals to us more of Himself in a way that we can see. Yet, we can feel so far from the Lord in other seasons. Through our tears, we cry out to feel our Savior's hand more tangibly in our lives. Maybe it feels like He doesn't hear our prayers and can't see our pain or frustration. It seems like He is distant, refusing to remove our struggles or change our circumstances. Sometimes we come to a place we don't know what to pray or even how to pray. Scripture seems empty of meaning, and we eventually lose our desire to be in His Word.

Seasons of spiritual dryness will inevitably come, but our heavenly Father is faithful and present in these moments. So what does it look like to walk with God in seasons of spiritual dryness? Below are four ways that you can continue to walk with God in such seasons, as you remember that God never leaves or abandons you (Deuteronomy 31:6-8).

• Go to God in prayer.

Even when it seems as though our words fall empty upon His ears, remain faithful to the Lord in prayer. Lift up your cares, your worries to Him, for He hears you, and He is working. In those seasons that seem unbearable, He longs to draw you close. In Deuteronomy 31:6, He says, "I will never leave you or abandon you." And God keeps every one of His promises. We can be confident that though it feels like He is far away or we think He has left us on our own, He is still just as present as He is in the joyous seasons of life. As we call upon His name, He comes near, and we can pray that as we lift our eyes to Him, He would create and renew in us a desire for more of Him, eyes to see how He is working, and a heart to feel His presence. For He often uses these seasons to grow us in Him, teaching us about His enduring love and kindness and compassion.

• Dwell on the truth of God's Word.

Though it may be one of the last things we want to do, we find great comfort in Scripture, reminders of who our God is, and what He did for us on the cross. We find words and displays of His faithfulness. As He was faithful in the Old Testament and through the New Testament, so He is faithful to us today. We can pray to have hearts to receive the truth of God's Word. As we pour over Scripture, its words will not return void (Isaiah 55:10-11). Taking time to meditate on Scripture you commit to memory can also be strong encouragement for your heart. Simply saying a verse over and over again, speaking truth to yourself that is founded in Christ, helps us to keep our minds on the Lord, even when we may feel so far from Him.

• Remember God's past faithfulness.

When you find yourself with a lack of motivation to seek the Lord–you are tired, you are frustrated, you feel hopeless–don't forget to remember. Remember times you have seen the Lord's faithfulness firsthand in your life. Remember how He worked in the lives of those you know–in your family, your community, the Church, and the world. May those reminders of His past faithfulness encourage us when the soil of our hearts feels dry. As God has always been faithful, so He always will be. We can look back, season after season, amazed and in awe of His ways. His love and compassion have no end, and we rejoice that He sees us and hears us and longs to make Himself known to us, even when we feel we have no strength left to find Him. He is everpresent and near. Continue to praise Him for all He has done–every new morning, every breath, every encouragement from a friend. Simply reminding ourselves of His faithfulness, even in small things, spurs us on to cling to the hope of Christ that will never disappoint.

• Surround yourself with other believers.

Finally, in every season, whether full of spiritual vitality or spiritual dryness, surround yourself with other brothers and sisters in Christ. The Lord calls us to be one body, and when one part of the body is sick, the other parts share in that suffering (1 Corinthians 12:26). Other believers offer encouragement in your trial–to spur you on in your faith, even through your struggle. So too, other believers offer prayer for your relationship with God. When you cannot find the words to pray, what a great joy that you have brothers and sisters who will go to battle for you, praying that the Lord would work in your heart and draw you closer to Himself, that He would speak to you through them and through His Word, and that your heart would be softened to let Him have His way in your heart.

So as seasons of spiritual dryness may come, lean all the more into Jesus. His love for you cannot be measured and will continue for all time, for all of eternity. If you will let Him, He will show you more of Himself, growing you in even greater confidence of His neverending faithfulness. God's Word tells us that when we seek Him with all of our hearts, we will surely find Him (Jeremiah 29:13)–what grace and mercy and hope in this promise! He who began a good work in you will surely see it to completion (Philippians 1:6). And as you seek Him, your heavenly Father will fill you with His overflowing joy that never runs dry.