I know that I am not the only one who has experienced a Spiritual ‘rut’ at one time or another in my life. If we aren’t careful to really press in and develop true ‘intimacy’ with Christ this is something that could easily happen.

My hope in writing this post is for us to gain a deeper perspective and ‘wisdom’ from the Psalms on what we need to do to avoid growing stale in our walk with Jesus. The Word of God is so full and so RICH with wisdom on how to live strong & fruitful lives. Life with Jesus is exciting, fresh and amazing but there is due diligence on our part to take the steps EACH DAY to build intimacy with Him. Otherwise, a spiritual rut can happen and I have found it to be the most stifling & difficult thing.

As my Pastor (Dr. Ike Reighard) always says in his sermons… if you aren’t feeling close to Jesus, it is not Him that moved. He is always with us and He desires a true, deep and incredibly beautiful relationship with us.

I can tell you that during those moments in my life when I experienced a lack of spiritual ‘growth’ and closeness to Jesus, it was when I wasn’t practicing certain habits in my life and when I was not meditating on and immersing myself in His Word.  For this reason, I have chosen 3 Psalms that offer great wisdom on overcoming a spiritual rut. We will study The Scriptures to see what we can do to become strong, godly Ladies who truly  have a deep intimate rich Spiritual walk with Christ.

We will also look at certain core ‘habits’ that we can do each day that will help us to stay plugged into the MOST important relationship we will ever have. I have found this to be true: if we are in a spiritual rut, it is due to our lack of really taking time to build the relationship with Jesus that He so desires. He loves us so much, He is always there waiting but often times it is us who runs about distracted and not focused on what matters most.

Psalm 19 

1. Look to the Heavens:  Precious are the bits of wisdom found here. Psalm 19:1 says “The heavens declare the glory of God and the expanse proclaims the work of His hands”One of the first things we can do to overcome a spiritual rut is to simply look to the heavens. To declare His Majesty. There is so much written in the sky that I believe we miss. For instance, His incredible beautiful artistic side. Can you even begin to fathom? I think not. I remember going on vacation once with my husband to a cabin in the Mountains of NC.  As we sat outside under the night sky that was literally a starry blanket I just looked at all of the twinkling stars and was overcome with thoughts of His incomprehensible vastness. To think, this was just a touch of His pinky. He handpicked and hung each of the stars. How great is His love for us. Let this sink in. Recognizing Him for HOW GREAT He really is and what He did for us is the best place to start.
2. Immerse Ourselves in His Word and His Instructions for our Lives: Psalm 19:7-8 says “The instruction of The Lord is perfect, renewing one’s life, the testimony of The Lord is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise. The precepts of The Lord are right, making the heart glad, the command of The Lord is radiant, making the eyes light up.” The second bit of wisdom gained from Psalm 19 is simply this: understand that His instructions, precepts and commands are meant to bring FREEDOM to our lives and not bondage. How will we know these things however, if we aren’t truly spending time in His word & studying His instruction? To overcome a spiritual rut, it starts with knowing that God is GOOD and all He gives us in His word is for our good. Spend time studying and mediating on this & you will find a life of fervor and excitement for Jesus that is contagious.

Psalm 23

3. Rest in Him: Psalm 23 is one of my absolute favorites. It is one of the Scriptures I clung to as a little 8 year old girl who was living in a tough situation where I was being silently abused by an Aunt I lived with. When I read Psalm 23, it saturates the deepest parts of my being because I know all too well that is it TRUE. I know this because I experienced this. I experienced the life giving Word in one of the darkest & hardest times of my life – and well before an age where I could really understand anything deeper. I clung to this psalm with childlike faith that the Scriptures talk about.

Psalm 23:1-2 says “The Lord is my Shepherd, I have what I need. He let’s me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters.” 

Jesus gives us REST. To avoid a spiritual rut, I want to challenge you with this perspective that is often counter cultural in our current day and age…. it is OK TO REST IN HIM! It is ok to slow down and not to rush about. It is perfectly ok (and should be normal) in the Christian walk to slow ourselves down and let Jesus do what ONLY He can do.

SO MUCH of the lack of intimacy with Christ and spiritual growth in our world comes from not resting in Him. During a time in my life when I was plagued with sadness and anxiety, Jesus gave me rest. He renewed me. He provided just what I needed & at the precise moment in time that I needed it. Let Him do this for you. He did it for me as a little 8 year old girl and almost 30 years later, He is still doing the same. REST… IN….HIM. This is where we are truly renewed & our spiritual hunger and fervor thrives.

 

 

Psalm 33

4. Sing Praises to The Creator: One of the best ways to overcome a spiritual rut is to sing praises to Him. I am currently in a Bible Study through ‘Ladies Who Love Christ’ called Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby. In it, He discusses the importance of Worship to our King and what a huge role this plays in our walk. Psalm 33 says “Rejoice in The Lord, you righteous ones; praise from the upright is beautiful” 

Psalm 33:3 says “Sing a new song to Him, play skillfully on the strings, with a joyful shout”

Psalm 33:21 says “For our hearts rejoice in Him because we trust in His HOLY name.” 

There are so many ways to worship Him including singing songs of praise, giving thanks and focusing on what He is doing in our lives. To repair a spiritual rut the best salve is WORSHIP. Singing praises to our King.

There are so MANY more bits of wisdom in the Psalms for overcoming a spiritual rut but these are some very simple things that we can take from Psalms 19, 23 & 33.

The Lord’s love is wild for us. He cares for us so very deeply but remember, when we don’t feel close to Him … it is not Him who moved. It is us. Let us seek His heart and His precepts. Let us seek to have the richest, deepest, intimate relationship with Him and to eliminate spiritual ruts from our lives.

• Spend Time in His Word.
• Sing Praises to Him.
• Look to the Heavens, They Declare His GLORY.
• Stop and Rest in Him.
• Study His Word and His instructions, commit them to heart.

Do these things and watch the intimacy & complete fullness that will come from it. He cares for you & He calls YOU by name.

Blessings,

Ashley Poptodorova

Founder, Ladies Who Love Christ Ministries