Come to the Water

What is Spiritual Dryness?

We’re going to talk today about spiritual dryness that you just can’t shake. We all have times when we feel spiritually dry because we haven’t spent any time with God. If we ignore prayer and Bible reading then of course we’re going to feel spiritually dry. Once we start back again with prayer and Bible reading then the problem will be over.

But then there are the times that you are doing everything that you know how to do – and you still feel as spiritually dry as a bone. You don’t feel God’s presence, you don’t have joy, your prayers hit the ceiling and bounce right back. What do you do during these times? What is going wrong?

The following passage is a quote from theologian A.W. Tozer about spiritual dryness, which he calls “feeling arid,” or “aridity.”

“’Religion’, say the theologians, ‘lies in the will.’ What our will is set to do is what really matters at last. Aridity has nothing to do with the will. ‘If any man will’ said Jesus; He did not say ‘If any man feel.’ Feeling is the play of emotion over the will, a kind of musical accompaniment to the business of living, and while it is indeed most enjoyable to have the band play as we march to Zion it is by no means indispensable. We can work and walk without music, and if we have true faith we can walk with God without feeling.

“Normally we may expect some degree of spiritual joy to be present most of the time. Fellowship with God is so delightful that it cannot but provide a large measure of joy; but we are talking now about those times when our joy fades out and the presence of the Lord is felt only feebly or not at all. Such times demand that we exercise faith. Moments of great spiritual delight do not require much faith; if we never came down from the mount of blessing we might easily come to trust in our own delights rather than in the unshakeable character of God. It is necessary therefore that our watchful Heavenly Father withdraw His inward comforts from us sometimes to teach us that Christ alone is the Rock upon which me must repose our everlasting trust.”

What does being spiritually dry feel like to you? I feel stretched and thin, colorless. How do you feel?

Why Is This Happening to Me?

The following passage is from the website Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry (CARM).

“First of all, it isn’t necessarily bad to be in a spiritually dry place — unless it is because of sin. If we commit a sin that we know the Lord wants us to abandon, then He often withholds His fellowship from us. We sense a distance between the Lord and ourselves, and it hurts…

“On the other hand, spiritual dryness can be a specific time that the Lord wants us to go through as a time of testing and of preparation. The Lord will allow us to be tested into order to refine our faith. Think about it. Do we stay Christians because of the feeling of fellowship we have with the Lord or is it because we trust in Jesus, God in flesh as our Savior and Lord? …

“Spiritual dryness can also be a time of preparation. Most every major person in the Bible that was used mightily of God had to go through a desert time. This includes Moses, Elijah, Jesus, and Paul. Being in a place where we are dry, waiting, wanting, praying, examining, etc., is often the proving ground of strength and refinement. Then, after this time is completed, the thing that we have been prepared for comes upon us… Hence, the time of spiritual dryness is a time of preparation.”

This passage talks about 3 possible reasons for spiritual dryness:

1. Sin: We are all sinners but a stubborn and persistent sin can drive a wedge between us and God.
2. Testing: What do we depend on: our faith or our feelings? If we have to feel good in order to trust God then we have a problem. “We walk by faith, not by sight.” (2 Cor. 5:7)
3. Preparation: When God is preparing us for something, He often drives us into the desert first. This is where we drop external stuff and concentrate on Him and what He is teaching us.

Have you experienced a time of dryness that you realized was a result of sin, testing or preparation? What was it?

What Can I Do about It?

This passage is also from the CARM website.

“What do you do in a time of spiritual dryness? First of all, you should ask the Lord to reveal any unconfessed sins of which you have not repented. If He reveals anything to you, then confess it as sin and repent of it — even if it is a sin you have committed so many times before. Second, you must read your Word regularly. Third, you must pray regularly. And fourth, you must trust the Lord through this. You must look to Him and remember that He loves you greatly and will never forsake you. In this, your faith will be perfected, your character improved, your walk strengthened, and you will be prepared for the tasks ahead that the Lord has called you to encounter.

“And finally, in the midst of your dryness, offer praise and thanksgiving to the Lord. Do not let your feelings rob you of the opportunity to praise and thank God even when the times are not so great. Remember, it is easy to praise God when things go well. But the true men and women of Christian character praise God through the trials as well.”

So here is the prescription for dry times:

1. Ask God if a particular sin is the problem. If it is, then repent and ask God to help you overcome it. Remember that we will never be sin-free in this world, but God wants to make us holy.
2. Read the Bible even if you don’t feel like it.
3. Pray even if you don’t feel like it.
4. Trust God no matter what.
5. Stay in fellowship with other Christians.
6. Praise and thank Him even if you don’t feel very enthusiastic. Praise works wonders.

What have you done in the past to get through periods of spiritual dryness?

Relax into Grace

When you’re going through a tough spot of spiritual dryness, it can be hard. I have found that some verses, music and quotations can be really helpful. Please relax and meditatively listen to some of them as they are read to you…

Lyrics to “Blessed be your Name” by Matt and Beth Redman. (By the way, it’s a great song!)
Blessed be your name
In the land that is plentiful
Where the streams of abundance flow
Blessed be your name

Blessed be your name
When I’m found in the desert place
Though I walk through the wilderness
Blessed be your name

Every blessing you pour out,
I turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be your name…

Blessed be your name
When the sun’s shining down on me
When the world’s all as it should be
Blessed be your name

Blessed be your name
On the road marked with suffering
Though there’s pain in the offering
Blessed be your name

Every blessing you pour out,
I turn back to praise
When the darkness closes in, Lord
Still I will say
Blessed be your name…

Verses
The LORD will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. (Is. 58:11)

“Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.” (Is. 55:1)

“But whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (John 4:14)