Spiritual Dryness: Am I Hungry for the Wrong Food?
“Oh Lord, what is wrong with me?” future missionary Isobel Kuhn prayed. “Why can’t I sense Your Presence now as I have lately? Why has the Bible become dry?”
Have you been there? You dutifully read your Bible nearly every day. You pray like you’ve been taught. It feels like a chore or, even worse, a ritual. God seems far away. What’s wrong with your spiritual life?
Spiritual Ice Cream and Soda Pop
Long before Isobel Kuhn left Canada to serve as a missionary in China, she felt the spiritual dryness expressed in the questions above. As she examined her heart and her habits leading to this period of dryness, the Lord brought the answer to her mind. Kuhn related what she discovered as if she were having a conversation with God:
“When a child fills her stomach with ice cream and soda pop,” the Lord seemed to answer, “why does she lose her appetite for meat and potatoes?”
“Lord, do You mean the novel did that to me?”
“It excited all the fleshly part of your nature, didn’t it? Did it do anything to help you spiritually?”
“Nothing, Lord. It kept me up so late. I’m tired this morning. Lord, if I promise to give up novel reading, will You come back to me? Will the Bible come alive to me again?”
“Try it and see.”1
Nearly a hundred years later, the number of flavors of spiritual ice cream and soda pop have multiplied exponentially. Novels? They could still be a distraction. But now we have glittering smartphones loaded with addictive social media, video games, and hilarious video clips. We have realistic, HD TV’s with a dizzying number of options from superhero movies to chick flicks to cliffhanging sitcoms. Even if all these options were wholesome, the seductive sweetness of the adrenaline rush alone could rob us of our taste for the spiritual meat and potatoes we need for holy living. We have learned to be hungry for the wrong food.
Disciplining Your Spiritual Diet
Desperate to draw close to God again, Kuhn disciplined her reading life. She set aside the clean romance novels that had riveted her attention. Kuhn did not claim that it was sinful to read these books. She just knew, that for her, these books were a distraction from God. Kuhn valued her relationship with God more than her entertainment.
What do we value most—entertainment or intimacy with God?
Retraining Your Spiritual Taste Buds
That’s all and good. But did it work? Did the spiritual dryness in Kuhn’s walk with God go away?
Kuhn testified: “From that moment, the Lord was real and present once more and the Word took on new meaning.”2 She went on to say that for the next fifteen years she did not read the romance novels that she loved. Kuhn had a greater love—a love for God. Anything that captivated her affections or elevated her adrenaline to the point that she could not focus on God had to be eliminated from her life.3
The attractions that distract you from God may well be different from Kuhn or from your friends. But are you willing to eliminate whatever excites you to the detriment of your walk with God? Ice cream is great, but you can’t live on it. Positive endorphins feel good, but they are no substitute for the joy of closeness to your Creator.
Whatever turns my eyes from God is destructive to my life.
Related Tips to Combat Spiritual Dryness Caused by Being Hungry for the Wrong Food
- Guard a set time with God every morning. Let nothing supersede it.
- Avoid entertainment that frequently goes late into the night.
- Look at your Bible before you look at your phone in the morning.
- Put all digital devices in a different room when you spend time with God.
- Limit your time on social media, especially in the evening.
- Reduce TV and movies to no more than an occasional treat, not a daily habit.
- Decrease time spent on hobbies, sports teams, or causes for which you are passionate if you find them creeping into your thoughts as you spend time with God.
- Read missionary biographies.
- What has worked for you? Feel free to add your suggestions in the comments below.
“My voice You shall hear in the morning, O LORD; In the morning I will direct it to You, And I will look up.” Psalm 5:3
Dr. Conrad serves in urban Asia. He is the author of Daring Devotion: A 31-Day Journey with those who Lived God’s Promises. He blogs at Rooted Thinking, we republish his material by permission.
Photo by Henley Design Studio on Unsplash
- Isobel Kuhn, By Searching (Chicago: Moody Press, 1959), 47–49. This short biography is well worth the read. [↩]
- Kuhn, 49. [↩]
- Read more about Isobel Kuhn in my book, Daring Devotion: A 31-Day Journey with those who Lived God’s Promises. [↩]