Keep Going (Even When You Don't Feel Like It)

When it comes to blogging, I feel like I've been in a dry spell lately. The ideas haven't been easily flowing. I have to stop and think about topics and diligently think to try and come up with something.  Life has been really busy and finding time to write and read has been hard to do.  Sometimes it would feel easier to just hang it up.

I think many of us can feel this way as well when it comes to spiritual disciplines like praying and reading the Bible. With the fast pace of life and fatigue that accompanies it, you may not feel like taking that extra time to get alone with God and read and talk to him. It definitely feels easier to stay in the bed longer or mindlessly scroll through social media, or veg out watching some sports game you don't care about or rerun to a show you've seen countless times. I know how you feel because many times I feel this way too. My plea today is for you to keep going even if you don't feel like it.

I am the one who makes the coffee in our home. Most nights I try and have everything ready for the morning. I try to make sure the coffee pot is clean, the coffee is ground, and that it will take minimal effort to achieve caffeination the next morning. When I fail to do this I always regret it because more steps are involved in the morning and I run the risk of waking our kids—for whatever reason they sleep harder at night. In the mornings, I have to get the pot clean, turn off the alarm (which is loud), take the grinder in the garage (again... loud), bring it back in, pour the water, and get everything going. If I don't prepare at night then I will most definitely have to do it in the morning whether I feel more tired or not unless I choose to go without coffee. I never regret putting in the extra effort to prepare at night, but I always regret it in the morning if I haven't made the effort.

When we don't do the small things day in and day out to take care of our spiritual life, we may not regret it or feel the effects right away.  We may not even regret it for the foreseeable future, but when something hard in life hits or we fall into a sin we never thought we'd find ourselves in and the foundation feels like it's crumbling beneath us then we will desperately wish we had been building our house slowly but surely on the Rock of Ages. We will wish we had been cultivating an intimate relationship with our Lord instead of now suddenly crying out to what feels like a stranger.

Spiritual disciplines assure us that we know and are known by the Sovereign God who is not taken by surprise. Intimacy with him builds our confidence that he hears us when we call and cares about the details of our lives. His Word and prayer remind us of who he is and that he promises to work all things for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose—even when it feels like maybe he isn't. 

I enjoy writing. I enjoy it whether anyone reads it or not. I enjoy it whether I have a topic worth writing about or not. I suppose that's why I keep going. It would be easier to stop sometimes. It'd be easier to not contribute and to convince myself that not one really cares anyway. But I think something would feel like it's missing.

You may not feel like you get much out of many days that you groggily open your Bible and begin to read. You may feel like you're a spazz when you're trying to pray and feel like you can't hold your eyes open or focus. You may miss some days along the way. It's ok. It's worth it. Even if you don't feel like it, keep going. Cry out to him. Ask for help on the dreary days and drowsy days. When the bottom drops out, you'll find yourself grasping to the Rock. Most importantly, realize he saves you for the joy of being in a relationship with him. Without cultivating that relationship, something's missing.