Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Spiritual Drift

I am growing increasingly concerned about the spiritual drift I am seeing in men and women of faith. This drift is the subtle yet deadly slide away from what I will refer to as being spiritual dead-center. It's a cooling of our passion for Christ. It's the increasing ease with which we justify sin. It's the lack of compassion for those who do not yet know Christ.

I call it spiritual drift because it happens slowly, almost imperceptibly. I liken it to the times I've been swimming in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Coronado Island. The waves slowly pull you out to sea, especially when there is a rip tide. You don't notice it at first, but before you know it, you are farther from shore than you intended. And the danger with a rip tide is that even a strong swimmer has difficulty breaking free of its grasp.

How do we avoid spiritual drift?
1. Realize that it exists. Don't pretend you can't be drawn away from your spiritual center.
2. Reaffirm your commitment to Christ. Is He truly the Leader of your life?
3. Replenish yourself daily. Don't neglect the spiritual disciplines of Bible reading, prayer, fasting, solitude, giving, meditation, etc.
4. Remain accountable. There is no substitute for accountability. Have someone who is ahead of spiritually to look up to. Have someone you are mentoring to look up to you. Stay in relationship.
5. Repent. The moment you sense you have sinned, confess it for what it is and seek forgiveness.

These are just a few ideas. What do you do to avoid spiritual drift?

3 comments:

  1. Good warning and thank you for having the courage to post it. It is so easy to put off reading until later. To tell someone "I'll add you to my prayer list" then don't do it. It takes 21 days to establish a habit. Today will be day 1 in one direction or the other depending on how you use it.

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  2. Well said. Accountability is huge! An accountability partner can be there for advice and prayer and can be a lot of help when you are confused or discouraged.

    The other big thing I keep going back to is reminding myself of the gospel. The more I learn about who Christ is and what He has done for me, the more I desire to live for Him.

    Mind if I repost this on my blog with a link back to here for comments?

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  3. Well said by both Julie and Ben. Julie, every day is a "day 1" experience! Good note. Ben, you are correct in emphasizing the gospel. More of Christ each day equals greater desire to live for Him. Feel free to post this on your blog, Ben. The more feedback the better!

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