#18 - Drifting and Anchoring in the Waters of Faith

0:04 I grew up watching Gilligan's Island, and I think of the theme song a few times a year, and it gets stuck in my head. And there's a line in the song that says, the weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the minnow would be lost. Beyond being catchy, this line contains truth. for our lives and you're probably singing it now and I don't blame you. Life's challenges or storms can definitely throw us off course from where we expected we were going and it takes courage sometimes to just survive and not get lost in the storm. Today I want to talk about something a bit less dramatic than the storms of life but equally dangerous. drifting away from God without even realizing it. Picture this.

1:09 Have you ever been on a boat or a raft or even a kayak, because I love kayaking, and you look up and suddenly you realize how far you've drifted from the shore. You didn't mean to. You weren't trying to get lost or lose your bearings. But the combination of the waves, the wind, and even just sitting still too long all work together to slowly move you away from where you started. That really is what spiritual drift feels like. You look up one day and realize prayer feels distant. The Bible isn't in your clear view anymore and God seems far off. We realize that we aren't even thinking about how we can respond to God in faith because we're too busy with life itself.

2:09 But it's not God who's moved, we have. And that's what we're talking about today. And I want to remind you that our spiritual lives are not separate from our mental, emotional, or physical health. When we drift spiritually, everything else can feel off. Welcome back to Mind of Faith Matters. I'm the host, Dr. Cory Potter, and today's episode is about how to recognize that drift in our spiritual lives, how to do a self -check, how to encourage others in their faith journey, and how to anchor yourself, again, in truth and grace. And if you've been listening to the podcast, first, thank you.

2:56 But second, I want to let you know that this builds On our previous conversations about why it's difficult to be still before God in episode 7, and the practice of being still before God in episode 8, and those episodes explored what it meant to practice this stillness in the presence of God. And today we're asking, what happens when we stop even doing that? So the first question, how do we know we're drifting spiritually? And it is challenging because you might not recognize it right away. You might feel off just in general.

3:39 And a lot of things in our lives can make us feel off. Our relationships, our jobs, our stress, our finances. So it gets lost sometimes. But when you're drifting spiritually, maybe you've pulled away from those godly influences in your life. Like the people in your church or your group maybe you're too tired to pray or you're just not interested in it or maybe you feel shame and you're not even sure why you just have this sense of guilt and shame you know you can ask yourself some questions and we're going to talk about them later but when we live with that spiritual disconnection for too long our bodies start to carry it It's like our bodies feel restless and uneasy. And like I say, it can be the grind of life, but other times it's the absence of peace that only comes from being close to Jesus. And this inner spiritual weariness or uneasiness in our spirit can show up as a loss of joy, a lack of motivation. Maybe it's even a sense of disconnection from yourself or others. I've seen it where it becomes distrust in the intentions of those around us or like an emotional distance that we go through and even anger for some. People can get angry in response to things that happen to them quicker but maybe it's just this anger

5:12 about their situation and in some cases it really can be a blaming of God. So what does the Bible say about this drifting away? Hebrews chapter 2 verse 1 gives us a strong warning It says we must pay the most careful attention Therefore to what we have heard so that we do not drift away And I think about this in my kayaking life because I do love to kayak and I think of this warning About drifting away in our spiritual lives But you really do have to be careful and pay attention to where you're at on a lake or a body of water because there are bigger vessels, bigger boats out there that can steam you over or you can get caught up in the shoreline bushes or on rocks. I was so excited one day that we were going to get to go in this lake and kayak up the river and this series of channels and it was miles of kayaking but there was a barrier there because of this deep waterfall so The lake was way higher than the actual river and I couldn't go the whole distance. But the point of it is you have to pay the most careful attention to where you're at or things can happen. And drifting happens on a body of water just like it does spiritually. It happens quietly and subtly, often by not taking action. You don't have to rebel to drift. You just have to stop paying attention.

6:45 Pastor Jim Soul once said, All you have to do to become a lukewarm, worldly, spiritually indifferent Christian is nothing. That hits hard because it's true. Spiritual drift often begins with neglect, not defiance. But we have to understand we have a very real spiritual enemy. And the devil isn't always trying to shock us and rock us. Sometimes he's content to distract us. to lull us into spiritual sleep. Scripture says he's crafty and spiritual inactivity is one of his most effective tools. Satan is pleased when we stop making the effort to draw near to God.

7:32 2 Corinthians chapter 2 verses 9 through 11 is where Paul explains that he's just going to conduct himself in the sight of Jesus and do the things that he knows that Jesus wants him to do. such as forgiving each other. He gives the reason so Satan might not outwit us. Paul writes it like this, For we are not unaware of his schemes.

8:18 I know that scripturally, there are many warnings about staying on the right path and allowing God to help us and illuminate the path so that we don't get off track on our journey. But having this enemy against us can make some feel hopeless. Like, why bother? Well, I'm going to tell you, there's a reason why we should bother. We're not left without hope. Hebrews chapter 6 verse 19 reminds us that we have this hope it's God's promises and his unchanging nature as an anchor for the soul. It's firm and secure. It means we have Jesus as the anchor we can return to to stop drifting because just like in the waters when I'm kayaking if I want to stay still and not take any action I'm going to drift. But the action that I need to take is to anchor myself where I'm at in order to not drift. And that's Jesus! In the Message Bible, Hebrews 6 verses 19 through 20 is described like this, reaching past all appearances right to the very presence of God where Jesus running on ahead of us has taken up his permanent post as high priest for

9:50 us. I love this imagery here. There's a weight we carry when we're not walking closely with God, but we have the answer. But I don't mean there's a weight we carry that's a religious check -the -box kind of way. I mean, the kind of disconnect where the prayer feels distant, the Bible feels dry, and you're not sure if God is even interested in what you're going through. You know, sometimes to talk about mental health, it feels the same and it gives us this anxiety, this irritability, and even depression can have spiritual roots. I'm not saying that all of it does. But certainly, we need to do this spiritual check when we're feeling certain kind of ways.

10:39 As Christians, David describes what happens to him when he had unconfessed sin in Psalm 32. And I'm not reading it, but I'm saying that David mentions things like when I kept silent about his sin, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. And then he says his strength was sapped as if in the heat of summer. He was experiencing physical symptoms based on a spiritual problem of sin and the guilt that he had from that sin. Isaiah chapter 59 verse 2 tells us that your iniquities have separated you from God. But the good news is scripture doesn't stop there. The gospel always calls us back. So I want to talk about what we can do to help each other and really ourselves. I want to talk about this in light of spirituality and I'm going to talk about what the Bible says, but I want to get practical and walk us through a spiritual check -in. And I've gathered up some questions for men, for women, whether you're a Christian who feels solid or one who knows you've drifted. Here are some honest questions to use and they were designed to be used in a circle of trusted believers. I mean, you could use these as personal reflective questions as well. You might have to reword it, but let's start with men. The questions come directly from

12:12 the Fight Club, which is an accountability framework that Passion City Church out of Atlanta, Georgia put in place. And in their Fight Clubs, which are just small groups of three to five men that get together and talk on a regular basis, the first question is, have you intentionally pursued Your relationship with God since we last met because if you haven't pursued a relationship with God as a believer It typically means that you've been pursuing something else With far less value to your spiritual life So that's a powerful first question next one Have you made it a priority to love and lead your family well since we last met? How about this have you looked at anything or been involved with anyone in a way that would compromise your purity since we last met? Next, have you been honorable and lived with a sense of mission, leveraging your life for others since we last met? To me that means, are you doing the things that God asked you to do and living sacrificially accountability matters in the sense that it's hard to ask yourself that question because either you've really convinced

13:42 yourself that you have been honest and you're not doing anything wrong or you're not aware or you are aware and you're already feeling guilty so with other men it becomes oh wow I'm bringing this to the light I'm bringing this out of the darkness into the light so we can discuss it and then these questions really are not about performance they really about being honest accountability to others is wise and can bring you back to your anchor as I've said Jesus when you've drifted and notice that these questions work best when it's done on a regular basis you know consistently so it says since we've last met in some of the questions which means you are regularly meeting with these people. So now let's talk about for women. Let's go through some reflective questions from a framework that it's used by women in the Community of Faith Church. I found this online, by the way. First question, how has your personal time with God been this week? Have you encountered temptations or sin struggles? Is there anyone you need to reconcile with or forgive? How can your sisters pray for you this week? Have you spoken truth to yourself or have fear, shame, or comparison been louder? Women, I want to say

15:16 just like men, your worth isn't defined by what you do or how well you hold it all together. These questions help you to be real with God and with others, staying anchored to your hope in Jesus. And these questions aren't really gender specific. They were just from resources that worded them for men and women. So you could do the comparison thing and you could ask all the questions. And how do you get them? You could go to the companion resource guide for episode 18 on my website for the podcast mindandfaithmatters .com and just simply Save it or print them out? Here's some bonus questions. What lie have you believed about yourself or about God this week?

16:02 It's very similar to have you spoken truth to yourself. Next, are you walking in freedom or are you trying to earn what's already yours in Christ? I'm gonna say it like this. Are you walking in freedom? Or are you walking in sin? Are you shutting God out or are you letting Him in? That's the mindset that I have. Is there anyone who truly knows how you're doing spiritually, emotionally, and relationally? You could take the cop -out answer and say, well, yeah, God knows. But I'm talking about accountability. And really, have you been sharing? We were never meant to follow Jesus alone. And these questions help us really with truth and then how to live in freedom that this truth brings. You know, that's how it works.

16:58 So what should you do when you realize you've drifted due to sin? And I want to challenge you here, and I know it's going to sound somewhat like a sermon, but failing to do something that you can and ought to do is considered sin. A lot of times it's referred to as the sin of omission. Like not praying Not worshiping not studying scripture not helping others Not being honest. There's so many Things it's not I've told a lie it's I've Withheld some truth. I didn't do it. I didn't say the truth James 417 in the New International Version says it clearly if anyone then knows the good they ought to do and Doesn't do it It is sin for them. So if any of these questions and reflection hits home, or even close to home, don't run from it. It might just be the Holy Spirit drawing you in. And the next thing you need to do is confess. Because 1 John chapter 1 verse 9 says, Confession leads to cleansing, not shame, not punishment. Cleansing. And James 4 .8 says, draw near to God and he will draw

18:28 near to you. You know, he's not playing hide and seek with you. He's already near. You just have to turn toward him again. Get your vessel, whatever it is, your spiritual vessel, out of that drift and back to him. And practically speaking, Don't keep this to yourself. Find someone you can trust, a friend, a mentor, a small group, and do for them what we've talked about doing for yourself. Ask how they're really doing. Use some of these check -in questions and start a regular schedule of mutual encouragement and accountability. Don't isolate. I'm not trying to simply make sure my listeners are self -aware.

19:11 I want you and I want us to keep building one another up. in Christ and anchoring ourselves to Him. Let me leave you with this encouragement. If your soul feels off, it may be because you've drifted slowly, quietly, over time. But spiritual drift doesn't have to lead us to spiritual defeat. You can come back. You can reconnect. These spiritual check -ins aren't meant to guilt trip you. They're meant to ground you. They help us name what's going on beneath the surface so we can bring it into the light, as I've said. So we can walk in freedom. You don't have to fix yourself. You just have to come home. And if you need help, don't wait. Reach out. Confess. Reconnect. Jesus isn't surprised by your struggle. He's just waiting to meet you in it. I want to thank you for joining me today. And I want you to remember that we recently launched a small merchandise line on our website to help support the podcast. And for the entire month of July, 100 % of proceeds from every purchase of these really cool mugs, hats, shirts, will go straight to Heads Up Guys org. Heads Up Guys really is a place dedicated to helping men fight depression and prioritize their mental wellness. And that's been my focus for July. I didn't want to leave the women out so I had to speak this week to everyone. So I

20:44 want you to visit the store mindandfaithmatters .com forward slash store and check it out. Make a purchase to support a worthy cause. I want to thank you for all those who've already purchased shirts and mugs. It's much appreciated and I'm excited to be able to donate something to this organization. I'll see you next time on Mind and Faith Matters. And until then, I want you to think about how you can stop drifting and get back to that anchor in Jesus. God bless and have a great week.