Are You Prepared For Spiritual Crisis?

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Are you ready for a spiritual crisis?

Prepping For Crisis

After the great t.p. shortages of 2020, I think more people are thinking about purchasing essentials a little bit in advance.

Growing up in a rural farming area, prepping was kind of just a natural part of life. When our electricity would go out during a storm, it also meant our well pumps would go down so no plumbing and no water. Nothing. And we had cattle herds to water daily in spite of the wells being down.

Honestly, as a kid growing up that way, I had no idea that most people didn’t keep generators and large amounts of firewood, t.p., food and water on hand for weeks when the power was out. It was a part of life. Just something we did and moved on with our lives-thankful for when the electricity finally was reconnected!

Only after I moved out on my own and into a town did I realize that not everyone lived that way! Not everyone had plumbing, water, and electricity backup plans.

Even though I live less prepared than my parents had to, I still find myself “prepping” and stocking up on deals when I see sales and such. It paid off during the t.p. shortages. I had stocked up on a sale just a few months prior and didn’t have much concern for running out for at least 4-5 months. Whew.

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When Spiritual Crisis Comes Our Way

Here’s the thing. We prepare for things all the time. Before a trip, we prepare by checking oil and tires and windshield wiper fluid. (Okay, my husband checks…I just remind him.)

Before we have a new baby, we purchase diapers, wash cute baby clothes, pack a bag to take to the hospital, and sometimes even take birthing classes.

Before we leave for the store, we prepare a list (and hopefully remember it) so we can actually get what we originally went to the store to buy.

 

Preparing is a part of life.

Crisis is so hard. We never can fully prepare for one. Circumstances arise that are so out of what we expected that our preparations for them are lacking.

Personally, the crisis of losing dear family friends because their 12-year-old son murdered them was one of those circumstances. Ten years has gone by and I can still say that nothing fully would have prepared me for that phone call. It was a crisis that no amount of water, no correctly packed bag, and no amount of checking my oil levels would help.

That was the day I learned the importance of preparing for a spiritual crisis. That event would shake my faith in God and my entire view of the world to the core. It also made me realize that every Christian must prepare for spiritual crisis. It really is only a matter of time before we will face a hardship that will unsettle us to the very core of our being.

Will It Matter If You Prepare For A Spiritual Crisis?

Just like people can prepare for a hurricane, there is no guarantee that their preparations will protect them. It certainly doesn’t hurt but it provides no air-tight assurance that the hurricane will pass them without notice or trouble. Sometimes we think preparing means that we won’t even notice the crisis and that is just not the case!

Preparing for a spiritual crisis is the same. We can prepare knowing that at some point in our life, something will come our way that will give us a spiritual crisis moment. Without being prepared, we can be sure that it will throw us and our faith a crushing blow.

However, just because we prepare doesn’t mean that we will not even notice the crisis. It will still be a crisis. Just one that we are more equipped to handle. We will have the tools on hand to do what we must to take the crisis moment by moment.

 

Practical Steps To Take That Will Prepare You For A Spiritual Crisis

So how do we prepare for the unexpected hardships of life spiritually? It is all well and good to want to prepare our souls for those times of crisis but without practical steps our desires will not do us any good. We need to put practical action plans into place during the quiet times for our soul. Then, when the hardships of life side swipe us, we will be more equipped to handle the crushing blow.

When preparing your soul for a spiritual crisis, these first two are the must. Start with these two spiritual disciplines if you have not already. If you are already established in these two, move on further down the list!

 

Dig Deep Into The Bible

First, become a faithful student of God’s Word. Trees need deep roots to withstand windstorms. We need to be rooted in God’s Word before the winds of crisis blow over our souls.

Truth is often blurred or forgotten in the moment of crisis. Your brain struggles to remember basic information yet alone Biblical truth. The more you feed your mind on God’s Word before the crisis, the more chance you will have of it coming back to you automatically when you need it to during distressful times.

Daily read Scripture. Listen to an audio Bible while you do mundane chores. Study the Bible with a group of close friends. Do whatever you can to dig deeply into God’s Word. Over time you will be amazed at how all those little moments of study add up and help your mind to recall Biblical truth that will sustain you during hard seasons of life.

 

Related Posts: Tips To Help You Focus On Your Bible Reading, Poor Mindsets That Will Mess With Your Bible Study

 

 

Speak To God Often

Second, become a prayer warrior.

Talking with God is something that I grow easily distracted from during a busy day. Learning to focus my brain onto a conversation is hard even when I am talking to a human in physical form before me. Kids interrupt. To-do items pop into my mind. I read a text from my husband. Before I know it, my mind is a million miles from what I had intended to do-talk with God!

Again, this is a habit to cultivate over time. You won’t wake up one day and just naturally be a prayer warrior. Trust me, it is an area that I struggle with deeply so I totally get that you can find this a hard area too!

Some practical steps can include setting a timer for each day so you make it a scheduled event rather than a hopeful idea. Also, consider keeping a prayer journal. Sometimes writing prayers or seeing our prayer requests in writing in front of us helps our minds to focus better.

Develop the habit of quiet. Pick 5-10 minutes a day to step away from everything and sit in the quiet to hear God whisper to your soul. Speak to Him in the quiet and take time to just rest. Solitude like this is what our souls need, especially in time of crisis. However, if we are not used to that discipline of being quiet, I can guarantee we will not experience quiet moments with God during crisis times.

 

Related Article: Prayers To Pray In Every Room Of Your House

 

 

Develop A Network Of Support

God calls Christians to live in community. Yes, that can mean going to church. However, more importantly, it means living life in closer relationship with other believers.

As an introvert, I find myself shutting off others when I am in crisis mode. At times, dealing with other humans, seems like too much effort-even when they are Christians! However, once I take that step to open up and seek support and relationship, I often find that God uses those moments to help encourage both of us.

Don’t panic, you don’t have to know a ton of believers and be the social butterfly of your church. You do want to set aside time to develop a few close friendships with other Christians. Then when spiritual crisis occurs, you will have the groundwork in place to know better how to support each other. You will already know each other weaknesses and strengths. Your understanding of each other will be far greater and you will be able to show God’s love in a meaningful practical way.

Find a few Christian friends. Text them frequently to stay in touch. Get together regularly for fun activities, normal activities outside of church, as well as for times of prayer or Bible study together. Soak in the beauty of growing closer to some of your Christian family. They will be the ones that you want by your side when spiritual crisis hits.

 

Trust God Not Your Feelings

Feelings will tend to run all over the place when you are in the midst of spiritual crisis. Some days you might feel God’s presence. Often you won’t.

Practice the art of letting truth lead your actions rather than your feelings.

For example, when you are having one of those annoying bad days where the dishwasher breaks, the dog barks too much, and your kids all decide to whine incessantly, practice letting truth lead your actions. Rather than giving into the temptation to whine on Facebook about the dishwasher, take a few minutes to compose yourself, read a Bible verse, say a prayer, and then calmly search for the necessary information about your dishwasher. Practice speaking slowly and quietly to your kids and taking time to deal with each one individually rather than giving them a group talking to in your angry mom voice. (Yeah, this one is the hardest for me!)

Our feelings can lead our actions if we let them. But God does not call us to be slaves to our emotions and feelings. This doesn’t mean that we deny that we have any feelings. It does mean practicing self-control over those emotions. Every day, take time to submit your emotions and feelings before God. Ask that He help you live a life based on of truth-based decisions and selfless actions. Reject the idea that you can’t help your actions when you feel a certain way.

When crisis hits, being able to control your emotions to some degree will prove to be extremely helpful. Again, it is not living in denial of emotions and feelings, it is honoring God and living with His truth in mind in spite of whatever emotions we may be experiencing.

 

Commit The Bible To Memory

Our minds dwell on so many things. For instance, at any given moment in my day, my mind might be drifting through what to make for supper, how I want the character in my favorite sit com to get together with that special someone, when should I start potty training my third kid, and why my husband leaves so many water glasses randomly around our house. All that mental buzz and clutter can get overwhelming. Honestly, my brain just needs a break from the disjointed jumping around between thoughts.

My mind and my soul need to focus on God’s truth. How is that possible?

By memorizing Bible passages.

Yeah, it is tough to memorize stuff when our brains are not used to that rigorous action anymore. (My kids can memorize whole passages in days when they want-it takes me weeks!) When I was in the peak of my panic attacks and anxiety issues in college, I found out how beneficial memorizing Scripture was to changing my brain’s ability to dwell on what is good and true.

To start this, try writing out one verse you want to learn. Place it on cards where you will see it. Take a picture of it and make it your phone screen saver. Stick a copy on your bathroom mirror. Use a refrigerator magnet to keep one handy in the kitchen. Read it out loud once in the morning. Recite it under your breath while you pour cereal for your kids. Say it to yourself when you turn your phone on throughout the day. Finally, think about the verse and what God is saying in the verse as you are falling asleep.

Before you know it, you will be recalling the verse frequently and without need for your memory verse card.

These Scriptures will stay with you and support you through many different situations. Most importantly, knowing them will most definitely support you mentally and spiritually during a spiritual crisis.

 

 

Study Theology And Apologetics

Once you have a solid habit set in place for Bible study, I would recommend that you dive into a little deeper water. Study the “hard” topics of Christianity. Find some interesting books and listen to Christian teachers speak on Christian apologetics and theology.

Don’t do this so you can brag or be prideful of the size of book you just slogged through. Do study these topics to help you grow in Christian knowledge and wisdom.

When crisis hits, we tend to ask why God allows bad things to happen to Christians, wonder how we can trust the promises from the Bible, and speculate on the existence of God and heaven. These are all the kind of questions that you can study before a crisis hits.

When we are in crisis mode, our brains are not ready for this kind of study. But our souls are still seeking those answers. Look for answers to those questions before the hard times come. It will help you immensely as you wade through the questions from a much more personal, pain-filled viewpoint in the future.

The bonus side of this one is it will help you talk to unbelievers and struggling believers who are facing their own spiritual crisis moments.

 

Related Article: 6 Books That Will Train You How To Defend Your Faith

 

 

Practice Giving Grace To Those Who Are Hurting

Finally, this last one is the hardest for me. When people are hurting, they tend to act in ways that are hard for us outside of the crisis to understand. When God places a hurting person in your path, seek to help them and love them well. Give them grace and kindness and space and care and prayer and food. Whatever you can do that God shows you to do.

As you see people in their hours of need and crisis, you will gain a heart of compassion and a vision for others. When your own crisis hits, you will tend to want to focus only on yourself and your own needs. One way many people can pull through a crisis is by learning to focus on others before themselves. When we live with God and others first in our vision, we can be better prepared to stay other-focused even in our darkest hours.

Also, a side benefit of being there for others means that someday, when you are in the midst of your own sorrows, God might even use other Christians to walk with you through your crisis. Be thankful for those who are faithful to God’s call to be beside you at that time!

 

Final Thoughts

Spiritual crisis will come our way eventually. We live in a sinful, fallen, broken world. Heartaches and hardships will happen. It is best that we as Christians prepare ourselves for those times well in advance.

Just remember that no amount of preparation will stop the crisis from happening. These preparations are just a practical way that God can work in our lives to sustain us through the unforeseen events.

May we all pray that we stay faithful to God in the face of whatever hardships come our way in life.

Your Turn

Which of these practical steps do you think God might want you to do?

How have you seen God work to prepare you for future situations?

Have you ever faced a spiritual crisis? What had God used to help prepare you for that time?

 

Leave a comment below to share which of these action steps you want to take first as you prepare your soul for a spiritual crisis.

 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

 

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