Plateau-ing (Part 1)

Lately, I have been striving after my relationship with God.

Not saying that I am not constantly striving after God, but sometimes we hit what I call "plateau" areas of our faith. I am sure you know exactly what I am talking about. Its that time of your faith where you want more and more and more yet you are staying at the same level with God, as if you are on a plain and there is no rise in sight.

I am definitely in one of these areas right now. I am not falling away from God, but I am just at a standstill, as if I am unable to move. As I have been squeaking out prayers for growth and a revolutionary step toward my Lord, I am humbled by the fact that I have that revolutionary step in my possession. I have it in my pocket, I have three on my bookshelf, and I have one on my nightstand. Can you guess what one of the best gifts that God has given to us is? That's right! The BIBLE.

Some find it hard to believe that God really is present on the actual pages and actual ink that makes up the Bible. But I can personally testify that He is. He of course is with us at all times and carries us through our daily lives, but He is ready to speak in the pages of that ancient book.

 It bothers me when people say that "God won't answer my prayers." Because often when I ask if they are reading their Bibles, they say no. I feel like this generation is geared toward mysticism and desire an encounter with the Holy Spirit in the forms of visions, moments of awe, etc. There is nothing wrong with that, but I do think it needs to be rooted in the very thing that God consistently speaks to us through. I absolutely believe in the power of the Spirit to work in ways outside of the Bible, but I know that we are beckoned to hear God in the very pages that He wrote.

I have been struggling lately with reading the Bible consistently and whole-heartedly, as if it is a check list assignment that I do before I go to sleep. Here are a few things that I found that help me:

1. Read the Bible with your heart, and not just with your mind.
2. Try reading in different settings, read in the morning outside, and read by candlelight at night, its amazing what changing the setting can do for your reading.
3. Read the same chapter everyday for a week. Its amazing what deep studying and meditation can do when you are searching God's word. Because most of the time life changing verses don't just slap you in the face.
4. Switch up the translation, it may have you more aware to the subtleties of a verse.
5. Get into a quiet, non-distracting environment. Turn off your phone by faith. How can we expect to hear from God when the phone is ringing and the TV is blasting in our ear?

The plateau isn't a fun place to be. But God is more than ready to consume you once again. James 4:8: "Draw near to God and He will draw near to you."