How To Revive Your Spiritual Life

Life gets busy, and in the midst of struggling to remain afloat, we sometimes lose sight of God.

Communication is crucial to strengthening your relationship with God, just as it is with any other person in your life. Close your eyes and imagine Him standing right next to you, listening intently to what you're saying while you pray. Talk to Him as if you were a child talking to their parent. He is available to listen to all of your issues and inquiries and to offer advice. As much as you can, talk to Him. He's there for you not only when you're in trouble, but also when you just want to talk. Praying brings God and His children closer together.

Follow God's instructions. We are all flawed in some way. We wouldn't be here in the first place if we were. We develop and grow throughout our lives in order to be reunited with God at the end. The very least we can do for Him is try our hardest to follow His instructions. We should be kind and honest to others and try to attend as many church services as possible. We develop brighter and stronger in spirit, integrity, and mind as we obey God's will.

When we desire to enhance our faith and relationship with God, we can turn to the Scriptures for help. They make it possible for God to communicate with His children. The Bible also provides a magnificent description of spiritual events throughout history. In general, the stories in the Bible deal with situations that are similar to what we are confronting today. Learning about others' faith and patience in the face of adversity can inspire us to persevere in our own trials. Making time each day to study the scriptures can completely rejuvenate your tired soul.

Even if we talk to God frequently, we may not be listening to His responses and instructions. Don't immediately turn on the loud movie you were watching or retire into bed for the night once you've finished praying. Take a moment to pause, look, and listen for God's responses to your prayers. God may prompt you to be an answer to someone else's prayer if you aren't receiving an answer to your own. Make it a point to listen as much as you talk to Him. Communication is two-way.

Show your gratitude to your heavenly Father for all of your blessings. We are blessed, yet we are sometimes eager to ask for more before taking the time to appreciate God. Make a sincere thankfulness prayer. Gratitude for God's hand in your life will increase your appreciation for His ongoing presence and your mission on this planet. Being kind and displaying humility go hand in hand.

Keep God's presence in your life in mind. Even if it appears that He is far away at times, He is not. He is never far from your side. It's easy to become so engrossed in international events that we forget to look for God's presence in our lives. Try to be appreciative and conscious of how much He has blessed you and continues to bless you each day in these moments. Being humble and displaying genuine love and respect for God can resurrect even the most stale relationship with Him. Keep your relationship with your heavenly Father in mind. He is the most powerful buddy and protector you will ever have.

How do you become spiritually revived?

What does it mean to resurrect? Simply expressed, it means “to restore the functionality or validity of anything.” So, what about your spirit has become inactive or has lost its validity? Here's a simple test to see if you're ready: Do you find yourself ruminating on minor irritations in your daily life? Do you have a hard time recalling the last time you felt truly happy?

It's possible that your inner spirit requires a “waking,” and spring is an excellent time to assess your situation and take steps toward a more positive, anxiety-free outlook!

Here are three suggestions to help you rekindle your spirit, as well as “5 Inspiring Quotes” from our Cancer Fighters members to get you started.

1. Work on your core

Our entire being is conditioned to perform better — emotionally, mentally, and physically – when we focus on growing our spirit, the core of who we are. Some exercises to build your spiritual core may include the following, depending on your personal interests:

Any action that brings you closer to – rather than further away from – your thoughts and feelings might help you live more cheerfully in the present moment. These activities are referred to as “mindfulness” by some specialists. Mindfulness has been shown to increase overall mood, boost emotional, physical, and social well-being, and reduce anxiety, despair, and rage, according to several studies published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Percy McCray, Jr., Director of Faith-Based Programs at Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), warns what can happen if we don't take the time to build our spiritual health in his blog, Revive Yourself, Your Spirit, and Your Health.

“It's critical to take a breath and reflect. If we don't, we'll waste our time shopping, eating, drinking, and socializing in vain attempts to resurrect our spirits.” “Instead of re-energizing us, these pleasures might leave us feeling languid and aimless,” explains Rev. Percy. Every human, however, has a thirst, hunger, and yearning for true meaning, value, and purpose in life.

2. Re-establish (or re-establish) healthy relationships

Living with cancer provides many people a new perspective, one that prioritizes relationships over all else. Given the stress of a cancer diagnosis and treatment, it's not unexpected that problems in relationships, particularly between couples, occur frequently. “Fight the cancer, not each other,” says Michael Uhl, MA, MDiv, LMFT, a Mind-Body Therapist at CTCA in Zion, Illinois. He suggests the following ideas for constructing a house:

• Maintain open channels of communication and draw on previous expertise. Whenever a crisis occurs, make an effort to improve communication. Mutual understanding, not necessarily agreement, should be the goal. It may be painful to discuss feelings, yet it is unshared feelings that cause relationships to suffer.
• Make sure you have a strong support system in place. Bringing friends and other family members on board might provide a much-needed reprieve from caregiving obligations, even if your partner is ready to do it all. Both patients and caregivers require “down time” to manage the plethora of experiences and emotions that accompany cancer treatment, recovery, and survivorship.
• Speak with a therapist who has experience with cancer. Speaking with an unbiased therapist who has worked with other cancer patients can assist couples in expressing their emotions and confirming that the sentiments they are experiencing are normal. Discussing all of the emotions—fear, anger, and grief—either together or separately brings them to the surface and aids in the development of useful coping mechanisms.

Relationships with people you care about — a spouse, family, or close friends – and doing things you both enjoy are stimulating. They have a regenerating and restoring effect.

3. Control Your Thoughts

What do you think about when you're not working? It's only normal for people to inquire “When confronted with a catastrophic sickness, one would wonder, “Why me?” Focusing on this question, on the other hand, can leave you feeling stuck and frustrated. Focusing your thoughts on things that give you hope, on the other hand, might make you feel empowered and revitalize your spirit.

We invited members of our Cancer Fighters group, many of whom are cancer survivors, to provide encouraging remarks “It lifts their spirits.” The following are five of them “To motivate you, here are some “Inspiring Quotes”:

“According to Ardua.”

This Latin phrase translates to “The McIntyre family motto is “despite trials.” Richard A. McIntyre, Hanover Township, Pennsylvania, shared this.

“God is in control of the cancer; the cancer is not in control of me!” Viola Jones of Olathe, Kansas, shared this.

David Brown and Kathy Mosley, a patient and caregiver from Fairbanks, Alaska, believe one of Baha'u'llah's Baha'i prayers in the Baha'i Prayer book brings them much comfort and peace:

“O my God, memory of Thee is my remedy, and Thy name is my mending.

My aim is to be near Thee, and my companion is love for Thee.

Thy mercy to me is my salvation and healing in both this world and the next.

“Truly, you are the All-Abundant, the All-Knowing, and the All-Wise.”

Kimalea Conrad, a cancer survivor from Telluride, Colorado, says Bible verses inspire her; one of her favorites is the one below. “To me, this verse signifies that cancer has no ability to make me terrified unless I allow it,” Conrad explains.

“God did not give us a fearful spirit, but a spirit of strength, love, and self-control.” Revelation 2:7

Surviving cancer typically demands a heroic amount of physical, mental, and spiritual courage, as any survivor or caregiver knows. “Rev. Percy believes that connecting to a greater source of power can bring that balance, stability, and grounding. “Many of us overlook the most obvious sources of meaning, worth, and purpose: service, forgiveness, hope, peace, and faith. Connecting to these global forces of empowerment is, in many ways, the simplest method to rekindle our spirit.”

What causes spiritual emptiness?

Spiritual emptiness was a major problem in the educated European middle class, according to Austrian philosopher/educator Rudolf Steiner (1861–1925). He claimed that European culture had become “empty of spirit” and “ignorant of the demands, the conditions, that are required for the life of the spirit” in his 1919 lectures. Due to the “absence of will from the life of thought,” people experienced a “spiritual emptiness” and their thinking became distinguished by a “lazy passivity.” People would “let their thoughts to take hold of them” in modern Europe, according to Steiner, and these thoughts would increasingly be filled with abstraction and “pure, natural scientific thinking.” The educated middle classes began to think in a “devoid of spirit” manner, with their thoughts getting “dimmer and darker,” and their spirits becoming increasingly empty.

According to Louis Dupré, a Yale University philosophy professor, the “spiritual emptiness of our day is a sign of its religious poverty.” Many people, he claims, “never experience any emptiness: they are too busy to feel much absence of any kind”; they only realize their spiritual emptiness when “painful personal experiences — the death of a loved one, the breakdown of a marriage, the alienation of a child, the failure of a business” shock them into reassessing their sense of meaning.

Juvenile violence has been linked to spiritual emptiness. In his 1999 book How Juvenile Violence Begins: Spiritual Emptiness, John C. Thomas claims that kids in impoverished indigenous communities who are feeling meaningless may turn to fighting and aggressive crime to fill their void. In his 1999 book Lost Boys: Why Our Sons Turn Violent and How We Can Save Them, Cornell University professor James Garbarino believes that “neglect, humiliation, spiritual emptiness, alienation, anger, and access to guns are a few of the factors common to violent boys.” According to Garbarino, a professor of human development, violent males have “alienation from positive role models” and “a spiritual vacuum that fosters hopelessness.” The violent fantasy of American gun culture seduces these children, providing negative role models of tough, aggressive males who use power to obtain what they want. He thinks that giving boys a “feeling of purpose” and “spiritual anchors” that can “anchor boys in empathy and socially engaged moral thought” can benefit them.

Addiction is frequently linked to spiritual emptiness, particularly by Christian-influenced addiction organizations and counsellors. One of the effects of alcoholism, according to Bill Wilson, the founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, is that heavy drinkers experience a spiritual emptiness. In his book Addictive Thinking: Understanding Self-Deception, published in 1997, Abraham J. Twerski contends that when people are spiritually empty, they typically turn to addictive activities to fill the emptiness. Unlike an empty stomach, which is a distinct sensation, spiritual emptiness is difficult to pinpoint, leaving persons with a feeling of “vague disquiet.” While some people try to fill the void by excessively having sex, overeating, or abusing drugs or alcohol, these habits only provide brief relief. When a person in crisis because of spiritual emptiness is able to stop one addiction, such as obsessive sex, they frequently replace it with another, such as gambling or overeating.

How does God refresh my soul?

Every cry of the heart has a response from God. The Father will “send us another Helper (Comforter, Advocate, Intercessor – Counsellor, Strengthener, Standby),” as Jesus says in John 14:16 (AMP).

We're already dehydrated by the time we're thirsty. This holds true for our spiritual lives as well. But finding refreshment in Him is not difficult; all we have to do is position ourselves to receive it.

Our refreshment is directly proportional to the level of our repentance.

“So repent and turn to God, and your sins will be forgiven, and the Lord will send you times of refreshing.” 3:19 (NASB)

The narrative of Gideon is told in Judges 6:1–24. The Israelites were bad in the eyes of the Lord, according to verse 1, thus the Lord delivered them to the Midianites for seven years.

In verse 6, they say: “cried out to the Lord for assistance.”

God responded by sending them Gideon, a rescuer.

The Holy Spirit refreshes us like a refreshing shower, washing away the dirt that has accumulated on us as a result of living life without God. It could be anything from tension and stress to sadness and grief as a result of difficult circumstances.

To wipe things away, we must acknowledge God and repent before Him, just as the Israelites did.

Repentance entails making a 180-degree reversal and beginning to live life God's way rather than our own.

Our refreshment is greater than our reality.

When the angel of the Lord appears to Gideon in verses 11-14, his initial instinct is to protest and inform him that God has abandoned the Israelites. Gideon, on the other hand, presses the Lord's angel to persuade him that he is the Lord. In verses 14-24, we see how the Lord reveals His strength, instilling faith in Gideon that he and his people have a future. Gideon was able to substitute his image of abandonment for the Lord's promise of future blessing.

(ESV) Isaiah 44:3 God offers nutrition and refreshment by pouring forth His Spirit on us. Our hungry and thirsty hearts can be filled by the Holy Spirit. It's as though water is being poured over a thirsty land when our souls are revived. “The Lord is my shepherd,” says Psalm 23. He takes me to verdant pastures, walks me beside still waters, and refreshes my spirit.”

Our refreshment is to go out to bless others.

Peace and hope are brought by the Holy Spirit. We must, however, spread that serenity and blessing to others.

A “generous person will thrive,” according to Proverbs 11:25, and “whoever refreshes others will be rejuvenated.” It's another example of the Biblical sowing and reaping idea. We receive a blessing of refreshment when we replenish others.

• Discuss a time when the Holy Spirit blessed you by filling you up after answering to a cry from your heart.
• Use this opportunity to pray with anyone in the group who is spiritually parched and in need of the Holy Spirit's refreshment.

How do you refresh your soul?

You have a deadline to meet, but you're feeling unproductive and stressed? You can't seem to concentrate and nothing goes as planned? You appear to be in need of a fast re-energize. You can always take 15 minutes to refuel and rejuvenate yourself, even if you are too busy.

To feel good and operate with a lot of energy, it's critical to renew your soul and intellect. Here are 11 techniques to cleanse your soul and mind in just 15 minutes that you may do every day!

Keep yourself hydrated by drinking one glass of water

If you drink a glass of water first thing in the morning, your brain and body will be jolted out of their slumber. When you're stressed, drinking one glass of water can help you feel better and stay focused. It's critical to stay hydrated because dehydration can impair brain function.

Are you startled by this information? Most Americans, according to studies, are chronically dehydrated. Half of your body weight in ounces every day, according to scientists. A 120-pound woman, for example, should drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water. Although juice, tea, and coffee are more flavorful than water, they cannot substitute for it. If the flavor isn't to your liking, add some mint leaves or lemon slices.

How do you fill an empty heart?

As a result, curing emotional emptiness frequently entails two fundamental phases, based on Christ Jesus' formulation of the two “great commandments” in Matthew 22:37-39.

First, the hymn verse emphasizes the importance of turning to God since only He can fill the vacuum. How is it possible for God to achieve anything like this? God's essence is that of a “never-ending spring,” giving immeasurably of Himself to His children and expressing Himself through them, according to the hymn's next line. The Bible emphasizes the concept of God as a fountain in several places, including a line in Psalm 36: “For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light” (verse 9). The second step must be taken when the readiness to acknowledge God has been demonstrated. Our personal emptiness can only be filled by unconditionally loving, giving, expressing, and helping others. Only by loving can the heart live, as the hymn states.

I've had instances in my life when I've needed to fill emotional voids. I found that the emptiness I was feeling had no material solution, only a spiritual one.

How do I overcome spiritual emptiness?

And he told them a tale about how they should always pray and never give up. (18:1) (Luke 18:1)

We can see from the foregoing verse that persistent prayer is both possible and expected.

Fasting Helps

Fasting: Fasting can be used to support your tarrying in his presence. Fasting humbles us and sharpens our spirit man, which is why we should fast.

I covered the advantages of fasting in part 2 of my piece on prayer keys, so I won't go over it again here.

Analyse How You Got to Current State of Spiritual Emptiness

Perform a root cause study and assess how you arrived at your current spiritual emptiness.

What were some of the things you did or didn't do? You will be able to avoid those things in the future if you take an honest look inward.

For instance, few years ago, I was engrossed in a daily television series. Before I knew it, I was so engrossed in watching the series that I had forgotten about my time with God.

How do you know if you are praying in the Spirit?

For this is God's will, that you may silence the ignorance of foolish men by doing good (living in love) — 1 Peter 2:15.

God's will is for you to be sanctified in this way (purification from sin, so capacity for love increases)… 4:3 — 1 Thessalonians

But you, friends, recall what the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ said before: how they warned you that there would be mockers in the last days who would act according to their own wicked desires. These are sensual people who generate divisions because they lack the Holy Spirit. But you, beloved, keep yourselves in the love of God, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life (beloved, pray in a way that helps you avoid ungodly lusts and helps you remain in the love of God so you can love others and inherit eternal life), looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life — Jude 1:18–21.

The whole of the evidence from Christian Scriptures reveals that whether we are praying in the Holy Spirit is determined by the character with which we pray and the extent to which our desires and requests are not lustful, but rather aimed at increasing our capacity to love others. Given that none of us is flawless in character, or possibly even in the purity of our aspirations and petitions, we will always need the Holy Spirit's intercession in the presence of our heavenly Father, the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If you want to pray in the Holy Spirit, you want to build Jesus Christ's love character, and you want to shape your prayers around desires that aren't sexual, but rather desires that grow your capacity for love. This means that desires for professions, wives, children, material goods, and so on are all based on love rather than lust.