Numbness

[Ora_et_Labora_1]

A few weeks ago I wrote about how I was being haunted by thoughts about my prayer-life being a sham, that perhaps I was delusional, etc. Then about a week or two after that, even though it seemed that I was receiving a lot of consolations in prayer, I reached an anti-climax. Suddenly things went silent. All the sweetness suddenly dried up. The awareness of God’s presence seems to have diminished. The “nudges” I would recieve in prayer - gone. I desire to pray and to seek after God, but when I do start praying, it just feels so burdensome. It’s almost as though I were numb. when sometimes the heart seems to want to enflame with godly things, it feels as though it is snuffed out, as though someone places a cover on it so as to not let it get the air it needs to be kindled. I get this vague feeling sometimes of being alone, that perhaps God is busy elsewhere (I know He isn’t; but that’s how it feels) and has decided to leave me alone. My heart really longs for God yet prayer has become somewhat burdensome, and a reason for some sadness. I still try to pray though.

Does anyone know what the cause of this might be? Has anyone ever gone through something similar?

 

[Whitacre_Girl]

I don’t know what causes these. From what I have heard everyone goes through this from time to time. I also am going through a “dry season.”

 

[janman55]

My suggestion would be to consider praying a little less and serving a little more. Volunteer somewhere, help someone in need. You might feel the presence of God through others, which will in turn reinvigorate your prayer life

 

[Trishie]

You were blessed to have had such a sense of God’s presence for so long.
That comes under the heading of spiritual consolation.
One of the saints who wrote of such things was St Teresa of Avila/Jesus.
The sense of God’s absence can mean that God is asking you to move to the next depth of prayer and spiritual growth. It’s quite common if you have a period of sweetness for it to be replaced by what you speak of.

God is infinitely great, and we are required to have faith, and that faith will be challenged, not only when we have trials, but also when it no longer is easy to pray…or otherwise our faith doesn’t ever grow from being something pleasing to us and something really deep.

Your desire for God is the prayer if there is nothing else. That is the gift right now. And the desire to pray even if it is meaningless is the gift. So God is asking you, do you care authentically enough that you will pray even now that it is burdensome?

The sweetness is more a gift to us than a gift of ourselves to God.

 

[Trishie]

Remember that Jesus didn’t say that prayer would bring consolation or sweetness, but He recommended again and again for us to pray. If you have a close look at the prayer He taught the disciples, you will see the components of prayer that He advised, acknowledgement of God and who God is, praise, intersession, and forgiveness to cover it roughly.
Remember that above all Jesus stressed acts of practical kindness.
He crowned His commend to love others as ourselves when He described the Last Judgement where He, the king and judge, would separate those who were going to heaven from those who were not. He didn’t speak of anything as His criteria other than practical acts of kindness to others.

I don’t know you or your life or circumstances, but acts of practical kindness are a very necessary ingredient of life. That’s the bottom line of spiritual life according to Jesus, and He went so far as to say that practical kindness to anyone is practical kindness to Him. But He did Himself pray to the Father. Sometimes He spent many hours in prayer. He advised both private and communal prayer. And it’s important always to speak very authentically to God.

 

[Trishie]

“If you have hope this will make you cheerful. Do not give up if trials come; and keep on praying.” [Romans 12:12]
“We are quite confident that if we ask Him for anything, and it is in accordance with His will, He will hear us; and knowing that whatever we ask, He hears us, we know that we have already been granted what we asked of Him.” [John 5:14-15]
“If any one of you is in trouble, he should pray; if anyone is feeling happy, he should sing a psalm.” [James 5:13]
“Pray constantly; and for all things give thanks to God.” [Thessalonians 4:18]
“Grant, Lord, the prayer of Your servants…so that all the earth’s inhabitants may acknowledge that You are the Lord, the everlasting God.” [Ecclesiasticus 36:16-17]

Jesus promises, “Ask and it will be given to you; search, and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For the one who asks always receives; the one who searches, always finds; the one who knocks will always have the door opened to him. Is there a man among you who would hand his son a stone when he asked for bread? Or hand him a snake when he asks for a fish? … How much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask Him!” [Matthew 7:7-11] “Your Father knows what you need even before you ask Him.” [Matthew 6:9]
Jesus requires purity of intention, for He commands, “When you stand in prayer, forgive whatever you have against anybody, so that your Father in heaven may forgive your failings too.” [Mark 11:25]

Jesus urges us to pray humbly, without ostentation, “Go into your private room and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in that secret place, and your Father who sees all that is done in secret will reward you.” [Matthew 6:6] Jesus also desires community prayer, in addition to private prayer, for He says, “if two of you on earth agree to ask anything at all, it will be granted by my Father in heaven. For where two or three meet in my name, I shall be there with them.” [Matthew 18:19-20]

Jesus speaks, as you see, here and elsewhere in the gospels, of the necessity to pray, but makes no mention of it being easy or difficult, only necessary.

I hope that helps a little towards your feeling less bereft? Regards, Trishie

 

[Trishie]

“If you aspire to serve the Lord,
prepare yourself for an ordeal.
Be sincere of heart, be steadfast,
and do not be alarmed when disaster comes.

Cling to Him and do not leave him,
so that you may be honoured at the end of your days.
Whatever happens to you, accept it,
and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient,
since gold is tested in the fire,
and chosen persons in the furnace of humiliation.

Trust Him and He will uphold you,
follow a straight path and hope in Him.
You, who fear the Lord, wait for His mercy;
do not turn aside in case you fall.
You who fear the Lord, trust Him,
and you will not be baulked of your reward.
You who fear the Lord hope for good things,
for everlasting happiness and mercy…

For the Lord is compassionate and merciful…
Those who fear the Lord do not distain His words,
and those who love Him keep His ways…
Those who fear the Lord keep their hearts prepared
and humble themselves in His presence…
for as His majesty is, so too is His mercy.” [Ecclesiasticus.2, 1-9, 11, 15, 17-18]

 

[Trishie]

When prayer is difficult,
St Paul pledges that the
“Spirit…comes to help us in our weakness. For when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, the Spirit Himself expresses our plea in a way that could never be put into words, and God who knows everything in our hearts knows perfectly well what He means, and that the pleas of the saints expressed by the Spirit are according to the mind of God.” [Romans 8:26, 27]

 

[Monica4316]

A few weeks ago I wrote about how I was being haunted by thoughts about my prayer-life being a sham, that perhaps I was delusional, etc. Then about a week or two after that, even though it seemed that I was receiving a lot of consolations in prayer, I reached an anti-climax. Suddenly things went silent. All the sweetness suddenly dried up. The awareness of God’s presence seems to have diminished. The “nudges” I would recieve in prayer - gone. I desire to pray and to seek after God, but when I do start praying, it just feels so burdensome. It’s almost as though I were numb. when sometimes the heart seems to want to enflame with godly things, it feels as though it is snuffed out, as though someone places a cover on it so as to not let it get the air it needs to be kindled. I get this vague feeling sometimes of being alone, that perhaps God is busy elsewhere (I know He isn’t; but that’s how it feels) and has decided to leave me alone. My heart really longs for God yet prayer has become somewhat burdensome, and a reason for some sadness. I still try to pray though.

Does anyone know what the cause of this might be? Has anyone ever gone through something similar?

It might be that God is trying to get you less dependent on feelings this is normal… the Saints have spoken about this and they all seem to agree it’s for our salvation/sanctification. Remember God is still with you, regardless of how you feel, keep on praying even if nothing happens, - keep in mind God is MORE pleased with our prayers in dryness than in consolations (cause then we still choose Him, and show that we love God more than our feelings of His presence). Try to surrender yourself to His will.