4 Things to Remember When We Are Spiritually Weak

Lianna Davis Writer
Updated Mar 25, 2024

There are times when I am weak in spirit, as happens with all of us. What do we do when we feel this way? I suggest we embrace our weakness before Jesus Christ. He loves to minister to our spirits that come needy to Him. So, let’s consider a few ways to remember that when we are weak, then we are strong in Jesus.

When We Are Weak in Spirit, We Need Spiritual Food

There are many ways to nourish ourselves with rich spiritual food. We can meditate. We can fast. We can study the Scriptures. It’s all about the truth of God taking deeper and deeper roots within us.

When we fast, we are setting aside our minds and souls for God. We are saying, “I am going without, so that I can receive of You.” When we meditate, we take a particular passage of Scripture and turn it over and over in our minds. We recognize that we literally live spiritually off of the bread of life, which is the Word of God. And when we study, we have a God who shows us marvelous things from His Word.

Jesus said that His food was to do the will of His Father in heaven (John 4:34). And that’s some of the best spiritual food that I have received: knowing that I am obeying God in a difficult situation and, thereby, doing the will of God. Obedience can be tough; it can go against the grain of what others are doing. But it is surely rewarding when we think about how it nourishes our spirits, pulling us closer to Jesus and giving us the blessing of blessing Him.

When We Are Weak in Spirit, We Need Encouragement from Our Holy Counselor

There are times when I tune into the Holy Spirit for encouragement on a minute-by-minute basis. I need encouragement that I am indeed a member of God’s family, that I am one with God in Jesus Christ, that grace is real and true, and that I will be with God forever and ever.

God has given to us the beautiful gift of the Holy Spirit to minster to our needs. And He brings truths of Scripture to our minds just when we need them. When I look back and see my progress, it amazes me that God “put up” with me when I was immature and displeasing to Him in various ways. And I look at how Jesus led me out of that immaturity — it is largely through His great encouragement. He is always bringing sweet truths to my mind.

Here are some of my favorite thoughts and passages the Holy Spirit has brought to my mind that have changed me and kept me close to God in weak moments:

“But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the spirit of our God” (1 Cor. 6:11).

This verse reminds me that I stand before God as a clean woman. In Jesus, I am forever secure in the forgiveness that He has given.

“Delight yourself in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4).

It confounds me that God is so good as to honor our own desires. He wants to bless us and honor the intentions and wishes that we have. He encourages us by blessing us in accordance with who we are. When He is our delight, He aligns our desires with Himself. He also honors our individual personhood and changes and molds us into conformity with Christ in accordance with who He has made us to be. Jesus doesn’t make us into different people in the sense of our unique personhood, but He honors the way He created us. With Jesus, who I am is safe.

“Jehovah will perfect that which concerneth me” (Ps. 138:8).

I understand this verse to mean that God will bless our lives in accordance with His holy will. He will bring all of the loose strands in our lives into harmony with His perfect will and character. It’s a beautiful thought that He takes pleasure in so working in our lives — so near, so intimate.

When Scripture is brought to our remembrance, we are able to move forward with spirits uplifted in Jesus. He has given us many great and precious promises.

When We Are Weak in Spirit, We Need Solid Steps Forward

I think that the best way to move forward with Jesus is to remember His goodness. When we have weak times, seasons, or moments, we need to remember to embrace His goodness — not the negativity or dullness that we can feel. When we accept Jesus’ goodness, it’s highly honoring to Him. It’s accepting His reality for us, even when we may feel differently.

Jesus’ goodness is our solid path forward in life. It is by His goodness that we remember we have otherworldly help and recognize that Jesus wants goodness for us. In this way we remember and honor the character of God. Do you believe He is leading you in good places? Do you believe that He is a fountain of life? Do you believe that His presence is your blessing?

What we believe about Jesus’ goodness affects our perspectives about life, which impacts the decisions that we make. When it’s Jesus’ goodness that influences our thought life, our choices will correspond in goodness.

When We Are Weak in Spirit, We Need to Follow on the Path of Life

I know that it may sounds redundant to say that the weak need to follow on the path of life, as that sounds like the path of goodness. But I mean to say something else. The path of life is that path which we start in this life with Jesus that results in an eternal glory with Him. We should not view our lives as those which only transpire on this earth. Our eternal life begins now; life is here in the present.

It is a blessing to embrace the lives that God has given to us as our spiritual good — even when we feel weary in them. The path of life will result in the crown of life for those who have endured trials and tribulations (James 1:12). I think of the saints who were tortured for Jesus, not accepting release because they wanted a better resurrection (Heb. 11:35). This life and how we live it influences the life to come. We are on the path of eternal life when we are in relationship with Jesus Christ and set Him over all.

Spiritual food, encouragement from our holy Counselor, and looking to the steps of our feet are all ways we can find the strength of God in our weakness. Jesus is not unfamiliar with His own steps of difficulty in earthly life lived before the Father. He knows how to speak to us. He knows how to lead us forward. He knows how to plead our cases before the Father. And He is ever-active doing all of these things for those who love and fear Him. Walk with peace before the God of all, knowing that He has condescended to help us and minister to us in our weakness in myriad ways.

Photo credit: Pexels/Dương Nhân

Lianna Davis is author of Keeping the Faith: A Study in Jude and Made for a Different Land: Eternal Hope for Baby Loss. She is also a contributor to We Evangelicals and Our Mission with Cascade Books. Lianna is a graduate of Moody Bible Institute and a student at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. She lives in Illinois with her husband and daughter. You can learn more about her writing at her website.