Life rarely slows down naturally. Between work deadlines, family responsibilities, social obligations, and the constant pressure to do more, many Christians find themselves feeling spiritually dry. Not because they don’t want to be productive, but because they don’t know how to sustain dedicated time with God while keeping on top of everything else.
The answer isn’t to pack more into your schedule. It’s to build a way of life and a set of spiritual practices that fit within your everyday reality.
Several modern Christian voices offer a refreshing invitation: stop pushing yourself to always be producing, and start structuring your life around rest and intentional connection with God. Drawing from books like The Nature of Rest by Eryn Lynum, The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer, How to Ditch the How-To by Tieler Giles, Good News About Self-Care by Benjamin Espinoza, and The Sleep You're Longing For by Ken Wystma, we can begin to reimagine what faithful, sustainable spiritual practices look like.
1. Start with Rest, Not Work
Many of us approach spiritual growth like a productivity project: more Bible reading, more prayer, more discipline. But Scripture—and authors like Lynum and Wystma—point us in a different direction.
In The Nature of Rest, Lynum reminds us that rest is not optional; it’s built into creation itself. God didn’t just command rest. He modeled it. Likewise, Wystma’s The Sleep You’re Longing For reframes rest as an act of trust. When we sleep, we practice surrender, trusting that holding the world together isn’t our responsibility—it’s God’s.
Practice:
Begin with a daily or weekly rhythm of rest:
- Protect your sleep as a spiritual discipline
- Set aside one slower day or Sabbath window
- Build small pauses into your day (even 2–5 minutes)
Rest is not a sign of laziness. It is resistance against a world that tells you your worth is tied to your output.
2. Eliminate Hurry as a Spiritual Priority
If there’s one enemy of spiritual depth, it’s hurry.
In The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, John Mark Comer argues that hurry is not just a scheduling problem, it’s a soul problem. It keeps us distracted, anxious, and disconnected from God.
Jesus beautifully demonstrates how to put this idea into practice. He was constantly pulled in every direction by the needs of those around Him, as people sought His healing, wisdom, and compassion. Yet the Gospels never portray Him as rushed, reactive, or overwhelmed. He moved through life with intention and purpose.
To follow Jesus, then, is not just to do what He did, but to do it the way He did. At a pace that makes room for presence, for people, and for God. It means learning to resist the false urgency that dominates our lives and instead choosing a slower, steadier way of being.
Practice:
Audit your pace of life:
- Where are you rushing unnecessarily?
- What can you say “no” to this season?
- Can you build margin between commitments?
Try this simple shift: take the scenic route, walk a little slower, pause before responding to a text. These small shifts help your soul settle into a rhythm where God’s presence can be welcomed into your everyday life.
3. Let Go of Formula-Based Faith
Many Christians feel stuck because they’re trying to follow someone else’s “perfect routine.”
Tieler Giles, in How to Ditch the How-To, challenges the idea that spiritual growth comes from rigid formulas. Instead, she invites believers into a more relational, flexible approach to faith.
God isn’t asking you to constantly prove yourself through performance or perfection. He’s inviting you into a relationship. He desires your presence more than your productivity, your honesty more than polished routines. This means you don’t have to show up with a flawless spiritual track record; you can come as you are and still be met with grace.
Practice:
Create practices that fit your life:
- If mornings are chaotic, meet God in the afternoon
- If long readings overwhelm you, meditate on one verse
- If sitting still is hard, pray while walking
Consistency matters more than complexity.
4. Redefine Self-Care as Soul Care
Self-care often gets dismissed as indulgent, but Benjamin Espinoza reframes it in Good News About Self-Care as something deeply biblical.
Caring for yourself is not selfish. Rather, it’s an act of stewardship.
When Jesus calls us to love others as ourselves, He’s pointing to a quiet but important truth: we can’t give what we don’t have. That command assumes we are tending to our own lives with a kind of care that reflects God’s heart: honoring our limits, nurturing our well-being, and paying attention to what’s happening beneath the surface.
If we neglect our bodies, ignore our need for rest, or push past our emotional and spiritual limits, love for others can slowly become strained or performative. But when we receive God’s care and practice it in our own lives through rest, healthy boundaries, and time with Him, we’re actually being formed into people who can love more freely and genuinely.
Practice:
Think holistically:
- Physical: sleep, nutrition, movement
- Emotional: boundaries, honest reflection
- Spiritual: prayer, Scripture, silence
Ask yourself: What helps me become more present to God and others?
That’s true self-care.
5. Focus on Relationship Over Routine
Spiritual practices are not the end goal. They are pathways to relationship with God.
It’s easy to turn prayer into a checklist or Bible reading into a task. But the invitation of Jesus is always relational: “Abide in me.”
Your practices should help you:
- Notice God’s presence
- Hear His voice
- Respond in love
If they don’t, it’s okay to adjust them.
Final Thoughts: A Gentle Way Forward
If you’re busy, overwhelmed, or spiritually tired, the solution isn’t to try harder, it’s to live differently.
Start with rest.
Remove hurry.
Let go of rigid formulas.
Care for your whole self.
Cultivate your relationship with Him.
God is not waiting for a perfect routine. He is already present in your ordinary, everyday moments.
The question is not, “How can I fit God into my schedule?”
The question is, “How can I shape my life so I don’t miss Him?”
