Undevoted – Page 2 – God or Delusion?

No Son Within: A Response to August 8th

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “Prayer in the Father’s Honor,” promises that believers have “the Son of God himself born into my mortal flesh” through divine rebirth, claiming that Christians can exercise “the right of a child to always be face-to-face with my Father” and experience “the Son of God praying in me” and “ministering in me as he did when he walked among us in the flesh” through the holy, eternal Child within them.

Here’s what trusting that the Son of God is born within believers and prays through them actually delivered:

“The Son of God himself has been born into your mortal flesh,” Pastor Martinez declared with spiritual authority. “You have the right to be face-to-face with your Father always. Is the Son of God praying in you? Is He ministering through you as He did in the flesh? Let the holy, innocent, eternal Child within you remain in contact with the Father.”

Susan had been watching her eighty-year-old mother’s rapid decline into Alzheimer’s disease, struggling with daily decisions about medication, safety, and whether to move Mom into memory care. The promise that the Son of God was born within her and could pray and minister through her seemed like the divine resource she desperately needed to navigate these impossible caregiving decisions with supernatural wisdom.

Susan desperately wanted to believe that having the Son of God within her would provide the face-to-face relationship with the Father that Chambers described. For months, she spent early morning hours seeking to experience the Son praying within her about her mother’s care, trying to access the holy Child that was supposed to remain in constant contact with the Father, waiting for divine ministry to flow through her as it had through Jesus in the flesh. She practiced what she called “indwelling prayer,” attempting to let Christ minister through her rather than making caregiving decisions through human reasoning.

Day after day, Susan sat beside her confused mother seeking the sense of the Son of God praying within her that should provide divine guidance for memory care decisions. She tried to experience the holy, innocent Child maintaining contact with the Father, waiting for supernatural wisdom to emerge about medication adjustments, safety modifications, and residential placement. When overwhelmed friends suggested geriatric care managers, Alzheimer’s support groups, or even adult day programs, she declined, believing that accessing the Son of God within was more important than human approaches to dementia care.

But the promised Son of God within was silence disguised as spiritual indwelling.

Susan’s desperate attempts to experience the Son praying within her produced no sense of divine presence, no face-to-face contact with the Father, no experience of Christ ministering through her flesh about her mother’s care. Despite months of seeking the holy Child within and trying to let the Son pray through her, no divine guidance emerged, no supernatural wisdom materialized, no sense of God’s Son within her developed. The emptiness grew more crushing each day as her mother’s condition worsened while Susan waited for the divine resources that the indwelling Son was supposed to provide.

Meanwhile, Susan’s neighbor Barbara approached her own mother’s dementia through immediate professional consultation. When Barbara noticed her mother’s memory problems, she arranged geriatric evaluations, consulted with elder care attorneys about legal planning, and joined Alzheimer’s family support groups to learn practical caregiving strategies.

Barbara’s approach came through medical evaluation, legal planning, and caregiver education. She created a comprehensive care plan through sustained professional guidance rather than waiting for the Son of God within to provide supernatural caregiving wisdom.

When Susan finally abandoned her search for the Son within and sought similar help, she discovered that dementia care required understanding brain disease progression and available support services. The months she’d spent seeking Christ’s prayer within her had been months her mother needed consistent medical monitoring and safety planning.

Where was the Son of God that was supposed to be born within her mortal flesh? Where was the face-to-face contact with the Father that the holy Child within should provide during caregiving crisis?

The help that actually worked came from geriatricians and elder care specialists. The silence where the Son of God was supposed to be praying within revealed the truth: there was no divine Son born into believers’ flesh, no holy Child maintaining contact with an absent Father.

Only a daughter desperately seeking supernatural resources that didn’t exist while her mother needed real medical evaluation and professional care planning from people who understood the neurological reality of Alzheimer’s disease.

Reflection Question: When has consulting geriatric specialists and joining caregiver support groups been more effective than seeking to experience the Son of God praying within you?

This story is part of my upcoming book “The Undevoted: Daily Departures from Divine Dependence,” which offers 365 human-centered alternatives to the spiritual certainties in Chambers’ devotional. Each day explores how reason, community, and human resilience can address life’s challenges without requiring divine intervention.

No Father’s House: A Response to August 7th

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “Prayer in the Father’s House,” promises that believers can achieve complete identification with Christ as “holy, innocent children of God” living in a “permanent state of dwelling in the Father’s house,” claiming that maintaining “contact with abiding reality” through holy communion enables believers to recognize that all circumstances “have been chosen specifically for me by God’s providence” with Christ’s life becoming “your vital life” through perfect union.

Here’s what trusting that you can dwell permanently in the Father’s house through identification with Christ actually delivered:

“Are you so identified with Christ that you’re a holy, innocent child dwelling in your Father’s house?” Pastor Chen asked with spiritual intensity. “Remain in contact with abiding reality. All your circumstances have been chosen specifically by God’s providence for your growth. Let Christ’s life become your vital life through perfect union with Him.”

Linda had been struggling through her husband’s sudden departure, bankruptcy from his hidden gambling debts, and caring for her elderly mother with dementia—all while trying to maintain stability for her two teenage children. The promise that achieving identification with Christ would help her recognize these circumstances as chosen by God’s providence and experience permanent dwelling in the Father’s house seemed like the spiritual perspective she desperately needed.

Linda desperately wanted to believe that perfect union with Christ would create the sense of dwelling in God’s house that Chambers described. For months, she spent early morning hours seeking this identification with Christ, trying to maintain contact with what she hoped was abiding reality, attempting to see her overwhelming circumstances as specifically chosen by divine providence for her spiritual growth. She practiced what she called “Father’s house prayer,” seeking the permanent state of holy communion that would transform her perspective on her chaotic life.

Day after day, Linda knelt in her cluttered living room seeking the sense of dwelling in God’s house that identification with Christ was supposed to produce. She tried to pray not just when things went wrong but as a continuous child-like communion with her heavenly Father, waiting for the abiding reality and perfect union that would help her see divine purpose in her suffering. When overwhelmed friends suggested grief counseling, financial planning, or respite care for her mother, she declined, believing that achieving permanent dwelling in the Father’s house was more important than addressing earthly concerns.

But the promised dwelling in the Father’s house was emptiness disguised as spiritual pursuit.

Linda’s desperate attempts to achieve identification with Christ produced no sense of divine dwelling, no contact with abiding reality, no experience of being God’s holy child in His house. Despite months of seeking perfect union and trying to see God’s providence in her circumstances, no Father’s house materialized, no divine presence emerged, no sense of holy communion developed. The silence grew heavier each morning as she knelt seeking a spiritual home that never appeared while her real-world responsibilities demanded immediate attention.

Meanwhile, Linda’s neighbor Patricia approached similar family crises through immediate practical intervention. When Patricia faced her own husband’s abandonment and financial ruin, she sought legal counsel for divorce proceedings, arranged elder care services for her aging parent, and organized family therapy to help her children process the trauma.

Patricia’s stability came through legal advocacy, social services, and professional counseling. Her family rebuilt their lives through sustained practical work rather than waiting for spiritual identification to provide divine perspective.

When Linda finally abandoned her search for the Father’s house and sought similar help, she discovered that family crisis required understanding legal options and accessing social services. The months she’d spent seeking perfect union with Christ had been months her children needed practical support processing their father’s abandonment.

Where was the Father’s house that identification with Christ was supposed to create? Where was the abiding reality and divine providence that should transform overwhelming circumstances into spiritual growth?

The help that actually worked came from legal advocacy and family counseling. The silence where the Father’s house was supposed to be revealed the truth: there was no divine dwelling to be found through identification with Christ, no heavenly Father providing a spiritual home through perfect union.

Only family crisis and financial disaster that required legal understanding and social services, not spiritual identification with an absent Father whose house existed nowhere but in religious imagination.

Reflection Question: When has seeking legal counsel and family therapy been more effective than trying to dwell in the Father’s house through identification with Christ?

No Cross, No Oneness: A Response to August 6th

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Cross in Prayer,” promises that believers who achieve “complete and absolute identification with the Lord Jesus Christ” through the cross will experience “perfect and complete oneness with God” in prayer, claiming that this identification means “there will be no distinction between his life and yours” and that prayer becomes a demonstration of divine unity rather than a means of getting answers or blessings.

Here’s what trusting that identification with Christ through the cross creates perfect oneness in prayer actually delivered:

“Don’t think of prayer as getting answers,” Pastor Thompson instructed with spiritual authority. “Prayer is perfect oneness with God through identification with Christ. You get through the cross only to get into it. When you reach complete identification with Jesus, there will be no distinction between His life and yours. Your prayer life will be a living monument of His grace.”

Mark had been praying desperately for his teenage daughter who was struggling with severe depression and suicidal ideation. The promise that achieving oneness with Christ through cross-identification would transform his prayer life from seeking answers to experiencing divine unity seemed like the spiritual maturity he needed during this crisis.

Mark desperately wanted to believe that perfect identification with Jesus would create the oneness in prayer that transcended his frantic pleading for his daughter’s healing. Instead of focusing solely on getting his daughter professional mental health treatment, family therapy, or crisis intervention services, he tried to achieve complete identification with Christ’s cross, trusting that perfect oneness in prayer would demonstrate God’s grace rather than seeking specific answers for his daughter’s psychiatric emergency.

For months, Mark avoided pushing for intensive therapy or psychiatric evaluation, believing that seeking concrete answers showed insufficient spiritual identification and that achieving oneness with God through cross-identification was more important than pursuing specific help for his daughter’s mental health crisis. When concerned friends suggested immediate professional intervention or even hospitalization, he declined, convinced that focusing on getting answers rather than achieving prayer oneness showed lack of complete identification with Christ’s suffering.

But the promised perfect oneness through cross-identification was spiritual detachment disguised as divine unity.

Mark’s attempts to achieve oneness with Christ in prayer created additional distance from his daughter’s actual crisis on top of her deteriorating mental health. The perfect identification that was supposed to eliminate distinction between his life and Jesus’ life remained absent while his daughter’s depression worsened and her suicidal ideation intensified. The living monument of grace that cross-identification was supposed to create never materialized when his daughter needed immediate practical intervention most.

Meanwhile, Mark’s neighbor Steve approached his own daughter’s depression crisis with zero expectation that spiritual oneness would address psychiatric emergency. When Steve’s teenager showed similar depression and suicidal thoughts, he immediately sought emergency mental health evaluation, arranged intensive therapy, and focused entirely on evidence-based treatment protocols while building comprehensive crisis support systems.

Steve didn’t try to achieve oneness with Christ through cross-identification but treated teenage depression as requiring immediate professional psychiatric intervention. His help came through crisis counseling, medication evaluation, and gradually building mental health stability through sustained clinical care rather than trusting that prayer identification would demonstrate divine grace through spiritual unity.

When Mark finally sought similar emergency help, he discovered that mental health crises required understanding psychiatric treatment options and immediate professional intervention rather than trusting that cross-identification would create perfect oneness in prayer that transcended seeking specific answers.

Where was the perfect oneness with God that cross-identification was supposed to create in prayer? Where was the elimination of distinction between his life and Jesus’ life that should provide divine unity beyond seeking answers?

The help that actually worked came through accepting the medical reality of teenage depression and focusing on evidence-based psychiatric intervention, not through believing that identification with Christ’s cross would create prayer oneness that demonstrated grace rather than seeking specific healing. The silence where perfect divine unity was supposed to be manifesting revealed the truth: there was no cross-identification that created oneness with God in prayer or spiritual unity that replaced the need for practical crisis intervention.

Only teenage depression and suicidal ideation that required professional psychiatric understanding and emergency mental health services to address effectively before tragedy occurred.

Reflection Question: When has seeking immediate professional mental health intervention been more effective than trusting that cross-identification creates perfect oneness in prayer beyond seeking specific answers?

No Divine Call: A Response to August 5th

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Baffling Call of God,” promises that believers with “God dwelling within them by the power of his Holy Spirit” will hear God’s baffling call “like the call of the sea,” claiming that “nothing happens by chance, only by his decree” and that Christians should trust “the wits and wisdom of God” rather than their own understanding, believing that “behind everything lies the great compelling of God.”

Here’s what trusting that God has a baffling call and divine purpose behind everything actually delivered:

“The call of God is like the call of the sea,” Pastor Johnson declared with spiritual mystery. “Only those with God dwelling within them hear it. Nothing happens by chance, only by His decree. Trust God’s wits and wisdom, not your own. Behind everything lies His great compelling. Stop trying to understand His purpose and enter into relationship with Him for His own ends.”

Rachel had been feeling increasingly restless in her stable nursing career, experiencing what she interpreted as a spiritual calling to leave her job and move to rural Montana to start a Christian retreat center with no business plan, funding, or relevant experience. The promise that God’s baffling call comes to those with the Holy Spirit within seemed to confirm her mysterious sense of divine leading despite all practical indicators suggesting the idea was unrealistic.

Rachel desperately wanted to believe that her unexplained restlessness was God’s baffling call and that trusting divine wisdom over human understanding would lead to spiritual purpose. Instead of exploring practical reasons for her job dissatisfaction, researching retreat center operations, developing business skills, or even visiting Montana to understand the reality of rural life, she trusted that God’s decree was behind her feelings and that His compelling purpose would become clear through blind obedience to the mysterious call she felt.

For months, Rachel made impulsive decisions toward her Montana retreat vision—quitting her job, selling her home, and moving across the country without adequate preparation—believing that trusting God’s wisdom over her own would reveal His baffling purpose and that nothing was happening by chance. When concerned friends suggested practical planning, market research, or at least visiting the area first, she declined, convinced that relying on human understanding would interfere with God’s compelling call and mysterious decree.

But the promised divine call and purpose behind everything was financial ruin disguised as spiritual obedience.

Rachel’s attempts to follow God’s baffling call created devastating practical consequences on top of her original restlessness. The divine purpose that trusting God’s wisdom was supposed to reveal remained absent while her savings depleted rapidly, her retreat center vision proved completely unviable, and she found herself stranded in rural Montana without income, community, or viable plan. The great compelling of God that was supposed to be behind everything never materialized when she needed practical guidance and sustainable direction most.

Meanwhile, Rachel’s former colleague Susan approached her own career restlessness with zero expectation that mysterious spiritual feelings represented divine calling. When Susan experienced similar job dissatisfaction and desire for change, she sought career counseling, explored her interests through informational interviews, and researched practical steps for career transition while maintaining financial stability and professional relationships.

Susan didn’t interpret restlessness as God’s baffling call but treated career dissatisfaction as requiring practical exploration, skill development, and strategic planning. Her direction came through professional assessment, gradual transition planning, and evidence-based career change strategies rather than trusting that mysterious feelings represented divine decree requiring immediate obedience without practical preparation.

When Rachel finally sought similar practical help, she discovered that healthy career transition required understanding her actual interests and market realities rather than trusting that mysterious restlessness represented God’s baffling call with divine purpose behind all circumstances.

Where was the divine call that those with the Holy Spirit were supposed to hear like the call of the sea? Where was God’s decree and compelling purpose that was supposed to be behind everything, making human wisdom unnecessary?

The direction that actually helped came through accepting that restlessness requires practical exploration and focusing on evidence-based career transition strategies, not through believing that mysterious feelings represented divine calling with predetermined purpose behind all circumstances. The silence where God’s baffling call was supposed to be compelling revealed the truth: there was no divine voice calling through spiritual feelings or predetermined purpose behind life circumstances requiring blind trust over practical planning.

Only career dissatisfaction and life transitions that required professional understanding and strategic planning to navigate successfully toward meaningful work and financial stability.

Reflection Question: When has practical career planning and professional counseling been more effective than trusting that restlessness represents God’s baffling call with divine purpose behind everything?

No Brave Comradeship: A Response to August 4th

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Brave Comradeship of God,” promises that God chooses people precisely because “there’s nothing of value” in them, claiming that those who are brought “to the end of their self-sufficiency” become God’s “comrades” who are “taken up into the compelling purpose of God,” with the main thing about Christianity being “the relationship we maintain” with God rather than useful work or natural abilities.

Here’s what trusting that God chooses the self-insufficient for brave comradeship and divine purpose actually delivered:

“God has been brave in trusting you,” Pastor Chen declared with spiritual conviction. “He chose you precisely because there’s nothing of value in you. As long as you think you have something to offer, God can’t choose you. Only those brought to the end of self-sufficiency become His comrades, taken up into His compelling purpose. The main thing isn’t the work you do but the relationship you maintain with Him.”

Lauren had been struggling with chronic unemployment and depression, feeling worthless and without direction after multiple job rejections. The promise that God chose her specifically because of her poverty and lack of value, making her His comrade through self-insufficiency, seemed like the spiritual meaning she needed to find purpose in her struggles.

Lauren desperately wanted to believe that her lack of abilities and self-sufficiency made her specially chosen for divine comradeship and purpose. Instead of developing marketable skills, seeking career counseling, addressing her depression through therapy, or building practical competencies that employers value, she embraced her poverty and insufficiency as evidence of divine selection, trusting that maintaining her relationship with God was more important than developing useful capabilities.

For months, Lauren avoided practical steps toward employment or skill development, believing that thinking she had something valuable to offer would disqualify her from God’s choosing and that self-sufficiency would interfere with divine comradeship. When concerned friends suggested job training programs, resume building workshops, or even basic computer skills classes, she declined, convinced that developing human abilities would prevent God from taking her up into His compelling purpose through her poverty and insufficiency.

But the promised divine comradeship through self-insufficiency was deeper isolation disguised as spiritual selection.

Lauren’s attempts to maintain divine relationship through embracing her poverty created additional hopelessness on top of unemployment and depression. The brave comradeship that God was supposed to provide through choosing the insufficient remained absent while her practical situation worsened and her employability decreased further. The compelling purpose that divine selection was supposed to bring never materialized when she needed actual direction and capability development most.

Meanwhile, Lauren’s neighbor Jessica approached her own unemployment and depression with immediate practical intervention and skill building. When Jessica faced similar job market challenges, she sought career counseling, enrolled in skills training programs, addressed her mental health through therapy, and focused entirely on evidence-based approaches to building marketable capabilities and professional competencies.

Jessica didn’t wait for divine comradeship through poverty but treated unemployment as requiring practical skill development and mental health support. Her direction came through career assessment, professional training, and gradually building employable abilities through sustained practical work rather than trusting that divine selection through self-insufficiency would provide purpose and comradeship.

When Lauren finally sought similar help, she discovered that healthy career development required building actual skills and addressing depression rather than trusting that God chose her for comradeship because of her poverty and lack of value.

Where was the brave comradeship that God was supposed to provide through choosing the self-insufficient? Where was the compelling purpose that divine selection through poverty was supposed to bring to her life?

The direction that actually helped came through accepting the necessity of skill development and focusing on evidence-based career and mental health support, not through believing that divine comradeship would emerge through embracing self-insufficiency and maintaining spiritual relationship above practical capability building. The silence where God’s brave trust was supposed to be working revealed the truth: there was no divine comradeship available through poverty or spiritual selection that replaced the need for practical skills and mental health treatment.

Only employment markets and depression that required professional understanding and skill development to navigate successfully toward meaningful work and mental wellness.

Reflection Question: When has building practical skills and addressing mental health been more effective than trusting that God chooses you for comradeship because of your self-insufficiency?

No Compelling Purpose: A Response to August 3rd

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Compelling Purpose of God,” promises that believers are “taken up into God’s purpose without any awareness” and that “God is taking us aside for his purpose all the time,” claiming that Christians should have “no aims of our own” because God has chosen them for a divine purpose that becomes clearer as they surrender their personal ambitions to His larger plan.

Here’s what trusting that God has a compelling purpose and has chosen believers for divine aims actually delivered:

“We go to Jerusalem to fulfill God’s purpose, not our own,” Pastor Thompson taught with spiritual authority. “In your Christian life, you have no aims of your own. You didn’t choose God—He chose you. You’re taken up into His purpose without awareness. The work you think you’re called to won’t satisfy because God is taking you aside for His larger purpose.”

Daniel had been feeling directionless after college, unsure about career choices and life direction. The promise that God had chosen him for a divine purpose and was taking him aside for a larger plan seemed like the spiritual guidance he needed to find meaning and direction without having to create his own life goals.

Daniel desperately wanted to believe that divine purpose would provide life direction and that surrendering personal ambitions would reveal God’s compelling plan for his future. Instead of exploring career interests, developing practical skills, seeking career counseling, or setting personal goals based on his values and abilities, he waited for divine purpose to become clear, trusting that God was taking him aside for a larger plan that would eventually satisfy his need for meaning and direction.

For months, Daniel avoided making concrete life decisions or pursuing specific opportunities, believing that having personal aims would interfere with God’s purpose and that divine choosing meant he should wait for spiritual direction rather than actively planning his future. When concerned friends suggested practical steps like career exploration, skill development, or even temporary work to gain experience, he declined, convinced that creating his own goals would prevent God from revealing His compelling purpose and larger plan.

But the promised divine purpose and choosing was purposelessness disguised as spiritual surrender.

Daniel’s attempts to surrender personal ambitions and wait for God’s purpose created additional confusion on top of post-graduation uncertainty. The compelling divine plan that was supposed to become clearer through spiritual surrender remained absent while opportunities passed and his direction became increasingly vague. The larger purpose that God was supposed to be revealing through taking him aside never materialized when he needed practical guidance for life decisions most.

Meanwhile, Daniel’s roommate Marcus approached post-graduation uncertainty with zero expectation that divine purpose would provide life direction. When Marcus faced similar career confusion after college, he immediately sought career counseling, explored internship opportunities, and focused entirely on evidence-based approaches to discovering his interests, values, and abilities through practical experience and professional guidance.

Marcus didn’t wait for God’s compelling purpose but treated career development as requiring personal exploration, skill building, and strategic planning based on his own interests and market realities. His direction came through career assessment tools, informational interviews, and gradually building professional experience through sustained practical work rather than trusting that divine choosing would reveal a larger purpose that satisfied deeper than personal goals.

When Daniel finally sought similar career guidance, he discovered that healthy life direction required understanding his own interests and abilities while actively pursuing opportunities rather than trusting that God had chosen him for a divine purpose that would become clear through spiritual surrender of personal ambitions.

Where was the compelling purpose that God was supposed to be revealing through taking him aside? Where was the divine choosing that should provide clearer direction than personal goal-setting and career planning?

The direction that actually helped came through accepting the necessity of personal exploration and focusing on evidence-based career development, not through believing that divine purpose would emerge through surrendering personal ambitions to God’s larger plan. The silence where God’s compelling purpose was supposed to be working revealed the truth: there was no divine choosing or larger purpose guiding life direction through spiritual surrender.

Only personal interests, market opportunities, and career development processes that required active exploration and practical planning to discover meaningful work and life direction.

Reflection Question: When has active career exploration and personal goal-setting been more effective than waiting for God’s compelling purpose to provide life direction?

Crushed by Difficulty: A Response to August 2nd

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Discipline of Difficulty,” promises that God gives believers “life as we overcome” troubles rather than easy deliverance, claiming that “the strain is the strength” and that pushing spiritually through difficulties provides more strength, with saints becoming “filled with hilarity when crushed by difficulties” because “no plague can come near the place where you are at one with God.”

Here’s what trusting that God gives life through overcoming and spiritual strength through strain actually delivered:

“God doesn’t give you overcoming life; He gives you life as you overcome,” Pastor Anderson taught with spiritual conviction. “The strain is the strength. Push yourself spiritually through difficulties and you’ll get more strength. Face troubles with gladness—saints are filled with hilarity when crushed because no plague can come near where you’re at one with God.”

Angela had been struggling with chronic pain from fibromyalgia while caring for her special needs child and working full-time to support her family. The promise that spiritual strain would provide strength and that being one with God would protect her from harm seemed like the divine perspective she needed to find joy and strength through overwhelming circumstances.

Angela desperately wanted to believe that pushing through spiritually would provide supernatural strength and that oneness with God would shield her from further difficulties. Instead of seeking comprehensive pain management, respite care for her child, workplace accommodations, or mental health support for caregiver burnout, she tried to face her troubles with gladness and push herself spiritually, trusting that the strain itself would become her strength and that divine protection would prevent additional challenges.

For months, Angela refused pain medication and declined offers of childcare assistance, believing that overcoming through spiritual strain was God’s method of giving her life and that accepting human help would interfere with the divine strength that comes from pushing through difficulties. When concerned friends suggested practical solutions like disability accommodations, support groups for special needs parents, or even basic rest, she declined, convinced that finding hilarity in being crushed by circumstances demonstrated the spiritual victory available to those at one with God.

But the promised life through overcoming and strength through spiritual strain was physical collapse disguised as divine victory.

Angela’s attempts to find spiritual strength through strain created additional suffering on top of chronic pain and caregiver exhaustion. The supernatural strength that pushing through spiritually was supposed to provide remained absent while her health deteriorated and her ability to care for her family diminished. The divine protection from plague that oneness with God was supposed to guarantee never materialized when additional crises compounded her existing struggles.

Meanwhile, Angela’s neighbor Rosa approached her own chronic illness and caregiving challenges with zero expectation that spiritual strain would provide supernatural strength. When Rosa faced similar fibromyalgia while caring for a disabled family member, she immediately sought comprehensive pain management, utilized respite care services, and focused entirely on evidence-based strategies for managing chronic illness while maintaining caregiving responsibilities through practical support systems.

Rosa didn’t try to find strength through spiritual strain but treated chronic pain and caregiver burnout as medical and social challenges requiring professional intervention and community support. Her stability came through pain management protocols, caregiver support services, and gradually building sustainable care strategies through sustained practical assistance rather than trusting that spiritual pushing through difficulties would provide divine strength and protection from additional challenges.

When Angela finally sought similar professional help, she discovered that healthy chronic illness management and caregiving required understanding medical treatment options and utilizing support services rather than trusting that spiritual strain would provide supernatural strength and divine protection from harm.

Where was the life that God was supposed to give through overcoming difficulties with spiritual strain? Where was the strength that pushing spiritually was supposed to provide when facing impossible circumstances?

The support that actually helped came through accepting the medical reality of chronic illness and focusing on evidence-based pain management and caregiver assistance, not through believing that spiritual strain would provide supernatural strength and divine protection. The silence where God was supposed to be giving life through overcoming revealed the truth: there was no divine strength available through spiritual pushing or protection from plague for those at one with God.

Only chronic pain conditions and caregiver burnout that required professional understanding and practical support systems to manage sustainable care without physical collapse.

Reflection Question: When has comprehensive medical care and practical support services been more effective than trusting that spiritual strain provides supernatural strength and divine protection?

Abandoned and Waiting: A Response to August 1st

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “Something More about His Ways,” promises that when believers obey God’s call to leave, “the Lord himself ministers to those you leave behind,” claiming that God “comes where he commands us to leave” and “works where he sends us to wait,” with divine instruction and power coming to those who trust God with the consequences of obedience.

Here’s what trusting that God ministers to those left behind and works where He sends us to wait actually delivered:

“When you obey and go, trusting God with the consequences, the Lord himself ministers to those you leave behind,” Pastor Thompson declared with spiritual certainty. “He comes where he commands us to leave. Don’t let duty compete with God’s commands. Wait on God where He sends you, and He will work. He wants to turn your waiting into transformation.”

Michael felt called to missionary work in Central America, leaving behind his aging parents who needed increasing care and his wife who was struggling with depression. The promise that God would minister to his family while he waited on divine timing seemed like the spiritual assurance he needed to follow what he believed was God’s clear calling despite family concerns.

Michael desperately wanted to believe that divine obedience would trigger God’s care for those he left behind. Instead of developing practical support systems for his parents, ensuring his wife had professional mental health care, or considering how to serve God while maintaining family responsibilities, he trusted that obeying the call to leave would result in divine ministry to his loved ones through supernatural means that would exceed human care.

For months, Michael prepared for overseas ministry while his parents’ health declined and his wife’s depression worsened, believing that his obedience to God’s calling would activate divine intervention for his family’s needs. When concerned friends suggested delaying his departure until better support systems were in place, he declined, convinced that staying would prevent God from ministering to his family and that waiting sulkily on timing showed lack of faith in divine working.

But the promised divine ministry to those left behind was family abandonment disguised as spiritual obedience.

Michael’s attempts to trust God with the consequences of leaving created additional family crisis on top of existing health and mental health challenges. The divine ministry that God was supposed to provide to those left behind remained absent while his parents struggled without adequate support and his wife’s depression deepened in isolation. The divine working that waiting on God was supposed to produce never materialized when his family needed practical care and presence most.

Meanwhile, Michael’s neighbor David approached his own sense of calling to overseas service with comprehensive family care planning and practical support systems. When David felt drawn to international work, he delayed his departure until his parents had professional care coordination, his wife had established mental health treatment, and extended family support networks were in place to provide ongoing practical assistance.

David didn’t trust God to minister to those left behind but treated family responsibilities as requiring human planning and professional care systems before pursuing personal calling. His service came through gradual transition planning, family care coordination, and eventually pursuing international work only after ensuring comprehensive support systems rather than trusting that divine obedience would trigger supernatural ministry to abandoned family members.

When Michael finally returned to address his family’s deteriorating situation, he discovered that healthy family care required understanding practical support systems and professional services rather than trusting that God would minister to those left behind through spiritual obedience.

Where was the divine ministry to those left behind that obedience was supposed to activate? Where was God working in the waiting and coming where He commanded departure to care for abandoned family members?

The care that actually helped came through accepting the necessity of human support systems and focusing on evidence-based family care planning, not through believing that spiritual obedience would trigger divine ministry to those left without practical support. The silence where God was supposed to be ministering revealed the truth: there was no divine working that replaced human responsibility for family care through supernatural intervention.

Only aging parents and mental health challenges that required professional understanding and practical support systems to address successfully while pursuing personal calling responsibly.

Reflection Question: When has practical family care planning and professional support systems been more effective than trusting that God ministers to those left behind in spiritual obedience?

Never Entirely His: A Response to July 31st

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “Till You Are Entirely His,” promises that God keeps “every detail of our lives under his scrutiny” and will “bring us back to the same issue over and over again until we learn our lesson,” claiming that through divine persistence, believers will become “mature and complete, not lacking anything” as God achieves “the finished work” until they are “entirely his.”

Here’s what trusting that God’s persistent attention to every detail leads to spiritual completion actually delivered:

“God keeps every detail of your life under His scrutiny,” Pastor Chen taught with spiritual certainty. “He’ll bring you back to the same issues over and over until you learn your lesson. Whether it’s impulsiveness, independence, or wandering thoughts—God won’t tire and won’t stop until He’s achieved the finished work. Let perseverance finish its work so you may be mature and complete, lacking nothing.”

Lisa had been struggling with anxiety and perfectionism for years, constantly feeling like she was failing to meet spiritual standards. The promise that God’s persistent attention to every detail of her life would gradually make her “entirely His” and spiritually complete seemed like the divine process she needed to finally achieve spiritual maturity and peace.

Lisa desperately wanted to believe that divine scrutiny of her flaws would lead to spiritual completion and freedom from anxiety. Instead of seeking evidence-based anxiety treatment, therapy for perfectionism, or learning practical coping strategies, she tried to discern God’s lessons in every repeated struggle, believing that His persistent attention to her character defects would eventually produce spiritual maturity and completeness if she remained patient with the divine process.

For months, Lisa interpreted every recurring anxiety episode, perfectionist tendency, or emotional struggle as God bringing her back to lessons she hadn’t yet learned. When concerned friends suggested anxiety therapy, mindfulness training, or even medication consultation, she declined, convinced that seeking human solutions would interfere with God’s persistent work to make her “mature and complete, not lacking anything” through divine attention to every detail.

But the promised spiritual completion through God’s persistent scrutiny was psychological deterioration disguised as divine refinement.

Lisa’s attempts to find God’s lessons in every recurring struggle created additional shame and spiritual pressure on top of existing anxiety and perfectionism. The mature completeness that divine scrutiny was supposed to produce remained absent while her mental health worsened and her perfectionist patterns intensified. The finished work that God’s persistent attention was supposed to achieve never materialized when she needed practical tools for anxiety management most.

Meanwhile, Lisa’s neighbor Emma approached her own anxiety and perfectionism with zero expectation that divine scrutiny would produce spiritual completion. When Emma recognized her perfectionist patterns and anxiety symptoms, she immediately sought cognitive behavioral therapy, learned evidence-based anxiety management techniques, and focused entirely on understanding the psychological mechanisms of perfectionism rather than searching for spiritual lessons in recurring struggles.

Emma didn’t wait for God’s persistent attention to make her complete but treated anxiety and perfectionism as mental health challenges requiring professional intervention and practical skill development. Her healing came through therapy, mindfulness training, and gradually building healthier thought patterns through sustained psychological work rather than trusting that divine scrutiny of her character defects would produce spiritual maturity and completeness.

When Lisa finally sought similar professional help, she discovered that healthy anxiety recovery required understanding brain chemistry and developing practical coping strategies rather than trusting that God’s persistent attention to every detail would make her spiritually complete and lacking nothing.

Where was God’s scrutiny of every detail that was supposed to bring her back to lessons until she learned them? Where was the divine persistence that would never tire until achieving the finished work of spiritual completeness?

The healing that actually helped came through accepting the neurological basis of anxiety and focusing on evidence-based treatment strategies, not through believing that God’s attention to character flaws would produce spiritual maturity and completeness. The silence where divine scrutiny was supposed to be working revealed the truth: there was no God keeping every detail under observation or persistently working toward spiritual completion.

Only psychological patterns and brain chemistry that required professional understanding and practical intervention to address anxiety and perfectionism successfully.

Reflection Question: When has evidence-based anxiety treatment and therapy been more effective than trusting that God’s persistent scrutiny of your flaws leads to spiritual completion?

Deeper Disillusionment: A Response to July 30th

This is part of my year-long series exploring human-centered alternatives to the spiritual promises in Oswald Chambers’ classic devotional My Utmost for His Highest. Today’s entry, “The Discipline of Disillusionment,” promises that relationships based in God will not end in cynical disillusionment, claiming that divine disillusionment helps believers “see men and women as they are” without bitterness, and that only Jesus Christ can satisfy “the deepest aching abyss of the human heart,” preventing the despair that comes from trusting human beings.

Here’s what trusting that God-based relationships prevent cynical disillusionment and that Jesus satisfies the heart’s deepest needs actually delivered:

“Unless your relationships are based in God, they’ll end in cynical disillusionment,” Pastor Johnson warned with spiritual certainty. “But disillusionment that comes from God brings you to see people as they are without bitterness. Place your trust in Jesus Christ, not human beings, and you’ll never despair of anyone. Only our Lord can satisfy the deepest aching abyss of your heart.”

Rebecca had been devastated when her closest friend betrayed her confidence and her husband left for another woman in the same month. The promise that basing relationships in God rather than human trust would prevent cynical disillusionment and that Jesus would satisfy her heart’s deepest needs seemed like the spiritual protection she desperately needed.

Rebecca desperately wanted to believe that divine relationship foundation would prevent future relational pain and cynicism. Instead of focusing on evidence-based approaches to healthy relationships, boundary-setting, and understanding human psychology, she tried to base all her connections in God and trust Jesus alone to satisfy her relational needs, believing this would protect her from the bitterness that comes from expecting too much from people.

For months, Rebecca avoided forming deep human connections, believing that trusting people rather than God inevitably led to despair and cynicism. When friends offered genuine emotional support and suggested therapy to process her betrayal trauma, she declined, convinced that finding satisfaction in Jesus rather than human relationships would prevent the cruel disillusionment that comes from unrealistic expectations of others.

But the promised protection from cynical disillusionment through God-based relationships was deeper isolation disguised as spiritual wisdom.

Rebecca’s attempts to base relationships in God and find satisfaction in Jesus alone created additional loneliness on top of betrayal trauma. The freedom from cynicism that divine relationship foundation was supposed to provide remained absent while her capacity for human connection atrophied and her understanding of healthy relationship dynamics remained undeveloped. The heart satisfaction that Jesus was supposed to provide never materialized when she needed genuine human support most.

Meanwhile, Rebecca’s neighbor Michelle approached her own betrayal experiences with zero expectation that spiritual relationship foundation would prevent disillusionment or that divine satisfaction would replace human connection needs. When Michelle faced similar friendship betrayals and relationship breakdowns, she immediately sought therapy to understand relationship patterns, joined support groups for betrayal trauma, and focused entirely on evidence-based approaches to building healthier connections through better boundary-setting and communication skills.

Michelle didn’t search for God-based relationship foundation but treated relational challenges as psychological and social issues requiring professional guidance and skill development. Her healing came through trauma therapy, attachment work, and gradually rebuilding her capacity for human connection through sustained practical education about healthy relationship dynamics rather than trusting that Jesus would satisfy her deepest relational needs while protecting her from cynical disillusionment.

When Rebecca finally sought similar professional help, she discovered that healthy relationship recovery required understanding human psychology and developing practical relationship skills rather than trusting that God-based connections would prevent disillusionment and that Jesus would satisfy her heart’s deepest needs.

Where was the protection from cynical disillusionment that basing relationships in God was supposed to guarantee? Where was Jesus satisfying the deepest aching abyss of her heart so she wouldn’t despair of human connection?

The healing that actually helped came through accepting the complexity of human relationships and focusing on evidence-based relationship skills, not through believing that divine relationship foundation would prevent cynicism and that spiritual satisfaction would replace human connection needs. The silence where God-based relationship protection was supposed to manifest revealed the truth: there was no divine foundation that prevented relational disillusionment or spiritual satisfaction that replaced human connection needs.

Only psychological patterns and relationship skills that required professional understanding and practical development to navigate human connection healthily without cynicism.

Reflection Question: When has understanding relationship psychology and developing practical connection skills been more effective than basing relationships in God to prevent cynical disillusionment?