Lack of Love for God

Been feeling flat recently and wondering where my "first love" has gone? I know that the Bible says that anyone who loves the world does not have the love of the Father in him. But the question is, how to get that love back again? I pray everyday that God will restore it. And yet I find myself preferring to find enjoyment in the things of the world sometimes as opposed to spending time with God. So, how does one build up a love relationship with Christ? How does one keep it? Is love for God just a feeling of excitement? Is it more?

I have been where you are at. I need to remind myself that the emotional high does happen but having a personal relationship with Jesus isn’t just based in my emotions. Even if I don’t feel Jesus working in my life I believe he is. Praying giving thanks, asking for forgiveness of my sins and asking for Jesus to give me wisdom and a humble heart. Then I read the Bible and meditate on his word.

Hello. I hope you will find a reignited passion for Christ again. I believe love is action. I think it might help you to focus less on the emotional part. Your "first love" is still there waiting for you. You must choose to spend time with Him. I go to church even if I do not feel like going, I choose too. That being said you cannot ignore your emotions. They play a big role in our lives, but do not let them lead every decision. It might also help to recall what made your relationship good in the first place. Try to shut out the things of this world no matter how enticing they are and spend time in the Word instead. I'm praying for you.

Greetings Brother... I can appreciate your struggle along your journey...
During these times, I find it helpful to strive to conduct genuine self-reflection, and in the process it is often helpful to remind myself to acknowledge and recognize the role of the enemy in the world around us...
To such end, it is important to acknowledge that all of our journey's take varying paths, sometimes we are quicker than other times to catch ourselves from deviating too far off of our preferred path along our journey/walk with our Lord...
I pray that this to shall pass, and serve as an opportunity for you to get back on your preferred path with our Lord. I also pray that you know that HE is always with you, and it is at these times of reflection that he is guiding you back to HIM...
God Bless

All the advice given so far is excellent, and I agree with it all. Remember this is a spiritual battle. We won’t drift into a place of fervency or zeal, rather we have to be intentional about our relationship with God, and in doing so the fervency/zeal comes. Sometimes it is hard when we’re not feeling it, but God is the same always, He never changes. Our feelings don’t determine the truth, and the truth is His word.

God doesn’t change, I needed to hear that. Thanks

I think when we feel our love for God is lacking, it usually means that he is no longer the centre of our life. I'm not saying we're abandoning him but that the world's problems slowly creep in and distract us such that we focus elsewhere. I think we need to constantly hear God's word and care for us so we realise how BIG our God is and refocus our eyes on him.

I think this is why we need constant reminder of Christ's sacrifice. Whilst we may roll our eyes at the pastor for preaching the same gospel, we, as humans, are very quick to forget God just like the Israelites and the Christians in Ephesus (see Rev 2) - "Rev 2:4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. ".

The love to God grows with time. Struggles and complete trust in him, fasting and taking time with him is the key. The enemy will make u doubt but you got to stand on the Word. Itll take time but truly God is faithful

I have never really felt an emotion toward God, so I can't speak to losing that spiritual high; however, I do find that viewing to love God as a choice. So, even though I might not feel the spiritual high I can still trust that the love is there and choose to love God. It's kind of like when you get mad or are indifferent to a family member; I may not be feeling the emotional high termed "love" at the moment but I still love them because I have chosen to love them. I don't know if that makes sense or helps at all lol.

One thing that my 40 years of life has shown ME and it may not pertain to others........Timing is everything.
It has got to be the toughest thing to stay true to...I wish it was so easy where one could say just do this, this and this and you would be OK but it doesn't work that way.

The ONLY advice I can give that may help is, talk to God on a daily basis. Do not stop the course of action for the lack of quick results....Words are very easy and actions hold more weight. BELIEVING in spite of nothing changing physically is the bedrock of faith. It is VERY easy to believe when everything is gong smooth. When times get tough and nasty, that is where champions are made.

A good quote:

"When the body quits, my mind says, "This is where winners are made"
"When my mind gets tired, this is where my heart says, "This is where champions are made"
Baylor Barbee

Hey man, fear not. Many people have been there before. In time you will learn to understand God's plan and your own journey and role within it. Reach deep bag as long ago as you can remember and see why you fell in love with the Lord when you did. You will not be forsaken.

"Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. "
Galatians 5:25

Life is a journey, fellow believer, a lifelong journey. You will see high's and lows, but peservere.
Draw near to Him and He will draw near to you. I know it is easy to find pleasure in other things. But there is great pleasure in
seeking the Lord too.

I thank my Lord for you. I wanted to send this in a message or to your page but that is not an option so I wanted you to know. God Bless you, Sis. Thanks for being a safe place and for consistently shining His light.

Toastandtea, your transparency is a blessing I understand. I think most do. Some seasons, I "feel" His love and sometimes not so much. I say in those dry seasons, we faith it till He makes it. Know that I will be praying with and for you. It is, btw, so good to see you.

same feelings.

Great post! Everyone goes through the "first love lost" syndrome.

So glad both of you posted because it means you want to "feel fervent love for God again!" I'll share what helps me during these times of "love drought."

I ask myself......am I tired? exhausted? hungry? busy-busy? no quiet time? Well, there you go......I pulled a "Martha stunt" - got all caught up in "good works" and completely ignored Jesus.

I need to go pull a "Mary stunt" and just sit at Jesus' feet and listen to every word He says. So, I spend time reading the Bible and asking God questions as I read.

Luke 10:38-42 New International Version (NIV)
At the Home of Martha and Mary
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a]Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Also, I ask the Holy Spirit to stir me up and help me love God the way God wants me to.

Turn off the News and listen to audio Bible or Christian praise and worship music.

Lastly, just start thinking of everything I'm thankful for and start thanking God. (HINT: I do not allow myself to complain about ANYTHING - I totally focus on thanking God.)

Before you know it, God refreshes me and I'm all mushy and in love with Him again! LOL!

(Side note: Eat some healthy foods and get plenty of exercise. The "happy" chemical in our brains is called dopamine - healthy food and exercise help our brains to produce and release dopamine.)

Dear Heavenly Father,

Loving You, Yeshua/Jesus and the Holy Spirit is such a high! We don't ever want to come down! The joy of the Lord is our strength - return to us the joy of our salvation! We love YOU! Help us to love you more and more every day, in the Name of Yeshua/Jesus we pray, amen.

I think we've all been there bud. Some of us many times over. I often find myself getting stagnant, and this is usually when I'm not spending time in His word, communicating with God, or if I miss church one week. I find worship music really helps me, but I really connect with music, and listening to a good podcast get my heart engaging when I don't feel moved to pick up my bible. Or getting out in nature, I always feel close to God there ans find it easier to pray on fhe move.

The best thing of course is to pick up that bible/open your bible app and soak up God's word! Don't feel bad, God knows your heart and the fact you're posting this shows you care. Be honest with Him about how you feel, it's good that you're praying about this. Keep us posted!

If I can be of any encouragement, my husband and I released our worship album, "Peace Be Still" which you can listen to at laurenlehman.com, spotify, itunes, etc. Seeking peace during the storms of life, with Jesus calming the winds and waves. He is right here with us, always.

Beautiful!