“Faith Crisis: What to Do When We Feel Nothing?”
I am like anyone else and have experienced periods of my life when I’ve experienced a faith crisis when I’ve felt the absence of the Spirit’s guidance and wondered if my prayers were going unheard. In those seasons, I have questioned myself and God. They have been some of the darkest times of my life, and I have really struggled to hold onto hope.
Even now, I continue to pray for something that has been on my heart for over 17 years. At times, the weight of waiting becomes overwhelming, and my prayers turn from simple requests to pleading with the Lord to answer my prayers.
During my faith crisis my confidence in myself takes a major hit and I find myself thinking, Surely my Heavenly Father could grant this righteous desire? I strive to live the commandments, I have felt the Spirit guide me in aspect of my life, and I have seen others inspired to reach out and bless me. And yet, despite all of this, the one answer I have sought for so long has not come.
This video about musician Michael McLean’s personal experience with the Spirit hit close to home. His story helped me see my own struggles differently and reminded me that the Lord’s hand is sometimes present in way I don’t immediately recognize.
I was also touched by an S. Michael Wilcox talk. Perhaps at times it isn’t that God is unwilling to answer, but rather that there isn’t a place in my heart to receive an answer.
In the end, all we can do is press forward in faith, believing that the Lord is fully aware of us and will bless us according to His wisdom, plan, and timing. This knowledge doesn’t erase the frustration I sometimes feel, but it helps me endure with greater hope.
Because of this, I have begun acting in faith (and some continued frustration) toward becoming the kind of person I believe I need to be to receive that much-desired blessings and I have faith that I will receive the answer when I’m finally ready and have a place in my heart.
If you are in a faith crisis and feel like Michael McLean and haven’t yet discovered all the ways the Spirit communicates with you, I encourage you watch the Hear Him videos to gain more perspective on the matter.
Gary E. Stevenson,
Gerrit W. Gong
Joy D. Jones
Quentin L. Cook
Henry B. Erying
Camille N. Johnson
David A. Bednar
M. Russell Ballard
Dieter F. Uchtdorf
Dale G. Renlund
Jeffrey R. Holland
Dallin H. Oaks
Bonnie Cordon
Ulisses Soares
Neil L. Andersen
Jean B. Bingham
Ronald A. Rasband
D. Todd Christopherson
Image Credit: Screenshot from video
