Do you often feel hindered in your spiritual life and not know why? Maybe you are not even sure what hinders you, but you feel held back. Or maybe you do know what hinders you but are not quite sure what to do about it.
Recently three Americans were detained in the country of Iran, and the United States government bargained for their freedom. Through these negotiations, the three Americans were set free! But one man decided to stay back. A news article declared “this man appears willing to subject himself to arrest all over again rather than come home after the U.S. bargained for his freedom.”
What?! Why on earth would he do that? He’s been set free. Yet, he stays there risking captivity all over again. That’s crazy. But could it be that, spiritually speaking, this looks like you and I more than we think it does?
Hebrews 12:1 says, “Let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”
God has a race for you to run. He has a purpose for your life—to love Him with everything you have, to love others and to impact people up close, to be a part of His Kingdom mission, to be a part of what He’s up to in this world of transforming people and transforming lives. God has a unique purpose for your life. But you must throw off what hinders you from fully launching into your God-given purpose.
Identifying Your Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
Could it be that you lack peace or joy? Or maybe you are experiencing intense shame and regret. Do you go to make decisions only for crippling anxiety to well up within you, constantly letting fear have the final say? Or do anger and bitterness take charge of your words with heated responses? Maybe you feel stuck in darkness; day after day, weighed down by unending depression. Do you often feel like there is an unpassable brick wall between you and God, and His purposes for your life?
If you answered yes to these or anything like them, you need to discover what hinders you and how to throw it aside!
So, what is it that so often causes these horrific burdens, inhibits our walk with God, and holds us back from His full plan for our life?
1. Unconfessed Sin: One of the Major Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
James 5:16 says, “Confess your sins one to another that you may be healed,” that you may be free from the shame and the guilt. Yet, instead of walking in the freedom that Jesus purchased with His death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, we sweep it under the rug, pull back into the darkness, and prefer our cravings over our freedom.
What is sin? It’s anything without trusting God. It’s anything that displeases Him. It’s anything that misses the mark of the way He wants us to live. And it feels so good in a moment. But in the long term, it will destroy you. Things like, hatred, adultery, lying, stealing, cheating, division against each other, substance abuse, complaining. Ultimately it all boils down to pride—choosing ourselves over others and over God.
Maybe there’s deep-rooted sin in your life that God is convicting you of right now, and He’s saying, confess it to me. Maybe He’s saying, grab another brother or sister in Christ and confess it to me in prayer together with them to find freedom.
Simply tell God right now, “Lord, I’m sorry for this sin. Would you forgive me?” and He will! 1 John 1:9 promises us that if we confess our sin, He is faithful to forgive us!
2. Believing Lies: Untangling Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
John 8:32 says, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” But what happens when you don’t know the truth?
We will find it tough to freely soar into God’s purposes, enslaved to the constant lies firing at us from all angles, just like surrounded soldiers ducking into foxholes holding their heads down while bullets are flying at them from every direction. If we do not get into the Word of God, we are going to embrace crippling lies, left and right.
A recent study by the Center for Bible Engagement found that those who read the Bible four or more times a week (compared to those who read the Bible less than four times a week) had significantly decreased loneliness, significantly increased victory over sin struggles (such as anger, bitterness in relationships, pornography, drunkenness, sex outside of marriage, etc.), and significant increases in sharing the Gospel and discipling others.
Whatever it takes, we must know the truth that sets us free.
Right now, prayerfully deal with any lies that have been revealed in your heart, declaring “Lord, in Jesus’ name I rebuke the lie of _________ and receive Your Truth that _________” Freedom will follow.
3. Unforgiveness: Hidden Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
All of us experience hurt and pain at the hands of others. Yet too often, we fight forgiveness like the plague. Rather than forgive, we hold onto what someone did and it eats us alive from the inside out.
When we live this way, we become angry, and bitterness takes root in our hearts. Colossians 3:13 says, “Forgive as the Lord forgave you in Christ Jesus.” How did God forgive us in Christ? In Christ, God has forgiven us freely and unconditionally. Generously. Without hesitation. Immediately.
I like to think about the process of forgiveness like being shot with an arrow. Now I know that sounds odd at first, but just track with me! Imagine you were shot with an arrow, and you are running around with that arrow sticking out of your leg. You will do everything you can, as fast as you can, to get that arrow removed. You will find a doctor. You will find a friend. You will find someone, somewhere to help you get the arrow out as soon as possible. You will do everything in your power to remove that arrow so you can go on living your life.
Removing the arrow is like the spiritual choice of forgiveness. We need to forgive. As soon as someone wrongs us or hurts us, we must go to God in prayer and declare, “Lord, I forgive this person for wronging me. They are in your hands, not mine.” There may be some people in your life you have never forgiven. Now is the time to begin in prayer!
It might be that unforgiveness is what hinders you and holds you back, even right now! Your healing does not end with forgiveness. It begins with forgiveness. Forgiving others is not a burden, but an offer from Jesus. It is an invitation to freedom.
4. Unhealthy Relationships: Surprising Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
Unhealthy relationships look like anyone having a weightier voice, a stronger tug, and greater influence on your life than God Himself and His Word.
The Bible says, “Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). So, be careful who influences your life. Be careful who has a strong voice in your life. Or what? Well, you will be hindered and entangled. You will be trying do what God wants you to do, yet you will feel held back. Here are a few examples of unhealthy relationships…
The Bible says, “Children, honor and respect your parents that you may live a long life” (Ephesians 6:1-3). You need to honor and respect your parents; and if you are not an independent adult yet, you need to obey them. You will have a hindering, unhealthy relationship if you do not.
Husbands, 1 Peter 3:7 says to respect your wives, or your prayers will be hindered. What?! Hold on a minute. Did you just read that? That is one of the craziest verses I have read in the Bible! Husbands, if you do not respect your wives, your prayer lives will be hindered.
Wives, according to Ephesians 5:24, you must submit to your husbands in everything, as to the Lord, or your life will be hindered. Scripture is clear. Your decisions in your marriage relationship will impact your entire family!
The Bible doesn’t mince words, sexual activity is meant for marriage: one man and one woman, united for their lives. Anything out of the bounds of one man and one woman united to each other is considered sin, according to the Scriptures. 1 Corinthians 6:16 states, “Or do you not know that he who is joined to a prostitute becomes one body with her? For, as it is written, “The two will become one flesh.” If you are sexually intimate with anyone, you become one flesh with them. You become tied to them at a deeper level. If your heart is simultaneously tied to many people at a deep level, you are going to have a tough time engaging in purity, godly relationships, and healthy intimacy. God says flee from sexual immorality, because it is going to hinder His purposes for you.
Now, I am not saying freedom isn’t available if you have stepped out of bounds. It is! And that is what this article is all about. So, as you have identified what hinders you in the category of relationships, surrender them to God in prayer now, “Lord, I am sorry that I have wrongfully allowed this relationship in my life to have greater authority than you. I surrender it to you and ask for your wisdom in walking out next steps with rightful boundaries.”
5. Negative Family Patterns: Overlooked Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
1 Peter 1:18 says, “You were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers.” There is a sinful, empty way of life, a pattern of life you could call it, that was handed down to you. You learned it from your parents. And that came from your grandparents, and they got it from your great grandparents, and so on.
Maybe you make declarations like: “No one in my family has ever gone to college, so I won’t either,” or, “Everyone in my family holds grudges. We will never be a family without division,” or, “We’ve all been addicts in my family, so I might as well not even try,” or, “Everyone in my family gets divorced, so I probably will too,” or, “My family always knows what is best. So obviously, we are better than everybody else,” or, “My family’s always been racist. It is just in our DNA,” or, “I won’t amount to anything. My family never has,” or, “My family always told me I never would amount to anything.”
Maybe there is a generational pattern of negativity and sin that has been passed down to you. And it is time to see that broken with the power of Christ. Jesus paid the price on the cross, breaking off these negative generational patterns! He has purchased our freedom.
So, rather than walking in those old patterns, declare in prayer, “I break off the generational pattern of ___________ in Jesus’ name” and ask the Lord, “What Biblical pattern do you want to pass through my life? I receive that and commit to living it out.”
6. Spiritual Warfare: Standing in the Authority of Jesus
The Bible says to believers, “Submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you” (James 4:7). If we do not submit to God, and we do not resist the devil, he won’t flee. He will be firing arrows at you, and you will not be able to overcome them by faith (Ephesians 6:16).
John 10:10 says, “The thief has come to kill, steal, and destroy.” 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be watchful and sober minded, for your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (italics mine). Satan hates your guts! He wants to destroy your life. He wants to destroy the work of God and the purposes of God in your life.
Maybe you have felt like your mind is flooded with darkness, with negativity, with unending depression, and you do not know what to do with it. Maybe suicidal thoughts are flooding your mind all the time. Maybe discouragement has been debilitating. Maybe you feel like you are living in darkness, and you cannot get out. You cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel. Or maybe it feels like extra unseen resistance is coming against you and all your efforts in this season. If you are feeling that way, it could be that Satan is attacking you and coming against you.
But here is the good news: “Greater is He who is in us [Jesus Christ] than he who is in the world [Satan]” (1 John 4:4). Jesus has given us authority and power in His name. So, we do not have to be afraid. We just need to be washed with the cleansing forgiveness of Jesus’ blood shed for us on the cross, Biblically deal with what hinders us, proclaim the name of Jesus, and be filled with the power of His Word.
Has the enemy been coming against your life? Submit to God and resist the devil. Let God lead you through any or all of steps 1-5 above. Ask Him to shine His light and follow His guidance. Then stand in the authority of Jesus in your life. Pray: “Lord, I need your help. Please help me. In Jesus’ name, I command any demonic spirits causing this darkness to go away. Get away from my life and go wherever Jesus sends you.”
Moving Beyond Your Obstacles to Spiritual Growth
So where do we go from here? Galatians 5:1 says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” Yes, He set us free. But then, the next phrase says this: “Do not let yourselves be enslaved all over again.”
You must determine: will you continue to choose to submit to all these hindrances? Or will you choose the freedom that Jesus has purchased for you?
The choice is yours.
Ask God in prayer, “Will you reveal to me what hinders me now?”
Then, simply look to Jesus (Hebrews 12:2) and do what He clearly told us to do! Jesus is the One who will strengthen, enable, and empower you.
