When faith gets undermined without us even knowing it

Have you noticed any of these in your own life or the lives of friends and family?

I’m doing a lot more writing this summer on non-obvious influences on an individual’s capacity to connect with God and experience anything transcendent at all. Thursday, I spoke with Pepperdine University scholar Jessica Hooten Wilson, who writes about the cultural forces leading an entire generation to lose interest in reading. What does it mean for your relationship with God when you lose the ability to be alone with sacred writing?

I’d welcome a chance to hear your own stories, either in writing or on a phone or Zoom interview this summer. Here are some of the questions I’m exploring—but maybe you see something else that might be missing?

Tell me if you’ve seen or experienced any of this before:

1. When an inability to read (via disinterest or impatience) hollows out faith

Have you noticed your own ability to read decreasing in recent years? If so, you’re not alone—this is common in our screen-based, smartphone-fixated society. A surprising number of Americans admit not reading much at all. If that applies to you, how do you think it’s impacted your own faith and spirituality, if at all? Have you seen others you care about stop reading? Have there been any accompanying changes in their spirituality?

2. When counselors inadvertently undermine faith

An inspired, qualified counselor can do miracles. But in collaboration with an excellent therapist in Georgia, I’m writing to educate people on signs that a counselor may be (often unintentionally) undermining faith. Have you ever seen that happen before? It’s subtle enough that we believe people are missing the influence almost entirely. But it’s there. No counselor comes from an unbiased, neutral position—and a surprising number of popular views in psychology today are like battery acid when it comes to active, vibrant faith. Very interested to hear any of your experiences.

3. When pervasive suspicion corrodes faith

Most people believe in some kind of conspiracy, which makes sense with the level of corruption in society today. But what happens when someone comes to believe there is malevolence and villainry around every corner? And what happens when our view of the world becomes so dark and sinister that the plain and precious truths of the gospel no longer feel all that relevant and exciting anymore? I’d love to hear any experiences you’ve had or observed.

4. When your faith is impacted because you ‘just can’t feel much’

One of my summer projects is a set of short meditations and accompanying monograph called “Feeling Again”—breaking down all the (known) reasons any of us can come to not feel much about life or relationships (or God). It’s astounding how many things can dampen emotion—from past trauma or acute betrayal, to current stress, an insane pace of life, continual distraction, chronic illness, certain medical treatment, addictive patterns, intense despair, anger or fear, meaninglessness and isolation. I’m curious whether you or someone you love has experienced a noticeable lack of feeling. If so, how have you handled that—and has it had an impact on your faith?

5. When you overcome doubts, instead of them overcoming you

In writing recently about overcoming doubt, I’m seeing a lot of misconceptions about what that means and doesn’t mean. Have you ever had an experience of your own in overcoming doubt about otherwise beautiful realities or truths—that, at the time, you may not have been able to see clearly? What did that involve and look like?

Thank you for sharing either below in the comments or by reaching out at jzhess@gmail.com. I’d be happy to jump on a phone call, but if you’re able to share your experience in writing, that would be amazing.