The political climate of today is such that people often ask me what is going on with our world.

My answer can be found within the next three newsletters, but begins with a story about a conversation James Roosevelt had with his father, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR), after his father was elected president for the first of four terms:

“You know, Jimmy,” Franklin said, “all my life I have been afraid of only one thing—fire. Tonight I think I’m afraid of something else.” “Afraid of what, Pa?” “I’m just afraid that I may not have the strength to do this job.” He paused reflectively. “After you leave me tonight, Jimmy, I am going to pray. I am going to pray that God will help me, that he will give me the strength and the guidance to do this job and to do it right. I hope you will pray for me, too, Jimmy.”

H.W. Brands, Traitor to His Class

What I know about our country, our culture, and the world is that despite all the difficulties and tragedies, it does not seem that anyone today prays like one of our greatest presidents did then.

FDR had his flaws, as do we all. But he prayed. The difference between him and many other leaders is the nature of his ambition. Selfish ambition—a desire to get something for one’s own pleasure or profit—is often considered essential in secular leaders. But any self-promoting, self-reliant, or self-consuming motivations in FDR had been tempered by contracting deadly polio on a family trip. He went to bed sick and woke up paralyzed. His battle to overcome changed him so he could change the world.

What is wrong with our world today? Too few leaders like this exist in the world, and I am not sure they are desired. Nevertheless, I will make the case that we need them, and the best path for developing them is found in the Scriptures.

Let me explain.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

The paradox of progress: How our selfish ambitions cause us to lose more than we gain

Again, I saw futility under the sun. [8] There is a man all alone, without even a son or brother. And though there is no end to his labor, his eyes are still not content with his wealth: “For whom do I toil and bereave my soul of enjoyment?” This too is futile—a miserable task.

Ecclesiastes 4:7-8 BSB

The last 25 years of the 21st century have brought breathtaking advances in science and psychology. We diagnose and cure diseases that once destroyed generations. We live longer, think faster, and understand more about the human brain. We seem poised for generational breakthroughs as AI and quantum computing promise unimaginable futures.

Yet something has shifted in these same decades. The rise of social media, hustle culture, and personal branding has transformed ambition from something we once pursued on behalf of greater humanity into something we now chase in isolation. The remote economy and the four-hour work week promised freedom, but reality is setting in as these post-pandemic visions are being upended by the creative destruction of AI. Once again, we are experiencing the very futility the writer of Ecclesiastes observed—endless labor that leaves us asking, “For whom do I toil?”

We’ve gained unprecedented tools for connection, yet loneliness epidemics plague our societies. We’ve democratized ambition, making it accessible to everyone with a smartphone and a side hustle, yet this same accessibility has made selfish ambition more universal—and more destructive—than perhaps any generation before us has experienced.

We live in polarized times. Hate explodes in mass shootings. Anxiety is the common cold of our emotional lives. Birth rates are plummeting. Fewer young people believe in marriage. And for many, the most profound experience of the day is earning more “likes” than their peers.

The irony is unbearable: at the very moment that we know more than we ever have, we also feel more lost than ever before. We are left to wonder how all our human achievements could have led us to the exact place Jesus warned us about. As he put it:

What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?

Luke 9:25 NIV

One of the reasons? We’ve placed all our faith in science and psychology—and used them to push ourselves to the center while God is relegated to the margins.

This is not a knock on science or psychology. They are extraordinary disciplines, capable of improving and saving lives. But they were never meant to replace spirituality.

Science is a way to measure physical truth. Psychology is a way to measure brain chemistry and its effects. They can’t tell us why we are here or how we should live, only how things work. But there is a third domain—one they cannot measure: the spiritual.

This is where we turn to God. To Scripture. To faith. And contrary to assumptions about scientists, this path is not as irrational as some would have us believe. Even Einstein recognized the necessity of both domains:

Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.

Albert Einstein, Ideas and Opinions

Simply put, science and faith ask different questions and use different methods, but we need both to live fully human lives. Science without faith leaves us knowing how everything works but not why any of it matters. Faith without science leaves us with meaning but no way to engage the physical world God created.

Today, understanding and recognizing both science and religion as credible sources of wisdom, we’ll use the framework of the scientific method—not to prove God, but to pursue him. In doing so, we’ll rediscover what it means to live spiritually in a world dominated by data.

Here are the key elements of the scientific method that will help us discover the answer to the questions we began with: What’s going on in our world, and what can we do about it?

• Observation: Noticing things about ourselves that cause us to question the patterns we see in the world.

• Hypothesis: Proposing an explanation of what’s going on in the world using the Scriptures.

• Experiment: Testing our hypothesis by looking at the Bible and asking ourselves deep questions.

• Analysis: Making sense of our answers by looking at data and at the life of Jesus.

• Conclusion: Going forward with new clarity about what’s going on in the world and what we can do about it.

Over the next three weeks, we’ll run a spiritual experiment. We’ll collect evidence—not from labs, but from lives. We will operate under one bold premise:

The Bible offers a more precise diagnosis of our cultural crisis than any secular framework.

For ever since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through His workmanship [all His creation, the wonderful things that He has made], so that they [who fail to believe and trust in Him] are without excuse and without defense.

Romans 1:20 AMP

This is not just content. It’s a confrontation with the force that’s destroying our world.

The Chemistry Lab is open. Let’s begin our investigation.

Observation

Noticing things about ourselves that cause us to question the patterns we see in the world.

In this first step of the scientific method, here is my observation: our world is currently being broken by selfish ambition.

Let’s break this down.

Jesus taught us that we must diagnose our own vision problems before we attempt to help someone else with theirs.

Why do you look at the [insignificant] speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice and acknowledge the [egregious] log that is in your own eye? [4] Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me get the speck out of your eye,’ when there is a log in your own eye? [5] You hypocrite (play-actor, pretender), first get the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

Matthew 7:3-5 AMP

Centuries after Jesus taught this, psychiatrist Carl Jung discovered what he had been teaching all along. Jung wrote about those who can’t see other people clearly or objectively because they are projecting their own unresolved issues on them:

No matter how obvious it may be to the neutral observer that it is a matter of projections, there is little hope that the subject will perceive this himself. He must be convinced that he throws a very long shadow before he is willing to withdraw his emotionally-toned projections from their object.

Carl Jung, The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious

The similarity of Jung’s writing and Jesus’s teaching is spiritual chemistry at work—God using psychology to help us rediscover biblical truth. Jung was describing exactly what Jesus warned against: projecting our own unresolved issues onto others, criticizing their speck while ignoring our log. The hypocrite and the person with a “long shadow” are the same person.

I know this because I was that person. As a teenager, my way of projecting was to remain silent about my insecurities while being condescending—verbally and silently—to people around me. Years later, while reconnecting with friends, one of my former classmates said that she considered me and one of my friends to be the two most conceited people in our entire high school of 2,000 students. That was shocking to hear, especially since I was already a Christian by then. But it explained the length of my shadow and showed me that becoming a Christian was just the beginning—I needed to grow as a Christian by dealing with not only my sinful nature, but my human nature.

Achievement had been the measuring stick of my life from my earliest days. I measured myself by where I ranked in class, sports, and popularity. I defined myself by the positions I held, possessions I owned, and prestige I possessed. As a result, I developed an insatiable drive that I later learned was selfish ambition.

The problem was deeper than I realized. I thought I grasped the point of life, but I couldn’t—because I was living a life of selfish ambition, blinded to what God was doing in the world and in my life:

He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 AMP

My obsession with achievement was my human nature’s dysfunctional response to life—a way to suppress and avoid uncomfortable emotions. But the result was an inability to access love and deep emotional connections. My sinful nature took advantage of these dysfunctional obsessions to draw me deeper into the empty pursuits of selfish ambition.

This dysfunction came from many places—being an adult child of an alcoholic, being raised during a time when men weren’t learning or teaching much about emotional intelligence, experiencing the insecurity of adolescence, and being an African American in a predominantly white community that I loved but required me to negotiate two very different worlds. All of this gave my sinful nature fertile ground to draw me into an empty life.

This was my “long shadow.” If I had not become a Christian, I would have avoided it all and just projected my angst onto other people through bitterness, criticism, and competition. But because I became a Christian, the light of Christ set me free from my shadow, just as John 8:31-32 promises.

The years have taught me to stop living to impress and start living to love people, with this passage of Scripture as my guiding light:

Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. [4] Don’t look out only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too.

Philippians 2:3-4 NLT

Selfish ambition has been responsible for most of the foolish decisions, careless mistakes, heartless sins, and broken relationships in my life. It has been at the scene of all my ”unpretty” moments.

I am an expert on the manifestations and consequences of selfish ambition. While it’s humbling and it’s left me with my fingers searching for the rewind button on my life, I am nothing without my sins. They have taught me to understand the importance of focusing on God and relying on him to become the person I was meant to be rather than regretting the man I used to be.

Which puts me in a credible position to tell you: our world is currently being broken by selfish ambition.

Hypothesis

A hands-on reflection and action guide designed to turn insights into growth.

My observation leads me to this working hypothesis: Selfish ambition produces spiritual disorder and social decay, but spiritual ambition rooted in God’s love creates peace, humility, and healing.

What if the very force breaking our world is the same force that could heal it? Ambition was meant to build, not break. The difference lies in a single word: selfish. This hypothesis changes everything about how we approach our cultural crisis.

To explore this hypothesis, we need to start with Jeremiah 6, where the prophet addresses a people who are looking for solutions in all the wrong places:

This is what the LORD says: “Stop at the crossroads and look around. Ask for the old, godly way, and walk in it. Travel its path, and you will find rest for your souls. But you reply, ‘No, that’s not the road we want!’

Jeremiah 6:16 NLT

[13] “From the least to the greatest, their lives are ruled by greed. From prophets to priests, they are all frauds. [14] They offer superficial treatments for my people’s mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when there is no peace.

Jeremiah 6:13-14 NLT

The prophet Jeremiah noticed something about the mindset of his time. People were only out for themselves, driven by an innate ambition that had been corrupted with self-consumption.

The cultural data today confirms what Jeremiah observed. Let’s take a look at some data from a book by political and cultural commentator David Brooks:

Between 1948 and 1954, psychologists asked more than 10,000 adolescents whether they considered themselves to be a very important person. At that point, 12 percent said yes. The same question was revisited in 1989, and this time it wasn’t 12 percent who considered themselves very important, it was 80 percent of boys and 77 percent of girls.

David Brooks, The Road to Character

The percentage of people who consider themselves very important has increased, but here’s what I’ve learned working with every generation from Gen Z to Baby Boomers: saying you’re important and feeling personally secure are two different things. Many people I encounter are flooded with negative thoughts about themselves. The boasting is often a cover-up for deep insecurity.

We’ve confused being important with being loved, included, and valued in relationships. This is how the world distorts the essential with the superficial—offering “superficial treatments” just as the earlier passage from the prophet Jeremiah warned.

David Brooks also reports on the alarming rise in narcissism:

Psychologists have a thing called the narcissism test. They read people statements and ask if the statements apply to them. Statements such as ‘I like to be the center of attention…I show off if I get the chance because I am extraordinary…Somebody should write a biography about me.’ The median narcissism score has risen 30 percent in the last two decades. Ninety-three percent of young people score higher than the middle score just twenty years ago.

David Brooks, The Road to Character

These statistics give us helpful information, but fail to explain how our culture became fertile ground for narcissism. I believe there’s a dangerous progression at work:

Bruce Springsteen described this never-ending cycle perfectly in his song “Badlands”:

“Poor man wanna be rich, Rich man wanna be king, And a king ain’t satisfied till he rules everything.”

This is the dangerous cycle that the Bible describes in James 3:16—a disordered life born from selfish ambition. It’s a personal cycle we must break and a culture we must eradicate.

James explains exactly why this cultural breakdown is happening:

If you are wise and understand God’s ways, prove it by living an honorable life, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom. [14] But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. [15] For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. [16] For wherever there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and evil of every kind.

James 3:13-16 NLT

This “disorder of every kind” is shown across multiple areas in data presented by David Brooks in The Road to Character:

1. The rise of fame-seeking – Fame ranked 15th out of 16 life goals in 1976, but by 2007, 51% of young people listed being famous as a top personal goal. Middle school girls now prefer being a celebrity’s assistant over being president of Harvard.

2. The decline of intimacy – People once reported having four or five close friends; now it’s two to three, and the number with no confidants has doubled. Thirty-five percent of older adults report chronic loneliness, up from 20% a decade ago.

3. The erosion of trust – In the early 1960s, majorities believed most people could be trusted. By the 1990s, distrusters had a 20-point margin over trusters, and that gap continues to widen.

4. The collapse of empathy – Today’s college students score 40% lower than 1970s students in their ability to understand what another person is feeling, with the biggest drop occurring after 2000.

5. The death of character language – Words like “bravery” (down 66%), “gratitude” (down 49%), “humbleness” (down 52%), and “kindness” (down 56%) have drastically declined in usage, while individualistic phrases like “I come first” have surged.

These societal signs show we are in need of an answer when it comes to the question of selfish ambition and self-consumption. David Brooks captures the essence of the solution:

Humility is freedom from the need to prove you are superior all the time, but egotism is a ravenous hunger in a small space—self-concerned, competitive, and distinction-hungry.

David Brooks, The Road to Character

Brooks says humility is freedom. I agree that humility is freedom because it’s the absence of insecurity. It’s the freedom God gives us from always trying to impress. It’s the fruit of living God’s way, as James 3 continues to explain:

But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willing to yield to others. It is full of mercy and the fruit of good deeds. It shows no favoritism and is always sincere. [18] And those who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of righteousness.

James 3:17-18 NLT

Humility breaks us out of the self-consumption cycle by making us willing to admit our deeper spiritual and emotional needs to God. What we need is not to be impressive or important, but to be loved, understood, and believed in. When we are humble, we will find security by being rooted in God’s love:

For this reason I kneel before the Father… [17] so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, [18] may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, [19] and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Ephesians 3:14, 17-19 NIV

Despite the weakness of our human nature and the sinfulness of our sinful nature, Jesus died on the cross to free us forever from the consequences of our past so we could live for the future. This is what saved me from selfish ambition and what I believe will save us all. Knowing how great God’s love is strengthens us on the inside, making us capable of handling whatever comes on the outside.

With this resilience, we can walk in this world no longer afraid of people or God because we know the cross has purchased us perfect love:

Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear. If we are afraid, it is for fear of punishment, and this shows that we have not fully experienced his perfect love. [19] We love each other because he loved us first.

1 John 4:18-19 NLT

The love of God quiets the noise and complexity of life, leaving us satisfied:

My heart is not proud, LORD, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. [2] But I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content. [3] Israel, put your hope in the LORD both now and forevermore.

Psalm 131:1-3 NIV

This is how we move from a disordered life to a beautiful one.

This brings us back to our hypothesis: Selfish ambition produces spiritual disorder and social decay, but spiritual ambition rooted in God’s love creates peace, humility, and healing.

To be continued…

This is where we will leave our scientific method today. Next week, we will run an experiment to learn how to transform selfish ambition into spiritual ambition.

As we await the next installment of this three-part newsletter, reflect on these questions:

• How have you seen selfish ambition in your life? How do you see it in the world?

• Why do you think it’s helpful and even hopeful to identify selfish ambition in our own lives and in the world around us?

• What would taking the first steps of humility look like for you?

• How can God’s love keep you secure in the coming weeks?

As always, I would love to hear from you.

One of the most profound experiences I’ve had was reading Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman. When it was published in 1995, it upended our culture’s tendency to overemphasize IQ, undervalue gifts that aren’t intellectual, and ignore emotional insight.

For me, the book opened a door. It helped me understand my emotional numbness, suppression, and immaturity. Goleman broke through and made it okay to talk about emotion—at home, in school, at work, and beyond. Suddenly, those of us who were emotionally unaware or afraid had a path forward.

Over the years, I’ve recommended the book to many people—yet most of them never finish it. That always puzzled me. But eventually, I realized why: trying to overcome emotional limitations with insight alone is too much. People resonate with what Goleman teaches and might discover helpful insights about themselves, but they often don’t have the power to live it out.

And that’s where I believe his book stops just short of the deeper truth: we need spiritual power.

Great spiritual teachers, like Buddha and Jesus, have touched their disciples’ hearts by speaking in the language of emotion, teaching in parables, fables, and stories. Indeed, religious symbol and ritual makes little sense from the rational point of view; it is couched in the vernacular of the heart.

Daniel Goleman, Emotional Intelligence

Goleman writes about Jesus and gets close to the truth. He describes Jesus as emotionally effective, but Jesus was more than that. Jesus was also spiritually real and powerful.

Jesus didn’t just speak the language of the heart—he transformed it. He didn’t just help people understand emotion; he gave them the power to become new people through the Holy Spirit.

How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?

Galatians 3:3 NLT

Emotional intelligence opens the door to change. But without the Spirit, most people can’t walk through it. Only those who walk with God the way Jesus did will step beyond emotional intelligence into a powerful and transformative life. That’s why the spiritual intelligence of Jesus must be taught, understood, and imitated if we want total transformation. Without it, we will rely on humanistic strength, grinding and striving to become someone better by our own effort.

But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, [23] gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

Galatians 5:22-23 NLT

Transformation doesn’t come by trying harder—it comes from being connected with God. This is what produces qualities like love, joy, kindness, and strength in our lives and relationships. In today’s edition of The Chemistry Lab, we will discover how these qualities can become limitless in our lives, not through self-reliance, but through the Spirit who makes it possible.

Notebooks open. Let’s see what we can learn today.

The Weekly Experiment

A hands-on reflection and action guide designed to turn insights into growth.

If spiritual intelligence is the missing ingredient in our emotional growth, then we need to learn how Jesus lived it. What does it look like to follow his pattern?

First, we have to recover the real Jesus.

Because for too long, religious tradition has bled him dry—extracting his intensity, his tenacity, and his dangerous love—leaving behind a lifeless symbol. They’ve robbed us of the revolutionary who walked with outcasts and confronted power, substituting him with a harmless institutionalized figure who confronted no one and changed nothing. What they’ve stolen isn’t just his edge—it’s his heartbeat and his breath. It’s his capacity to shatter comfortable lies and awaken sleeping souls.

They’ve made him seem unreachable in an effort to depict sinlessness, detached in an effort to make him appear supernatural, and turned his humanity into a costume instead of reality.

But Jesus wasn’t a symbol. He was a man. He was a carpenter. He was built for storms and suffering. He was tough enough to face demons and tender enough to touch lepers. He was spiritually intelligent enough to read a room—and a soul—without saying a word.

When I try to grasp that presence, I often look to movie characters who show me glimpses of it. I see the spiritual steadiness of Jesus in Obi-Wan Kenobi. I see the focused intensity of Jesus in Jason Bourne. I see the mission-driven courage of Jesus in Mission Impossible’s Ethan Hunt. I see the relentless empathy of Jesus in Robin William’s portrayal of Patch Adams.

But even these characters—as incredible and even superhuman as they are—fall short.

To me, Jesus was a spiritual scientist—a people scientist—who unearthed the mysteries of the human soul the way Newton revealed gravity and Einstein revolutionized our understanding of reality itself.

As a people scientist, he didn’t just understand emotions; he transformed them. He didn’t just observe people; he discovered them. And what he discovered wasn’t weakness to be fixed but potential to be awakened.

That’s the Jesus we follow. And that’s the pattern we’re called to practice.

We can become spiritual and powerful people scientists like Jesus was. Here’s what he did, and, if we are bold enough to experiment, what we can do too:

1. Open your eyes

“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work. [35] Don’t you have a saying, ‘It’s still four months until harvest’? I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.

John 4:34-35 NIV

People scientists like Jesus pay attention to the people around them. They open their eyes to notice others, but they don’t make superficial judgments. They stop, listen, and learn. People scientists make it their life’s work to study and understand those around them—their needs, interests, dreams, passions, weaknesses, and strengths—with a deep and loving curiosity.

2. Act with compassion

Whenever crowds came to Him, He had compassion for them because they were so deeply distraught, malaised, and heart-broken. They seemed to Him like lost sheep without a shepherd. [37] Jesus understood what an awesome task was before Him, so He said to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. [38] Ask the Lord of the harvest to send more workers into His harvest field.”

Matthew 9:36-38 Voice

Noticing people’s needs made Jesus feel compassion for them. But Jesus didn’t just feel something. He did something.

Compassion, for Jesus, wasn’t sentiment. It was action. It was a decision each day to alter the conditions of those he came to know.

People scientists don’t stop at empathy. They follow Jesus’s example. They move toward the hurting with a love that intercedes with prayer and intervenes with action.

3. Diagnose spiritually

But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people. [25] He did not need any testimony about mankind, for he knew what was in each person.

John 2:24-25 NIV

Emotional intelligence can read behavior. Spiritual intelligence reads the heart, the soul, and what’s beneath the performance.

People scientists like Jesus can do both. And that’s why they make the greatest impact—not by managing relationships, but by ministering to the soul.

Jesus didn’t just react to what people did. He understood who they were. This deeper understanding allowed him to see the patterns that no one spoke out loud and feel the brokenness that no one dared admit.

4. Live and lead with love

As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love.

John 15:9 NIV

Now about your love for one another we do not need to write to you, for you yourselves have been taught by God to love each other.

1 Thessalonians 4:9 NIV

The greatest people scientists are taught by God. They love from the deepest source of all—God himself.

This is how Jesus lived his life.

People scientists who follow his example don’t rely on tools or techniques to manage or manipulate relationships. They’re not motivated by performance or pressure, but by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, who lives in them. He shapes their hearts and teaches them how to love with patience, power, and purpose.

That’s what makes their love real and their leadership transformational.

Field Notes

Key takeaways and final thoughts to carry with us into the week ahead.

And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.

Romans 8:11 NIV

Jesus didn’t just model love; he made love possible through the Holy Spirit. Becoming a Christian isn’t adopting a moral code; it’s entering a relationship with God that rewires our hearts from the inside out.

The truth we must come to terms with this week is this: Emotional intelligence helps us manage behavior. Spiritual intelligence transforms who we are.

This is the spiritual chemistry we were made for: God’s Spirit connecting with our spirit to unlock our fullest potential—emotionally, spiritually, mentally, and physically—across all four dimensions of life.

Not everyone will believe this—but if you’ve ever sensed there’s more to you than self-help can reach, more to love than technique can teach, then you’ve already begun the search for what Jesus came to give.

And that’s what makes you a people scientist.
You don’t work harder to love people.
You notice them with open eyes.
You care for them with loving action.
You understand them beneath the surface.
You love God—and he teaches you how to love others.

If you’ve ever wondered whether Gen Z still wants anything to do with God, this conversation is for you. Dr. Tanita Maddox has spent 26 years on the front lines of Gen Z ministry, and what she taught me about talking to Gen Z about God completely reframed how I see this generation — and it’s the most hopeful conversation I’ve had in a long time.

We dig into why relationships — not statistics, not sermons, not slick programs — are still the doorway into faith for young people. Tanita shares the three things Gen Z says makes them actually feel listened to, why so many of them trust a stranger on TikTok more than the adults in their own home, and the surprising reason AI is becoming a competing spiritual authority in their lives. We also talk honestly about why being comfortable with being uncomfortable might be the most important skill we can give our kids — and ourselves.

This one is for parents wondering how to reach their teenager, for pastors wondering why Gen Z church attendance doesn’t always translate into real faith, and for anyone who’s ever felt rejected while trying to love someone well. There is so much hope found in this conversation, and I think you’re going to walk away encouraged, equipped, and ready to show up differently in the lives of the young people God has placed around you.

Who is Tanita Maddox?

Dr. Tanita Maddox is a Gen Z expert and the National Director for Generational Impact at Young Life. With over 26 years of youth ministry experience, she specializes in analyzing modern adolescent culture, diagnosing where legacy models fail, and training leaders on how to build authentic, localized relationships with Generation Z.

Tanita’s links

• Website

• Book

Share The Spiritual Frontier

The Father is spirit, and He is seeking followers whose worship is sourced in truth and deeply spiritual as well.

John 4:21-24 Voice

The path to God is a deeply spiritual one.

Jesus is our guide on this path. He is the one who can show us how to enter into and live with a spirituality that allows us to break free from the limits of the physical world.

This Spirituality of Jesus is the subject of our series. The first four installments were intended to lay a foundation for thinking spiritually. Part five begins the process of making spirituality practical.

The spiritual path

Don’t get lost in despair; believe in God, and keep on believing in Me. My Father’s home is designed to accommodate all of you. If there were not room for everyone, I would have told you that. I am going to make arrangements for your arrival.

I will be there to greet you personally and welcome you home, where we will be together. You know where I am going and how to get there. I am the path, the truth, and the energy of life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

John 14:1-4,6 Voice

Making the “Spirituality of Jesus” practical is a process.

It begins with embracing the truth that Jesus himself is “the path, the truth, and the energy of life.” This understanding is made practical when we read the narrative of his life as recorded in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John as the embodiment of spirituality.

Believing in the “Spirituality of Jesus” in this way leads to believing he is intimately guiding our lives. Spirituality becomes a way of life, where the path we walk is the one marked out for us by Jesus (Hebrews 12:1-3), the truth we believe is found in his Word (John 8:31-32), and the powerful energy flowing through us is his Spirit (Colossians 1:29).

The spirituality of parts one and two in this series will remain interesting theories until we decide to live the “Spirituality of Jesus,” which begins with being “born again.”

Born again spirituality

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.

John 3:3–6 NIV

I became spiritual when I became a Christian, but I didn’t know it. Maybe you were like me. I understood the foundational truth of John 3:3-6 as a call for me to become a Christian. While this is true, viewing this Scripture solely through the lens of conversion obscures the deeper truth of why we need to become Christians.

Jesus uses the metaphor of being “born again” to explain that it is impossible for us to become spiritual without experiencing a second birth. The key is found when he says, “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”

The truth according to Scripture is that we are first born in the flesh with human parents to know, care for, and raise us into adulthood. This is human or humanistic living, where we live by the strength of human effort, the intelligence of human wisdom, and the strategies of human understanding. We rely on self-help, psychology, and science to navigate the physical or fleshly world, but the “Spirituality of Jesus” is much different, as expressed in John 18:36:

My kingdom is not recognized in this world. If this were My kingdom, My servants would be fighting for My freedom. But My kingdom is not in this physical realm.

John 18:36 Voice

When we are “born again,” something quite different begins to happen. We come in contact with and are inhabited by the Spirit of God. This is much different than getting out into the spirituality of nature, or experiencing the spirituality of meditation, because what is happening is more than entering a different state of awareness or consciousness.

Those of us who are “born again” don’t merely experience the spiritual, we become spiritual beings. Our capability extends beyond what is human. We see beyond the physical and fleshly. We sense and see the invisible, the spiritual world, which allows us to actually see God’s Kingdom (see John 3:3).

We become spiritual beings walking in the physical world, conquering it and changing it. Living any other way is to ignore or stifle the “Spirituality of Jesus” in our lives (1 Thessalonians 5:19).

Practical powerful spirituality

Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

“All this I have spoken while still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

John 14:23–27 NIV

Before I became a Christian, I was proudly and completely humanistic.

I boasted in and relied upon my human strength, intelligence, and strategies. When I was “born again,” I joined the church but remained humanistic. My experience of Christianity was exactly what is described in Galatians 3:3-4.

Are you so foolish? Do you think you can perfect something God’s Spirit started with any human effort? Have you suffered so greatly for nothing – if it was indeed for nothing?

Are you so foolish? Do you think you can perfect something God’s Spirit started with any human effort? Have you suffered so greatly for nothing – if it was indeed for nothing?

Galatians 3:3-4 Voice

The early part of my spiritual life was filled with foolishness and frustration because I kept working humanistically.

I created rules and restrictions to help me overcome sin. But as Scripture teaches, they failed due to my lack of spiritual power (Colossians 2:20-23).

Once I became a leader, my heart and character were crushed by the consequences of pride born from insecurity, and by all-consuming anxiety that was rooted in my people-pleasing and fear of failure. I had become a Christian, but my lack of spirituality made my life indistinguishable from someone who was not.

The reason for this is found in John 14:23, which describes the desire God and Jesus have to make their home with us.

According to John 14:24-27, God and Jesus make their home with us when we receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). Once they have made their home with us, we are to give the Holy Spirit unlimited access to our lives (John 16:15 Voice), a process that is explained in inspiring detail in Romans 8 and Galatians 5.

When we live like this, we are living the “Spirituality of Jesus” as spiritual beings in the physical world — conquering it, changing ourselves, and changing the world. For me, this meant abandoning harsh rules and regulations.

Instead, I learned to live in the “flow” of the Spirit, allowing God to inspire a desire to please him, a sentiment best described in Philippians 2:13.

What does this look like? We conquer sin, change our character, and by doing good change the world around us.

All of this is possible, because we are not walking in or being limited by our flesh, but are free in the Spirit (II Corinthians 3:16-18).

Reflection questions

Reflect on the following questions to begin living the “Spirituality of Jesus” practically in your day-to-day life:

1. What other paths are you tempted to take besides Jesus’s path? How can you increase your focus on and devotion to Jesus as your spiritual path?

2. How well do you understand what it means to be “born again”? Who can you spend time with to better understand being “born again,” and if necessary, receive help from to make this pivotal decision?

3. How practical is your spirituality? Are you better at reading and thinking about spirituality or actually living spiritually in your day-to-day life? How could you change to live spiritually in your actions and not just in your mind?

4. Based on the first four parts of the “Spirituality of Jesus” series, write down three ways you need to change your thinking, actions, and relationships to become more spiritual.

Share The Spiritual Frontier

13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand.

Ephesians 6:13

In the first installment of our series we discussed “How We Search,” then in part 2 we pursued a spiritual “Awakening.”

After that we set out in part 3 to become spiritually “Aware.” These first 3 installments combine with this, number 4, to create a foundation for us to think about and discuss our spirituality.

This fourth one, on becoming spiritually “Active”, seeks to set our minds to exert spiritual power in our daily lives. While we won’t exactly become Harry or Hermione, the level of power God desires to exert in our lives will be real and greater.

While some may be uncomfortable talking about exerting spiritual power in our daily lives, we cannot ignore Ephesians 6:13, which makes it clear that “the day of evil” will come, and in order for us to stand our ground, we must put on “the full armor of God.”

Putting on this armor is spiritual activity, which means we are exerting spiritual power with each piece of armor we add. Too many people see and experience this armor humanistically, which is why their lives lack spiritual power.

For instance, we can read Ephesians 5:14 dutifully as our need to tell the truth, be righteous, and tell others about the gospel of peace. Reading this passage with a mindset to be spiritually “active” is different. It suggests having the faith that something spiritual even magical happens when we obey this Scripture.

14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.

Ephesians 6:14-15

Spiritually active people believe they are driving darkness out of their lives when they are truthful with God in prayer and people in conversation. They approach every prayer and conversation with the awareness that truth will bring God’s power to bear on whatever the focus of their prayer or conversation might be.

This same mindset carries over to righteousness being the breastplate that not only protects our hearts, but allows God to move more powerfully in our hearts. Righteousness, or keeping our relationship with God clear of sin, allows Him to give us insight into Scripture, circumstances, and people. It unlocks the heart for the Spirit to flow without limit (John 16:15 Voice).

Perhaps most interesting is the idea of having our “feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.” This means when we become spiritually aware of someone in need of God or good, we are ready to serve them. Interestingly enough, this is our spiritual offense.

Serving others by doing good or helping them know God is how we go on the offensive in our fight against the darkness, which means that time-worn idea of evangelism is more than a duty; it is the way we drive back the forces of darkness in our lives.

Once we see the armor of God as our means to exert spiritual power, then we realize we can stop the “flaming arrows” of temptation, discouragement, or evil disruption in our lives.

16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Ephesians 6:16

We can fight the negative and destructive thoughts in our minds with faith, which increases our mental and emotional resistance to the discouragements sent from the forces of darkness, intent to make us quit.

Instead of giving up, we put on the “helmet of salvation” to remind us of the unseen power of God, which He promises to exert as He rescues us time and time again.

17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Ephesians 6:17 NIV

With secure confidence in the saving power of God, we tightly grip the “sword of the Spirit”, which is God’s Word, and then march forward in our fight to rescue others from the darkness.

Finally, having embraced the full armor of God, our prayers will become more powerful since God has unlimited access to our lives. We can go to work on changing the world through our prayer lives, exerting spiritual power and creating spiritual activity that changes things for God and for good.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people.

Ephesians 6:18 NIV

There is so much more to be said about experiencing a spiritual awakening, becoming spiritually aware and active, but beginning today each one of us can start where we are and change things. We can fight for the light and keep the darkness from rising.

Reflection questions

The following questions are meant to help us gauge our level of comfort with and conviction about becoming people who allow God to exert his spiritual power in our lives:

1. Do you feel uncomfortable or comfortable with the idea of exerting spiritual power in your life? Why? Why not? (Ephesians 6:13)

2. We can apply the armor of God either “humanistically” or “spiritually”. In being completely honest with yourself, which one best describes you? What can you learn about yourself from this answer as well as your answer to question number 1?

3. There are multiple pieces of armor mentioned in Ephesians 6:13-17. Which ones do you use? Are there any of which you do not believe in? Are there any you find more or less difficult to apply?

4. How can you become more spiritual in your application of the armor of God? How can you see it as the exertion of God’s power in your life?

Share The Spiritual Frontier

Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Ephesians 6:10–12 NIV

Once we have experienced our spiritual “awakening” based on our discussion in part 2 of our series, we are ready to take the next step, which is to become spiritually “aware.”

Spiritual awareness is precisely explained in Ephesians 6:12, where we are directed to see the world spiritually. This means understanding “our struggle is not against flesh and blood,” and never settling for the superficial view that human resistance is responsible for our difficulties.

There are a number of ways to see and understand spiritual awareness in Scripture. One of the most enlightening ways occurs when Daniel is seeking to understand the truth of God’s will:

20 While I was speaking and praying, confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel and making my request to the Lord my God for his holy hill—21 while I was still in prayer, Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision, came to me in swift flight about the time of the evening sacrifice.

22 He instructed me and said to me, “Daniel, I have now come to give you insight and understanding. 23 As soon as you began to pray, a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed. Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision…

Daniel 9:20–23 NIV

Daniel 9:20-23 teaches us that Daniel prayed and confessed sin in making his request of God, and “while he was still in prayer, Gabriel” came to him in swift flight. Gabriel is an angel, which means when Daniel prayed, God sent his angels into action. There was heavenly activity in response to Daniel’s spiritual activity of prayer.

This story becomes even more descriptive when we discover that Gabriel was detained in delivering the message of insight to Daniel:

Then he continued, “Do not be afraid, Daniel. Since the first day that you set your mind to gain understanding and to humble yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to them.

But the prince of the Persian kingdom resisted me twenty-one days. Then Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, because I was detained there with the king of Persia. Now I have come to explain to you what will happen to your people in the future, for the vision concerns a time yet to come.”

Daniel 10:12–14 NIV

Gabriel, the messenger of God, was detained by the prince of the Persian kingdom. This prince of the Persian kingdom is generally considered to be the angel of darkness assigned to the nation of Persia, what some call a “territorial spirit.” These spirits’ sole purpose is to wreak havoc on nations, keeping them in the darkness.

The reason I am sharing these accounts of Daniel, his prayer life, and the angelic activity it inspired, is to help us become spiritually aware.

I can still remember reading Daniel 9 and 10 for the first time and being stunned because it was as if God pulled back the curtain, so I could see what happens when I pray.

Spiritual awareness is like that–we feel as though the curtain has been pulled back, blindfold removed, or our eyes have been opened. We start to see why prayer is so important.

We begin to think about the sources of temptation, conflict, and confusion being a result of unseen dark spiritual activity. In short, we begin to live spiritually aware lives, understanding the limited power of people, and the immense need to learn to exert spiritual power if we are going to flourish in this world.

When we develop this awareness that the most relevant activity taking place at any one time is spiritual, and recognize the insignificance of human action in comparison to the invisible spiritual power at work in the cosmos, we then lose our fear of people and discover what it truly means to be in awe of God.

Pause and reflect

Reflect on the following questions to ensure you are becoming spiritually aware. If you are having difficulty, reread this study, and reexamine the questions before moving on – until you sense an increase in your spiritual awareness:

1. Spiritual awareness is about seeing the world spiritually, getting beyond “the superficial view that human resistance is responsible for our difficulties.” What relationships or events can you change your perspective on because of this realization? How would you live differently if you embraced this perspective in your day-to-day life? (Ephesians 6:10-12)

2. What does it mean when it says Daniel was “highly esteemed?” Do you believe you could ever be highly esteemed in heaven and by God? How might you grow in your spiritual life to become highly esteemed? (Daniel 9:20-23)

3. How would you describe the connection between confession of sin and the power of prayer? Is this how you pray? Why? Why not? (Daniel 9:20)

4. What is the connection between the spiritual activity of prayer with the activity of God and angels in heaven? (Daniel 10:12-14)

5. Would you describe yourself as spiritually aware, spiritually dull, or spiritually numb? Why? Why not? How can you grow to become spiritually aware, and continue increasing your spiritual awareness?

Share The Spiritual Frontier

Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs? 53 Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.”

Luke 22:52–53 NIV

The unspeakable tragedy perpetrated by one man in Las Vegas on 22,000 concertgoers from the 32nd-floor of his hotel room on October 1, 2017, left most Americans stunned and bewildered.

For those near and far, it was as if we were watching and listening to the final witness testifying to the fact that darkness is rising.

Peggy Noonan of the Wall Street Journal describes her response to the Las Vegas shooting with a horror reflective of this rising darkness.

“And here is the horror for me of Las Vegas: I was not shattered. That shatters me. It was just another terrible story. It is not the new normal it is the new abnormal and deep down we know it’s not going to stop. There is too much instability in our country, too much rage and lovelessness, too many weapons.”

Peggy Noonan, The Culture of Death—and Disdain

Ms. Noonan describes the emotional fatigue setting in on our country. The corrosive gauntlet of negativity filling the airwaves and social media is wearing us down, filling us with fear, burdening us with anxiety, all the while eroding our ability to have conversations with our neighbors.

There is a very real danger that we will accept this “new abnormal.” This is the effect when darkness rises, it wears us down until we accept it as unstoppable, even inevitable.

The additional danger in the rising of darkness is that, while some grow weary, others become afraid. Noonan addresses this in her description of why she thinks people own so many guns.

“I think a lot of Americans have guns because they’re fearful—and for damn good reason. They fear a coming chaos, and know that when it happens it will be coming to a nation that no longer coheres. They think it’s all collapsing—our society, our culture, the baseline competence of our leadership class.

They see the cultural infrastructure giving way—illegitimacy, abused children, neglect, racial tensions, kids on opioids staring at screens—and, unlike their cultural superiors, they understand the implications.”

Peggy Noonan, The Culture of Death—and Disdain

Agree or disagree with her conclusions, what should be clear to each one of us is we are living in a time of fear-inducing chaos, a time when darkness is rising.

The city writhes in chaos; every home is locked to keep out intruders.

Isaiah 24:10 NLT

Our American culture, which was once the envy of the world seems to be coming apart. This leaves us with a decision – to either passively submit to the darkness or embrace the spirit of those timeless words penned by Dylan Thomas in his poem “Do Not Go Gentle Into The Night”:

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Dylan Thomas, “Do Not Go Gentle Into The Night”

For those of us who choose to “fight the dying of the light,” we should embrace the words of David Brooks without political partisanship, “a new culture will have to be built, new values promulgated and a new social fabric will have to be woven, one that brings the different planets back into relation with one another.”

This means the people of the light cannot grow numb to the darkness. We must embrace our responsibility to God as well as to our neighbors to bring the light.

How do we do this? Simply put, we must learn about and live the Spirituality of Jesus.

This will require each one of us to experience a spiritual awakening, and become spiritually aware and active, so our lives radiate with the hope-filled light of God and overcome the darkness.

Let’s begin by examining what it takes to experience a spiritual awakening.

Experience your spiritual awakening

9 For the fruit of the light is all that is good, right, and true. 10 Make it your aim to learn what pleases our Lord. 11 Don’t get involved with the fruitless works of darkness; instead, expose them to the light of God.

12 You see, it’s a disgrace to speak of their secrets (so don’t even talk about what they do when no one is looking). 13-14 When the light shines, it exposes even the dark and shadowy things and turns them into pure reflections of light. This is why they sing, Awake, you sleeper! Rise from your grave, And the Anointed One will shine on you.

Ephesians 5:9-14 Voice

Ephesians 5:9-14 is a roadmap to experiencing a spiritual awakening. There are three decisions we must make.

Define the conflict

Ephesians 5:7 says the “fruit of the light is all that is good, right, and true. When we are in the light we are doing what is good, right, and true.

Based on this definition of the light, its opposite or darkness would be defined as evil, wrong, and false. It is impossible to have a spiritual awakening unless we identify the forces in conflict or at war with each other, and then choose a side.

Choose a side

Ephesians 5:10-11 calls on each one of us to choose the light by making it our “aim to learn what pleases the Lord.”

The decision we are to make in choosing the side of the light is to not “get involved with the fruitless works of darkness.” Simply put, when we choose the side of the light we make every effort to resist the darkness or sin. No resistance to sin is a choice to be on the side of darkness.

There can be no spiritual awakening if we refuse to choose the side of the light, because choosing the darkness keeps us “asleep”. (Romans 13:11-14)

Start to fight

Ephesians 5:13-14 teaches us that our spiritual awakening begins when we rise from our spiritual grave, the spiritual dullness caused by unresisted and unconquered sin.

This spiritual dullness makes us slow to learn, and will eventually put us into a spiritual sleep (Hebrews 5:11-14, I Corinthians 11:30). When Ephesians 5:13-14 says, “Awake you sleeper,” it is calling on us to “rise from our graves,” something we do by exposing the darkness. This means exposing sin and dark activity in our lives, helping others expose the darkness in their lives, and together with them shining the light of God’s love.

When we let this light shine through our lives, we will drive out the destructive and debilitating darkness responsible for so much pain in so many lives.

Once you have completed your spiritual awakening, the next step is to increase your spiritual awareness, which is covered in part 3.

Until then, reflect on these questions to increase the spirituality of your thinking, and speed your awakening:

1. How do you see the darkness rising in your life and community?

2. When you examine your life, do you see yourself passively submitting to the darkness or fighting the dying of the light?

3. What specific forces of darkness and light do you see in conflict in your life?

4. How do you feel about this phrase, “No resistance to sin is a choice to be on the side of darkness.” Do you agree or disagree?

5. How would you describe your level of resistance to sin?

6. What can you do to “rise from your spiritual grave” or overcome any areas of “spiritual dullness” in your life? If you believe you are spiritually alive and well, sharp and aware, then what can you do to help those who are not?

Share The Spiritual Frontier

You can’t see the truth because you don’t know the Scriptures well and because you don’t really believe that God is powerful.

Mark 12:24 Voice

Kwai Chang Caine was the first person to make spirituality attractive to me.

He was portrayed by David Carradine in the fictional television series Kung Fu. Trained from a young age by Master Po to become a Shaolin Monk, Caine exhibited mystery and mastery. The mystery was where he gained his power, and the mastery was accessing that power.

Sad though this might be to some, Kung Fu was a more important spiritual influence on my early life than anything Christian.

Finding your burning bush

Caine lived an adventurous life, mastering the difficult and dangerous through the mystery of spirituality. This inspired me. It made me want to understand and know more.

You might say the television series Kung Fu was my “burning bush,” the sight that makes us begin to ask spiritual questions.

There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, “I will go over and see this strange sight—why the bush does not burn up.”

Exodus 3:2–3 NIV

Looking back, what I find interesting is that while living in the midst of a Midwest city saturated with churches, it was the Buddhism of a Shaolin Monastery that made spirituality attractive.

There was a power I saw in Caine’s faith that I did not see in the faith of Christians. This conflicted with my observation that if there were a sacred text that was true, then it was the Bible. How could Christians have the most intellectually honest and consistent sacred text while those who believed it lacked the spirituality I saw in other religions?

These conflicting thoughts made me choose the religious designation of agnostic, a label expressing faith that there was probably something bigger than me in the universe but nothing clear, convincing, or real.

My experience and choice are not unusual, which is something that we will address later. For now, it is important for Christians to understand those who choose not to attend church often have valid spiritual and intellectual reasons.

The problem with organized religion

… having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with such people.

2 Timothy 3:5 NIV

Since becoming a Christian, I have often reflected on my journey to faith, as well as the journeys of others that are similar to mine. The question I have pondered is, “Why Christianity?” The intellectual consistency and honesty of the Bible seem to come up short in the minds of people searching for spirituality.

I always viewed Christianity as the ultimate organized religion, and I think this perspective is one shared by a great many people today. If you want to go to church, then choose Christianity, but if you want to experience the power of spirituality, then find another faith.

When reading the Bible, there is no shortage of profound spiritual mystery, interaction, and activity, so why is Christianity seen as more organized than spiritual? There are a tremendous number of spiritual people, writers, and leaders in the Christian faith, so why does it seem like people see us as more organized than spiritual?

The Bible actually addresses this question. 2 Timothy 3:5 speaks to the fact that we can practice the Christian faith without tapping into spiritual power. When we do this, Christianity becomes a humanistic pursuit—reliant on human strength and effort. It is typically well-organized, advocating morality and good deeds, but devoid of God and his power. These conditions are described in Galatians 3:1-3:

Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ.

How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort?

Galatians 3:1–3 NLT

This passage continues to describe the result of this “humanistic Christianity.” In Galatians 3:4 (NIV84), the Bible teaches us about the painful suffering that takes place when we depend on human effort instead of the power of God.

Have you suffered so much for nothing—if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?

Galatians 3:4–5 NIV84

Power from God is only accessible when we are spiritual. Without it, God’s church becomes just another human organization—which is what many people hate and call “organized religion.” In this form, Christianity will only be attractive to those in attendance because those seeking God are usually looking for something spiritual, not humanistic.

How we search

He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the human heart; yet no one can fathom what God has done from beginning to end.

Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV

What I have learned from my own journey to God, as well as the stories told me by others, is that God has placed “eternity in the human heart.” He has made us sense and desire the spiritual, the unseen, and the eternal. It is in this sacred space that we find him.

This God made us in all our diversity from one original person, allowing each culture to have its own time to develop, giving each its own place to live and thrive in its distinct ways.

His purpose in all this was that people of every culture and religion would search for this ultimate God, grope for Him in the darkness, as it were, hoping to find Him. Yet, in truth, God is not far from any of us.

Acts 17:26-27 Voice

What we must remember about our own journey to God, and understand about the journey of our children and friends, is that we begin life searching for the unknown and unanswered. We feel spiritual stirrings, a curiosity about the unseen.

This is why we like movies about magic, aliens, and even horror (think Harry Potter or Stranger Things). Somehow, we innately know God is spiritual, so we look for him in the sacred space of spirituality.

But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

John 4:23–24 ESV

We know there is something beyond us out there, and our soul yearns and searches for it. We sense and understand spirituality, though we don’t necessarily connect this to religion or churches.

Pew Research Center supports the idea of it being more instinctive for people to seek spirituality than church in its Religious Landscape Study. What their data shows is that “the rise in spirituality has been happening among both highly religious people and the religiously unaffiliated.” Their surveys find that “the U.S. public overall appears to be growing a bit less religious – but also somewhat more spiritual.”

In truth, the Scriptures view those in search of the spiritual as “religious” because the Bible associates faith with God first and the organization second. Unless the organization has the spirituality to seek and know God, it cannot in fact be his church.

What does this mean for Christians and churches? It means that we have to evaluate ourselves on our level of spirituality—our ability to tap into God’s presence and power. This is how the unbeliever will know God is really among us.

But if an unbeliever or an inquirer comes in while everyone is prophesying, they are convicted of sin and are brought under judgment by all, as the secrets of their hearts are laid bare. So they will fall down and worship God, exclaiming, “God is really among you!”

1 Corinthians 14:24–25 NIV

Rather than focusing on activities and events as the source of attraction to those seeking God, we must learn that people first search spiritually for the experience of God, which is how they know they have found the truth. In short, it is the spiritual lives of the people, not the quality of the facility or programs, which most attracts those who search.

Asking the right questions

The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you–they are full of the Spirit and life.

John 6:63 NIV

Combining my youthful experience of being attracted to the spirituality of Kwai Chang Caine with current Pew Research made me ask three questions. First, what role did media have in my view of spirituality? Second, why are Americans choosing spirituality over church affiliation? Third, why do so few associate Christianity with the mystery and mastery of spirituality?

My answers to these questions have inspired me to develop a 5-part series of posts called “The Spirituality of Jesus” because I believe the spiritual depths of the Christian faith have been misrepresented by the uninformed, diminished by misinformation, and most importantly, neglected through our unbelief.

I hope you will join me in asking these questions, finding the answers, and developing a personal spirituality that clarifies the confusion about the Christian faith—one which should be known for the deep spirituality found in Scripture, not the humanism of organized religion.

Reflect on these questions to increase the spirituality of your thinking about how you and others search for God:

1. Why do you think we need “burning bush” moments? Do you need your first one, or perhaps a new one for a new stage of life? (Exodus 3:2-3)

2. Do you see Christianity as being more about organizations or spirituality? How has this affected your view of God and the church?

3. How do you see yourself practicing “humanistic Christianity,” and how can you be more spiritual in the way you live your faith? (2 Timothy 3:5)

4. How would you define “the sacred space of spirituality,” and what do you need to do to enter this space more regularly? (John 4:23-24)

5. Identify ways in which your view of Christianity might be confused or diminished by misinformation or misrepresentations of the faith. How has this affected your faith? What can you do to refocus and refresh your view of Christianity to make it more accurate?

Share The Spiritual Frontier

In the opening lines of the song “Cheers,” Anderson .Paak puts words to a universal feeling: our innate desire to live an extraordinary life. Each of us has dreamed of a “world premiere,” something big we know we are meant for, no matter how far away it seems. It lights a fire inside us and makes our spirit come alive.

Absent trauma, I believe every kid begins life this way.

I felt these lines decades before I heard them. For me, it began with science. At five years old, dressed in a NASA flight suit, I dreamed of discovery.

I had no idea where I would go from there—but God did. He cleared the runway for me to discover what it truly meant to live an extraordinary, beautiful, and spiritually powerful life.

He is still clearing the runway for me. He is doing the same thing for you.

In today’s edition of The Chemistry Lab, we’ll learn to reignite the fire God has placed in each of us and discover what it means to live a beautiful life.

The Workshop: How we lose our fire

A place of discovery where a story sparks insight, observation, and a deeper understanding of walking with God.

God delights in concealing things; scientists delight in discovering things.

Proverbs 25:2 MSG

It was a breezy summer day in Michigan. My parents were out, and my older sister was in charge. I was in my bedroom, intellectually locked in. There, at a kitchen table turned lab bench, I launched my first experiment.

I didn’t follow the instructions. I created my own formula.

The ensuing smoke signaled to me that I’d made a discovery—but what it signaled to my parents as they pulled into the driveway was something else entirely.

They ran in, expecting disaster. What they found was me—ten years old, grinning, wide-eyed, believing that I’d just made a breakthrough.

This story from decades ago is what inspired The Chemistry Lab. Through that very literal fire in my makeshift lab, God was revealing something to me that had been previously hidden — the fire of discovery, the ability to look at life with wonder and awe.

I learned that even in mistakes and mishaps, something beautiful can be born. While my ambitions at the time were limited to science, God was laying the groundwork for me to discover what it truly would mean to live a beautiful life.

Why did I choose science over God?

Church came first, before the chemistry lab. I remember being six or seven, sitting in pews, surrounded by people doing ordinary things. I didn’t feel wonder. I didn’t hear awe. I wasn’t drawn in.

Then came science—and as you already know, it arrived with fire.

In middle school, I was deep in the world of beakers and Bunsen burners when my mom brought home a brand-new edition of The Living Bible. I devoured books—so I opened it. Genesis. Exodus. I was curious—until I hit the parts that felt repetitive, difficult, or impractical.

The Scriptures are filled with awe, but I needed help to see it. Absent the help, the wonder faded.

I went back to my lab.

Many people lose their fire for God this way.

It’s not because they hate faith. It’s because religion without wonder cannot compete with science presented with awe.

This is what we as religious people can miss about people like I used to be— atheists, agnostics, and those seeking God without attending church. They are looking for wonder. And, at our core, so are we.

The spirit of a person is the lamp of the Lord, searching all the innermost parts of his being.

Proverbs 20:27 NASB

The literal and interpretive translations of the Bible say something stunning in Proverbs 20:27—that our human spirit is the fire of God, a searching light that probes the deepest parts of who we are.

That means God designed us to burn with curiosity, to pursue meaning, and to ignite discovery.

Science taught me that there were mysteries in the world. If I developed the necessary skills and used the expansive number of tools available to me, I could discover and deploy the powers of science to solve problems, answer questions, and resolve those mysteries.

Church didn’t give me that feeling.

Why church often fails to spark wonder

They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly…

2 Timothy 3:5 NLT

Too often, Christianity is presented as behavioral religiosity—a way of acting Christian without being spiritually transformed. We read stories about people in the Bible, and we learn about what they did or didn’t do. But too often we overlook their encounters with the God of wonder—the moments that set their spirits on fire, that show us how we can experience that same God today.

We see the rules and rituals—but not the spirituality and fire.

God didn’t design us for powerless religion or cold conformity. He didn’t call us to traditionalism or routine. He designed us to break free from the humanistic limitations of behavioral religion to discover his power flowing into our lives.

The greatest hindrance to knowledge is our adjustment to conventional notions, to mental cliches. Wonder or radical amazement, the state of maladjustment to words and notions, is, therefore, a prerequisite for an authentic awareness of that which is.

Abraham Joshua Heschel, Man Is Not Alone: A Philosophy of Religion

Wonder isn’t optional. It’s how we wake up. It’s how we find inspiration.

It’s how we see God—not just as a concept, but as the source and spark of our internal fire.

Reigniting the fire

Have you lost your fire? Cynicism and religiosity made me lose mine, while suffering or overload might make others lose theirs. If you’ve lost your fire, Jesus is not waiting to punish you. He’s coming to revive you.

“He will not break a bent twig.

Your fire might be dimly burning, but it’s not gone. While it may be flickering, that flicker is the beginning of moving from religious to spiritual, from powerless to powerful.

Workshop this:

• Have you lost your wonder?

• Are you living religiously or spiritually?

• Does your faith spark anything in you or those around you?

The Element of “Spirit”

A new element from our Spiritual Periodic Table of the Elements that builds a life of spiritual depth and power.

Properties

• Name: Spirit

• Symbol(s): Sp (for human spirit), Sp² (human spirit joined with God’s Spirit)

• Category: Vital Elements

• Function: Awakens fire, activates flow, restores awe, reveals destiny.

“Spirit” is my first entry into our Spiritual Periodic Table. “Spirit” is where fire meets flow.

God has given us a spirit of fire burning with life. This interpretive translation from the Jubilee Bible is meant to help us connect with the emotion of Proverbs 20:27, which we read earlier:

“The spirit of man is the fire of the Lord, which searches the secrets of the inward parts.”

Our spirits aren’t passive—they burn with the intensity of fire.

This fire is meant to fill our lives with light, illuminating our lives with mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical self and soul awareness (Proverbs 20:27 NIV).

But until they’re plugged into God’s Spirit, they operate far below their potential, like a match waiting for a spark.

Spiritual flow: The God connection

Once a connection is made with God, something explosive happens: alignment.

No longer wandering, we begin to discover what a truly good and beautiful life is—not just biologically alive, but spiritually alive.

His Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

Romans 8:16 NLT

Don’t you know that He who pursues and explores the human heart intimately knows the Spirit’s mind because He pleads to God for His saints to align their lives with the will of God? [28] We are confident that God is able to orchestrate everything to work toward something good and beautiful when we love Him and accept His invitation to live according to His plan.

Romans 8:27-28 Voice

Our human spirit is what makes us capable of experiencing the spiritual chemistry of walking with God. This is what we can call spiritual flow, when God’s Spirit joins with our spirit to unleash light, power, and fire.

This isn’t religion.
It’s spiritual chemistry.
It’s wonder.
It’s awe.

The element of the spirit is what makes us spiritual. It is more than waking up to study our Bible and pray each morning. It is our connection with God.

The component most responsible for our ability to live a beautiful life might be what psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi calls flow:

A state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it.

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience

His book summarizes decades of research on the positive characteristics of human experience, including joy, creativity, and flow—which he describes as “the process of total involvement with life.”

While many seek flow through new techniques or settings, God has provided a spiritual path to it. Flow has been available for millennia through the joining of his Spirit with ours

God formed the spirit within

“The LORD, who stretches out the heavens, who lays the foundation of the earth, and who forms the human spirit within a person, declares…”

Zechariah 12:1 NIV

Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, and the spirit will return to God who gave it.

Ecclesiastes 12:7 NASB

“But it is a spirit that is in mankind, And the breath of the Almighty gives them understanding.”

Job 32:8 NASB

No one can know a person’s thoughts except that person’s own spirit, and no one can know God’s thoughts except God’s own Spirit. [12] And we have received God’s Spirit (not the world’s spirit), so we can know the wonderful things God has freely given us.

1 Corinthians 2:11–12 NLT

Our spirit was formed by God. It holds our thoughts, our pain, our sin, our potential, and our dreams. But without God, it becomes crushed, disconnected, disillusioned, unfaithful, and wandering:

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalm 34:18 NIV

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

Proverbs 17:22 NIV

The human spirit can endure a sick body, but who can bear a crushed spirit?

Proverbs 18:14 NLT

Use this week to study these scriptures, working to become aware of your spirit. Ask yourself these questions:

• What affects my spirit?

• What strengthens my spirit?

• What weakens my spirit?

Then devote yourself to staying connected to God so that your spirit remains cheerful and strong. God has laid dreams on our hearts that glorify him, and we need that enduring spirit to see them come true.

Flow = Spiritual connection

Spiritual flow comes from sustaining a continuous Spirit connection, which is what Romans 8 is all about. It is not merely theological; it is personal.

So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, ‘Abba, Father.’ [16] For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God’s children.

Romans 8:15–16 NLT

When the Spirit of God joins with our spirit, we enter the spiritual flow state.

This is freedom:

Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. [18] And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:17–18 NIV

This is oneness:

But the one who joins himself to the Lord is one spirit with Him.

1 Corinthians 6:17 NASB

This is intimacy:

Or do you think that the Scripture says to no purpose, “He jealously desires the Spirit whom He has made to dwell in us”? And this is power.

James 4:5 NASB

Neglecting the spiritual aspect of life turns the Christian life into a grind instead of a beautiful flow. We cannot let this happen to ourselves or those we love because God longs to have his power flow through our lives without limit.

Creating a flow week

But the fruit produced by the Holy Spirit within you is divine love in all its varied expressions: joy that overflows, peace that subdues, patience that endures, kindness in action, a life full of virtue, faith that prevails, gentleness of heart, and strength of spirit. Never set the law above these qualities, for they are meant to be limitless.

Galatians 5:22 TPT

One of the motivations for me and our team to create The Chemistry Lab is what I learned about Abraham Heschel from his daughter when she wrote that his goal was to make God audible. That is my goal—to not merely have insight about God and Scripture, but to experience his feelings by entering and remaining in the flow state.

… For my father, the importance of prophecy lies not only in the message, but in the role of the prophet as a witness, someone who is able to make God audible and to reveal not only God’s will, but God’s inner life. To be a prophet, he writes, is to be in fellowship with the feelings of God, to experience communion with the divine consciousness. The prophet hears God’s voice and looks at the world from God’s perspective.

Susannah Heschel, Introduction to The Prophets by Abraham Joshua Heschel

Let this be a “flow week,” a week when you experience the limitless qualities of Galatians 5:22 by embracing the element of the spirit!

As Augustine said about God:

You made us with yourself as our goal, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.

Augustine, Confessions

Share The Spiritual Frontier

Unrelenting disappointment leaves you heartsick, but a sudden good break can turn life around.

Proverbs 13:12 MSG

Personal experience and daily observation have led me to a question. Why don’t we attribute the rise in despair, loneliness, anxiety, and estrangement to our inability to handle disappointment?

Unrelenting disappointment is all too familiar to me. It came early and often — adolescence delivered its share. But nothing was as unexpected as the disappointment I found in my spiritual life.

Prior to becoming a Christian, I considered myself an agnostic. My reasons for unbelief were based on the behavior of religious people, not the truth about God. After all, I had barely read the Bible.

I judged religious people the way I didn’t want them to judge me, which is what a lot of people do.

In college, all of this changed. First, I read the Bible and discovered it was the truth I had sensed was out there but couldn’t find. Second, I attended a church that described themselves as a Bible church: they focused on the Bible over religious tradition and man-focused denominationalism. This is what inspired me to read the Bible in the first place and become a Christian. But after that, disappointment came quickly.

Initially, I was disappointed in myself because of my many sins and failures after becoming a Christian. What kept me believing despite facing this was the knowledge that there were so many people around me who seemed much stronger in their faith—they gave me hope that I could get past my failures. But then I learned that they too were human; they had weaknesses and lacked spirituality just like me. This led to even more disappointment.

I soon discovered the source of my disappointment, and it was a discovery that turned my life around: my faith had been placed in the behavioral superiority of those who led me instead of the God of Scripture.

No one who trusts in you will be disappointed. But disappointment will come to those who try to deceive others. They will get nothing.

Psalm 25:3 ERV

… And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.

Romans 15:4 NLT

The Christianity of the Bible is not based on human beings, their performance, behavior, or worthiness. The Bible is not a piece of academic literature or theology, but a spiritual book whose intent is to help us know God. Through the Bible, we are being allowed to know a God whose existence strains the limits of human comprehension. This is ultimately achieved through the life of Jesus Christ, who is God taking human form.

My spiritual journey and yours is not about arrival but discovery. This discovery is how God transformed my disappointment into devotion to him rather than to human institutions or people. He saved me from my discouragement by drawing me closer to him.

The LORD is close to those who have suffered disappointment. He saves those who are discouraged.

Psalm 34:18 ERV

I write today to defeat our disappointment. Throughout our lives, disappointment (or its cousins, disillusionment and discouragement will invite us into a relationship with them. Their requirements are simple:

• Pessimism, so that we assume the worst.

• Fatalism, so that we stop making the effort.

• Cynicism, so that we see everything as unfair.

This, disappointment says, is all I require—that you give up living life with hope and accept disappointment. It’s safer and less painful that way.

We can see this battle at play in the world around us—and more recently, during the 2026 FIFA World Cup that just wrapped up this past week. After weeks of competition, Spain concluded its inspiring performance and defeated Argentina to win the title. But what will remain with me is the resonance of this long-standing phrase often used by the English about football or soccer: “It’s the hope that kills you.” It describes the extraordinary pain of anticipating victory only to experience defeat.

There are those who allow their fear of disappointment to steal their courage, and then disguise their fear with respectable names: Contentment. Humility. Being realistic. But those who have stopped hoping because hoping hurts too much are not content. They are afraid. They are broken.

The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Psalm 34:18 NIV

God doesn’t want us broken. This is why we must make the choice many football or soccer fans choose: courage. Whenever disappointment seeks to kill our hope, we must remember the promise of God found in Romans 5:

And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.

Romans 5:5 NLT

There is not enough space here for me to map out in detail how the spiritual person responds to disappointment, but my experience overcoming it, and helping others do the same, may be instructive wherever your disappointment lies.

Help me God, as you promised, so that I may live. Do not turn my hope into disappointment.

Psalm 119:116 GW

Three answers have guided and transformed my life when faced with disappointment.

1. We must become spiritual rather than behavioral.

Increasingly, it is clear that the major key to Lincoln’s greatness is his spiritual depth.

Elton Trueblood, Abraham Lincoln: Lessons in Spiritual Leadership

My early and middle years of being a Christian were riddled with disappointments because I viewed and practiced Christianity behaviorally rather than spiritually. I lacked spiritual depth.

Behavior manages the outside. Spirituality transforms the inside. In the Bible, the apostle Paul explained the futility of behavioral Christianity to the Colossian church, explaining that rule-keeping looks wise but changes nothing:

Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.

Colossians 2:23 NIV

He taught again about the powerlessness of that path in 2 Timothy, describing behavioral Christians as people who “act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly” (2 Timothy 3:5).

That powerlessness is the disappointment I experienced. My faith rested on behavioral superiority—my own and other people’s—but it was frustrating and futile. Only spiritual transformation from the inside out can produce the flourishing life God promises, as Jesus said in John 6:

The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.

John 6:63 NLT

2. We must become God-focused rather than man-focused.

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. [2] I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. [3] Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you.

Psalm 63:1-3 NIV

I put it this way in my book, He’s Not Who You Think He Is: “Keeping God as our central focus should not be considered a one-time project or campaign, but our life’s work.” We should pursue God until we discover that his love is better than life.

The failure to pursue God in this way places us on a trajectory to become like the New Testament church at Corinth, where they discovered divisive results of attaching their faith to people instead of God. Paul challenged their distorted focus, which was evident in the quarrels he was hearing about: “One of you says, ‘I follow Paul’; another, ‘I follow Apollos’; another, ‘I follow Cephas’” (see 1 Corinthians 1:10-12).

He wrote to the Philippian church about Christians who preached out of “envy and rivalry,” driven by “selfish ambition, not sincerely” (Philippians 1:15-17). Insincere. Or, in the language of our time, inauthentic.

Twenty centuries later, the same rivalry limits the influence and impact of the church. The numbers show it. As many as 15,000 U.S. churches may close in a single year, with roughly 8% of American congregations either shutting their doors or unable to afford a full-time pastor. Forty-four percent of Americans between 18 and 29 now claim no religious affiliation. Boston University theologian Wesley Wildman estimates that nearly a quarter of those still attending houses of worship reject a supernatural worldview altogether, coming for community and routine rather than God. Wildman describes a collapse occurring across four dimensions at once—affiliation, attendance, private practice, and intensity of belief.

This is not the decline of faith. It is the decline of denominationalism—religion organized around human rather than spiritual institutions. People may still practice in private, but when they see the same political polarization dividing the pews that divides the aisles of power, they conclude, understandably, that we are simply another self-interested organization. Purifying the church of selfish ambition, competitiveness, and rivalry is not housekeeping. It is survival.

3. We must become people who understand the times.

When David’s kingdom was forming, one tribe of Israel was singled out—not for their strength, but for their discernment:

… from Issachar, men who understood the times and knew what Israel should do …

1 Chronicles 12:32 NIV

Understanding the times means having intellectual, emotional, social and cultural awareness. Based on these areas, I see the global population searching for answers along ten frontiers:

1. Purpose

2. Relationships

3. The inner life

4. Work and calling

5. Money

6. Technology

7. Culture

8. Family

9. Hope for the future

10. Finding the truth

That last one is the deepest, and I believe it is a search for Jesus, whether people name him or not.
These are the spiritual frontiers. And they will only be answered by men and women who understand the times and speak to them—rather than arguing internally or isolating into bubbles. Talking only to ourselves and listening only to ourselves means ignoring a world that does not care what label we wear, how we vote, or who our rivals are. They care about finding their way.

That is where I intend to spend the rest of my life. Not defending a position but walking these frontiers with anyone willing to come. Disappointment invited me to stop hoping. I have declined the invitation.

Share The Spiritual Frontier

For we are God’s [own] handiwork (His workmanship), recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] that we may do those good works which God predestined (planned beforehand) for us [taking paths which He prepared ahead of time], that we should walk in them [living the good life which He prearranged and made ready for us to live].

Ephesians 2:10 AMPC

Yes. I am a believer in destiny, a God-given and God-assigned purpose for every human being. The value of this destiny is not whether it leads to celebrity, wealth, or relevance, but whether it lights a fire in the heart that stirs the soul.

Too many people give up on destiny. Too many people settle. And honestly, it’s understandable. Life can be brutally painful, and that pain convinces us that it’s too dangerous or costly to keep chasing our dreams.

So why not settle?

Why not settle for pleasure over pursuing purpose? Why not settle for selfishness over nurturing the fires of our imagination and working toward something greater than ourselves? Why not settle for greed over being motivated by God?

In the book of Ezekiel, God addressed seductive voices that asked questions like these and were leading his people astray:

“…you will no longer conjure up lying visions or practice divination. For I will save My people from your seductive powers. Then you will know I am the Eternal One.”

Ezekiel 13:23 VOICE

Ezekiel warned his generation about seductive voices that offered survival instead of transformation, and it feels like we are facing the same temptation in our time.

Some days it feels like we’re building a culture that encourages resignation—settling for the life the world permits rather than striving for the life God promises. We might be discontent with what the world offers; we might even be downright angry about it. But rare is the person who believes they can change it. Instead of dreaming with faith, we become content to remain within the limits of our fear.

We don’t always call this quitting. Sometimes we call it “realism.” Sometimes we call it “maturity.” Sometimes we call it “wisdom.”

But when we trace our slow, quiet settling to its core, it’s the same thing Ezekiel confronted: giving in to the seductive voices offering us survival in place of transformation.

I am not pessimistic; I am just observing what I see around me and what I must resist daily in myself. The seductiveness of settling may be the greatest temptation I face.

These are the reflections and spiritual disturbances I’m recording today. Not to complain, but to understand, and conquer them by choosing breakthrough instead.

Yes. I believe that there is another way. Rather than succumbing to resignation and surrendering our destiny, we can live in pursuit of breakthrough.

Breakthroughs are life-altering discoveries that move us through obstacles and beyond barriers. They transform us, opening our eyes so that we can see past the limitations of humanity to the possibilities of God.

While past issues of The Chemistry Lab were lab reports, today’s edition is my field notes—spiritual data observed and recorded in real time. Last week, we discussed the brain and spiritual chemistries of getting stuck. Today, let’s discover together the areas where we have settled or resigned, which are also the very areas that have the greatest opportunities for breakthrough.

Notebooks open. Let’s see what we can learn today.

“Breakthroughs are life-altering discoveries that move us through obstacles and beyond barriers.”

Field Notes

Spiritual observations, data, and real-time reflections about faith, fear, and transformation.

“So be reasonable. Make a deal with my master, the king of Assyria. I’ll give you two thousand horses if you think you can provide riders for them. You can’t do it? Well, then, how do you think you’re going to turn back even one raw buck private from my master’s troops? How long are you going to hold on to that figment of your imagination, these hoped-for Egyptian chariots and horses?”

2 Kings 18:23-24 MSG

There’s a seductive voice that whispers to us in times of adversity. “Be reasonable,” it says. It sounds wise, even mature. But what if being reasonable is actually a form of unspiritual surrender?

In his book On Settling, philosopher Robert E. Goodin writes to help those consumed by endless striving. But he also warns against a darker version of settling: resignation—the quiet surrender of hopes and desires, the inward acceptance of unwanted outcomes.

He calls it what it truly is: not peace, but loss—an internal grief that steals joy, masked by a smile we wear to hide our perpetual disappointment.

And we wear it so long, we forget it’s even there.

This ancient pattern shows up vividly in the passage above from the Bible. Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, sent word to Hezekiah, king of Judah, as the Assyrian army laid siege to Hezekiah’s land. Sennacherib’s commander didn’t just threaten Hezekiah with force—he appealed to “reason.” Make a deal. Be practical. Look at the facts. You can’t win. The enemy knows that getting God’s people to be “reasonable” is often more effective than direct assault.

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: Most Christians are too reasonable to change the world. Most people are too reasonable to change the world.

Why? Because adversity has a way of making settling seem sensible. Pain whispers to us that those dreams are not necessary for happiness, so why pursue them? Difficulty argues with us that God-given purpose is a myth pursued by the irrational, so why sacrifice our immediate comfort for it?

We trade destiny for safety, calling it wisdom.

But history tells a different story. George Bernard Shaw captured it perfectly in a quote from Maxims for Revolutionists—a quote reinterpreted in the context of leadership in Originals by Adam Grant:

The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress depends on the unreasonable man.

George Bernard Shaw

Every major breakthrough—cultural, political, scientific, spiritual—has come from those unreasonable enough to refuse the world as given. They wouldn’t let adversity make them “reasonable.”

So in our own chemistry lab of life, what “reasonable” compromises are we making? Where have we let the world’s logic override God’s calling? What breakthrough waits on the other side of our unreasonable faith?

Becoming aware of the “reasonable” trap is the first step on the path to breakthrough. But here’s what I’ve discovered: “Being reasonable” is just the surface symptom of something deeper. Underneath our logical compromises lie the real obstacles—the veils that blind us to God’s possibilities and keep us trapped in human limitations.

These are the field notes of someone learning to resist the reasonable—because faith was never meant to be veiled.

Removing the veils that blind us to God’s possibilities

But to this day whenever Moses is read, a veil [of blindness] lies over their heart; [16] but whenever a person turns [in repentance and faith] to the Lord, the veil is taken away. [17] Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty [emancipation from bondage, true freedom]. [18] And we all, with unveiled face, continually seeing as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are progressively being transformed into His image from [one degree of] glory to [even more] glory, which comes from the Lord, [who is] the Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:15-18 AMP

Scripture tells us that the greatest transformations happen when the “veil of blindness” is removed—when we stop seeing through the lens of human limitation and start living by the Spirit’s vision.

Freedom from the human limits of this life is found behind the veil of humanism. Our unbelief in the possibility of breakthrough is rooted in the idea that humanity—our wisdom, our power, our talents—is all we’ve got. Anyone who believes in anything greater is branded irrational.

Scripture counters this illusion.

Humanism is the veil that obscures the possibilities of God.

It places all understanding and power within the created, blinding us to what God can do.

But when Jesus died on the cross, the veil tore. The barrier between the human and the divine was ripped open.

And [at once] the veil [of the Holy of Holies] of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom; the earth shook and the rocks were split apart.

Matthew 27:51 AMP

Even W.E.B. Du Bois used the metaphor of the veil to describe how social systems dehumanized Black Americans, blocking their true potential:

Leaving, then, the world of the white man, I have stepped within the Veil, raising it that you may view faintly its deeper recesses, — the meaning of its religion, the passion of its human sorrow, and the struggle of its greater souls.

W. E. B. Du Bois. The Souls of Black Folk

This made me ask:

What are the veils that keep me from God’s dream for my life?

What has kept me stuck in the past, blind in the present, and hesitant about the future?

To live unveiled requires identifying what keeps us disconnected from the glory God wants to manifest in our lives.

Here are ten veils that I’ve identified in my field notes. Maybe some will resonate with you.

The 10 veils that prevent breakthroughs

1. Tradition

The veil of tradition is the past masquerading as wisdom. It says, “We’ve always done it this way.” It’s old ideas and old wineskins (Matthew 9:14-17).

Economist Joseph Schumpeter coined the term “creative destruction,” to refer to the way the free market grows. The market gets better and stronger when innovation sweeps away the old and makes room for something new.

In the same way, creative destruction is necessary for spiritual renewal. What old ideas or traditions are clouding your view of what’s possible in the future?

2. Dysfunction

The veil of dysfunction is the emotional baggage we carry into our faith. One area of dysfunction I recognize in my life is the “hero complex” I carry from being an adult child of an alcoholic. I try to control outcomes to prevent the pain of experiencing failure.

What dysfunctions are you carrying into your faith?

3. Assumptions

Assumptions are the personal beliefs I treat as absolute truth because they are comfortable and familiar. I rarely question these beliefs because they feel true, but such beliefs are often the ones that need questioning most.

An unquestioned assumption can become a sacred cow—a belief that is unreasonably immune to critique or opposition. If I don’t examine my assumptions, I’ll end up clinging to emotional sacred cows instead of chasing biblical truth. These sacred cows will block my vision, keeping me stuck in one way of thinking and preventing me from seeing what God is doing.

Some of my assumptions might align with what the Bible says, and some might not. In some cases, they were passed on to me from other people or institutions. However tempting it may be to question the people or institutions who shaped these beliefs, real transformation starts when I question myself—before I question others or institutions.

What beliefs do you treat as absolute truth? How willing are you to question these assumptions?

4. Ritual

This veil refers to the comfort of routine. It’s clinging to emotional and spiritual patterns not because they work, but because they’re ours. We can become so comfortable in these routines that any change to them feels like loss, even when it’s growth.

Do you cling to any rituals, even when they don’t work?

5. Opposition

The veil of opposition is the resistance we get from people around us who push back on our transformation. It comes from frozen relationships, where people don’t want us to change because our growth exposes their own stagnation. The more we listen to this opposition and resistance, the more susceptible we are to settling into our doubt and fear.

How does it affect your vision when you get opposition from people around you?

6. Pride

The veil of pride is the pursuit of validation over transformation. It’s a drive for attention, achievement, and approval that comes not from purpose, but from fear.

Pride often doesn’t show up in the form of arrogance. It’s the way we handle our fear of inadequacy. Sometimes it leads to competition. Sometimes it leads to envy. For me, it was a search for love in all the wrong places—a desire to earn admiration and attention, hoping it would feel like love.

How do you see the veil of pride in your life?

7. Disbelief

The veil of disbelief is mentally rejecting the truth of who God is. This veil grows when we are unwilling to read Scripture for ourselves, and we only know God through what others say.

When I finally began to see God for who he truly is in the Bible, I realized he isn’t punitive like I believed him to be—he’s corrective. He’s not trying to destroy who I am. He is trying to restore who I was created to be.

God is a coach. He is a parent. He is shaping me to win—not punishing me for falling short.

Every big vision feels unreachable when I view God as punitive. But when I see him as someone training me, not punishing me, breakthroughs stop feeling impossible and start feeling inevitable.

Do you have any disbelief about God that makes breakthroughs feel impossible?

8. Nostalgia

The veil of nostalgia makes us romanticize the past because we’re too weary to believe in—and work toward—a better today or tomorrow.

“Wasn’t it better back then?” becomes a kind of spiritual anesthesia. We numb ourselves with memories and rationalize our loss of faith in what God can still do. When we idolize what’s behind, we lose vision for what’s ahead.

What veils of nostalgia are making you look backward instead of forward?

9. Idolatry

Under the veil of idolatry, the world defines our worth. We are shaped by prestige, popularity, and the latest digital media platform, and we stop listening to God. Our faith shrinks to satisfy the crowd rather than growing to please God.

We might achieve some level of impact by trying to impress people, but we forfeit the far greater impact we were meant to have by pursuing God’s purpose—serving and helping people as he does.

Who or what defines your worth more—people or God?

10. Fear

Fear is the most primal and pervasive veil. It’s our fear of criticism, slander, vulnerability, failure, and even death. It’s the voice that whispers, “What if I’m not enough? What if I try—and lose everything?”

Fear is the veil that makes comfort feel like calling. It urges us to settle, to be “reasonable,” to choose survival over transformation.

Breaking through to our destiny

These veils aren’t theoretical. They’re personal. They’re emotional, psychological, and spiritual. They are the parts of me that need to die.

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. [24] Very truly I tell you, unless a kernel of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains only a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.

John 12:23-24 NIV

I am humbled by my veils, and my aim is to imitate Jesus—to die to them, and gain my freedom to fulfill my potential and destiny. What about you? I would love to know if you relate to these.

Better yet, create your own list. You’ll never chase your dreams or discover your breakthroughs if your veils convince you to settle.

What if I told you there’s hard data proving the Bible is changing lives right now — not someday, not in theory, but measurably, scientifically, today? Dr. John Plake from the American Bible Society joins me to unpack the research behind Bible engagement and mental health. Honestly, it left me smiling.

Dr. Plake leads the State of the Bible study—the longest-running research on how Americans engage with Scripture—and what he’s found is genuinely hopeful. People who are deeply engaged with the Bible show lower anxiety, lower traumatic stress, and higher hope than those who aren’t. Harvard’s Human Flourishing Study confirms it. Gen Zers, who statistically struggle the most with anxiety and depression, look completely different when they’re Scripture-engaged — like they’ve unlocked something their peers haven’t found yet.

We also dig into the real barrier holding people back: it’s not desire, it’s guidance. Millions of people want to read the Bible but don’t know where to start, what translation to pick, or how to make sense of it. Dr. Plake breaks down practical first steps—from finding the right translation to using audio and video to build a consistent habit—so we can turn curiosity into a life-giving relationship with Scripture. If you’ve ever picked up a Bible and felt lost, this episode is your on-ramp.

Who is John?

Dr. John Plake serves as the Chief Innovation Officer at the American Bible Society. Bridging the intersection of advanced social science, data analytics, and pastoral leadership, Plake provides critical clarity on rapidly shifting cultural dynamics. His research is highly relevant as sociologists and faith leaders scramble to understand a surprising post-pandemic rebound in religious curiosity among younger, secular demographics.

John’s links

• State of the Bible

• American Bible Society

• YouTube

In an emotion-phobic culture, most of us don’t know how to listen very well to emotional pain for the simple reason that we have never been taught that doing so is a good thing, or how to do it.

Miriam Greenspan, Healing Through the Dark Emotions

Writing a newsletter is difficult—not because of the writing, but because of the infinite odds of making a difference through what one writes. And be sure of this: I am writing The Spiritual Frontier to make a difference.

For decades, I have believed that politics, economics, and religion are the three most powerful forces in the world. Since the late ‘90s, I have included technology. These are my “four horsemen,” entities capable of changing the world as we know it. While the term often refers to the biblical harbingers of the apocalypse, it can also refer to catalysts of transformation. Whether my four horsemen of politics, economics, religion, and technology are of the apocalyptic variety or the enlightening kind depends almost entirely on our spirituality. Without spirituality, these four can and will cause immense pain. With spirituality, they can cause immense change for good.

My hope in writing The Spiritual Frontier is to find even a few people (or, if I am lucky, a whole generation) who believe it is the spiritual understanding and implementation of these world forces that can make them a gateway to hope rather than despair.

The spirituality of which I speak is the spirituality of Jesus. Through every article, podcast, and piece of content we create, we will make God audible through this spirituality. We may not always directly quote Scripture, but the spirituality of Jesus will be woven into everything we do. I believe this is how we channel those four horsemen into good, how we conquer the world, how we talk about and heal the pain that these forces can cause:

So the one who conquers the world is the person who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.

1 John 5:5 NCV

Before I was seven years old, I experienced the type of pain this world can deliver. I can still remember my mom being on the phone learning of her brother’s death. It was a race-related death in the South.

Racism in the sixties, seventies, and eighties improved incrementally in the US, but those four horsemen remained more apocalyptic than enlightening. My uncle was just one of their victims. From this moment on, it became apparent to me that humanity possessed no durable answer for the despair we each face.

Much has improved in the 21st century, but despair remains a sociological sickness for which we have too few answers. This is the lostness Jesus saw and wants us to see.

Jesus went through many towns and villages. He taught in their synagogues. He preached the good news of the kingdom of God. He healed every disease and sickness. [36] Whenever crowds came to Him, He had compassion for them because they were so deeply distraught, malaised, and heart-broken. They seemed to Him like lost sheep without a shepherd.

Matthew 9:35-36 VOICE

This sickness of despair predates us all, but the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 was a turning point that sharply exacerbated it. Since then, I have seen far too many people defeated by their pain. I have been tempted myself. I would never equate my ordinary struggle, or anyone’s, with the tragedy of those lost to what researchers call “deaths of despair” — suicide, overdose, and alcohol. By 2021, those deaths had climbed to nearly two hundred thousand a year in the United States. There is hope in the latest numbers — 2024 brought the first significant decline since 1999. But those numbers are considered fragile and count only the dead. They have never counted the millions still alive, whose hope is quietly stolen, day after day, by the sheer fatigue of living.

What makes living so hard? While politics, economics, religion, and technology are powerful, they cannot replace the spiritual forces our souls desperately need:

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13 NIV

Despair is born out of exchanging faith for religion, hope for economics and technology, and loving relationships for politics. These three things—faith, hope, and love—are the spirituality of God and Jesus. These spiritual forces prevent us from drowning in the sea of despair created by humanity’s self-reliance. They have the power to conquer the worldly forces of the “four horsemen” so that they serve rather than enslave humanity.

As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries reproach me, While they say to me all day long, “Where is your God?” [11] Why are you in despair, O my soul? And why are you disturbed within me? Wait for God, for I shall still praise Him, The salvation of my presence and my God.

Psalm 42:10-11 LSB

Let’s revisit Miriam Greenspan’s insights from the beginning of this newsletter:

In an emotion-phobic culture, most of us don’t know how to listen very well to emotional pain for the simple reason that we have never been taught that doing so is a good thing, or how to do it.

Can you listen well to emotional pain, in yourself or others? Do you believe that doing so is a good thing? Jesus had the courage to see and listen to pain, and in doing so, he healed and transformed it.

Some might think I am a utopian, that I believe this world can be rid of pain. I do not think the world can be rid of pain, but I do believe God has given us the power to conquer it, so that all the amazing innovations we discover can be for the flourishing rather than despair of the human race. Living this way will require courage—the courage to talk about our pain.

Though we experience every kind of pressure, we’re not crushed. At times we don’t know what to do, but quitting is not an option.

2 Corinthians 4:8 TPT

My first and most significant moment of quitting occurred at a summer basketball camp. As the camp came to a close, a one-on-one tournament between the hundred or so kids began. My confidence grew with each round as I won game after game. This was new for me; I was by no means a star.

Surprisingly, I ended up being one of the final four contestants. Every camper and coach sat courtside for these final games and watched us play. My match was first, and everything went great until I missed a shot. At that moment, I became fearful of losing. My opponent was the son of the coach whose camp I was attending. My coach was the protégé of this head coach, who was watching me. Pressure mounted.

My thoughts raced as I considered my options. I had outperformed expectations to get this far, and it would be no embarrassment to lose to a coach’s son. Even if I made it to the championship, I would likely face one of my best friends and there was no way I could beat him.

Entertaining these thoughts, I gave myself permission to quit. I eased up on defense as my opponent scored and won the game.
I often look back on this game and other moments of quitting to understand and accept this truth: quitting is an option for me. Contrastingly, 2 Corinthians 4:8 teaches that quitting is not an option for Christians.

We are persecuted by others, but God has not forsaken us. We may be knocked down, but not out.

2 Corinthians 4:9 TPT

When knocked down, Christians are supposed to get back up. I write all of this for myself and anyone who might share my weakness, but especially for leaders. Leaders are increasingly faced with a cultural acceptance of quitting when things become hard. The Christian—at least the spiritual Christian—cannot embrace this culture of quitting.

[3] And we are also happy with the troubles we have. Why are we happy with troubles? Because we know that these troubles make us more patient. [4] And this patience is proof that we are strong. And this proof gives us hope. [5] And this hope will never disappoint us. We know this because God has poured out his love to fill our hearts through the Holy Spirit he gave us.

Romans 5:3-5 ERV

When we as Christians live life according to Scripture and rely on the power of the Spirit, we can be “happy with the troubles we have,” because those troubles make us grow to be more like Christ. They make us more spiritual and allow us to secure our destiny—the purpose for which God chose us.

[12] Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. [13] Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, [14] I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 3:12-14 NIV

Some will ask whether there is ever a time to quit. My answer is there are occasions when we need to “stop doing” so we can “start doing.” This is not “giving up” but refocusing our tenacious efforts on a path more suited to pleasing God and building his kingdom.

What we are addressing is the quitting which says, “I no longer want to be uncomfortable, experience failure, have to wait, or have to work, so I am going to quit. I will find an easier way to get what I want or settle for something less because I am unwilling to endure until my character meets the opportunity when success will be possible.”

“How To Not Quit When Everyone Else Is Quitting” is about examining the cultural forces of quitting at home, work, school, or in the spiritual communities of which we are a part. Our goal is to resist the temptation to quit, choosing instead to imitate Jesus who through perseverance became the ultimate finisher!

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to completely finish His work.

John 4:34 AMP

There are three levels to conquering quitting.

First, we must address quitting among leaders because they have an outsized impact on our culture, whether it is at home, work, school, or in our spiritual communities.
Second, we need to learn how to create a culture that produces spiritual leaders who know how to finish.

Third, we need to commit ourselves to developing the eight qualities of spiritual people and leaders who don’t quit. By the time we complete our study, we will have a foundation for knowing “How Not To Quit When Everyone Else is Quitting.”

The leadership crisis of quitting

Leaders who quit when things become difficult create cultures of quitting. Every facet of life has been difficult since the pandemic began four years ago. This has caused a number of leaders to quit leading. Again, there are reasonable and even noble reasons to quit, but what we are talking about here is the choice to do what is easy because we don’t want to do anything hard.

When cultural forces encourage quitting, we need leaders willing to endure rather than quit, but this means accepting the fact that leadership can be dangerous.

To lead is to live dangerously because when leadership counts, when you lead people through difficult change, you challenge what people hold dear—their daily habits, tools, loyalties, and ways of thinking—with nothing more to offer perhaps than a possibility.

Ronald A. Heifetz and Marty Linsky, Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading

Leadership is dangerous. This is why so few want to lead. Rare is the individual who wants to accept responsibility for anyone other than themselves. What healthy individual would welcome criticism for their personality, appearance, personal failures, or life choices—including everything from parenting to purchases?

As Heifetz and Linsky point out in their book, Leadership on the Line, there are numerous ways in which forces of resistance are marshaled against the leader—especially if they seek to lead change:

Moreover, leadership often means exceeding the authority you are given to tackle the challenge at hand. People push back when you disturb the personal and institutional equilibrium they know. And people resist in all kinds of creative and unexpected ways that can get you taken out of the game: pushed aside, undermined, or eliminated.

Ronald A. Heifetz and Marty Linsky, Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Leading

There are hundreds, if not thousands, who will point out the problems with and foibles of leaders, and not without justification. Unfortunately, however accurate or inaccurate negative assessments of leadership might be, those who are not yet leaders are often dissuaded from leading because of the price they presume they will have to pay. These are often the young or next-generation leaders, which endangers the future of every organization.

Equally concerning is the condition of current leaders. Many of the people I have observed or known leading in public or private organizations are growing older and quitting. Worn down by responsibility and resistance, they choose a different path and begin the search for the financial means to live without having to lead.

Because of the withering effects of these leadership pressures, many noble leaders of exceptional character refuse to lead, quit leading, or—having failed in leadership—decide never to lead again. This creates a leadership crisis, which was the condition of Israel at a time of spiritual decline when social chaos and disorder reigned.

[1] See now, the Lord, the LORD Almighty, is about to take from Jerusalem and Judah both supply and support: all supplies of food and all supplies of water, [2] the hero and the warrior, the judge and the prophet, the diviner and the elder, [3] the captain of fifty and the man of rank, the counselor, skilled craftsman and clever enchanter. [4] “I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.”

Isaiah 3:1-4 NIV

In the absence of spiritually competent and courageous leadership, the nation began to collapse under the guidance of unspiritual and inexperienced leaders.

[5] People will oppress each other—man against man, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honored. [6] A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, “You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!” [7] But in that day he will cry out, “I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people.”

Isaiah 3:5-7 NIV

The result of this leadership crisis was the spiritual collapse of the nation. This collapse that would have been avoidable if they had developed a spiritual culture that supported spiritual leaders, rehabilitated fallen leaders, and nurtured future leaders.

[8] Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling; their words and deeds are against the LORD, defying his glorious presence. [9] The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it. Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.

Isaiah 3:8-9 NIV

Quitting will become our culture unless we make it possible for spiritual leaders to remain strong, recover from failure, and grow from inexperienced to experienced without faith-crushing penalties for immature mistakes. This is the only way for the world, and especially our churches, to develop leaders capable of delivering on the description of God’s servant in the book of Isaiah.

And though he faces obstacles, resistance, and great pressure, he will not crack; he will not give up until things are set right. Even the coastlands wait patiently for his instruction.

Isaiah 42:4 Voice

We can look to Moses to understand how we can create a spiritual culture capable of producing these types of leaders.

Creating a culture capable of producing spiritual leaders

[13] Moses answered the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the LORD will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. [14] The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” [15] Then the LORD said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on.

Exodus 14:13-15 NIV

Moses was one of the most spiritual leaders found in Scripture, but this didn’t happen overnight. In Exodus 2-13, we learn that his journey to becoming a spiritual leader was filled with as much failure as success. What saved him was a God who was willing to support, forgive, sustain, and nurture his growth.

The culmination of Moses’s spiritual growth over multiple decades is seen in Exodus 14, where his faith allowed him to stand firm against the grave threat from the Egyptians. He led all of Israel to move forward rather than quit.

And while God nurtured Moses’s growth in Exodus 2-13, he also created a culture in Israel to support the growth of multiple spiritual leaders. Here are four principles to apply at home, at work, at school, and in our spiritual communities to help us develop spiritual leaders who never quit.

1. Spiritual cultures develop rather than undermine leaders

The next day Moses took his place to judge the people. People were standing before him all day long, from morning to night. When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that he was doing for the people, he said, “What’s going on here? Why are you doing all this, and all by yourself, letting everybody line up before you from morning to night?”

Exodus 18:13-14 MSG

Jethro, the father-in-law of Moses, didn’t criticize Moses; he sought to understand him. He was trying to understand the thinking behind what Moses was doing. He didn’t want to replace Moses. His goal was to help Moses be effective and successful.

We can learn from this by asking ourselves what type of culture we have at home, work, school, or in our spiritual community. Do we seek to develop or undermine those who lead? Focusing on developing leaders is how our culture produces an ever-increasing number of spiritual leaders.

2. Spiritual cultures limit rather than burn out leaders

Moses’ father-in-law said, “This is no way to go about it. You’ll burn out, and the people right along with you. This is way too much for you—you can’t do this alone.

Exodus 18:17-23 MSG

The second thing Jethro did was introduce some sobriety into Moses’s life. As a leader, I often overreach in my effort to do my job. I need someone to point out that my self-reliance and pride are going to lead to burnout because I am trying to do everything on my own.

Spiritual cultures make certain that leaders have help and that they rely on it even when they don’t think they need it because they know a leader who burns out will burn others out as well.

3. Spiritual cultures focus on God, not on leaders

Now listen to me. Let me tell you how to do this so that God will be in this with you. Be there for the people before God, but let the matters of concern be presented to God.

Exodus 18:17-23 MSG

One of the most challenging things Jethro communicated to Moses was that if he didn’t change the way he led, God couldn’t be in this with him.

Spiritual cultures don’t focus on the leader’s style, strengths, and weaknesses, but on how God wants things done. People who create these cultures take pressure off of leaders. They remind leaders that we need a move of God not a move of men, and that acceptance of spiritual change is not about being right or wrong but making sure God is with us.

4. Spiritual cultures create spiritual leadership pipelines

Your job is to teach them the rules and instructions, to show them how to live, what to do. And then you need to keep a sharp eye out for competent men—men who fear God, men of integrity, men who are incorruptible—and appoint them as leaders over groups organized by the thousand, by the hundred, by fifty, and by ten.

Exodus 18:17-23 MSG

Finally, Jethro taught Moses that a spiritual culture is going to have multiple leaders who are spiritually competent. In fact, a spiritual culture is one where the leaders understand they are constantly working to reduce not increase their responsibilities.

The key to developing a culture with these four qualities is creating an environment of spiritual leaders who do not compete or become entangled in power struggles but make the building of the culture more important than any one person. For this to happen we can look at the detailed examples of a competent leader outlined in Exodus 18 above.

Eight qualities of spiritual people and leaders who don’t quit

… competent men—men who fear God, men of integrity, men who are incorruptible—and appoint them as leaders over groups organized by the thousand, by the hundred, by fifty, and by ten. They’ll be responsible for the everyday work of judging among the people. They’ll bring the hard cases to you, but in the routine cases they’ll be the judges. They will share your load and that will make it easier for you. If you handle the work this way, you’ll have the strength to carry out whatever God commands you, and the people in their settings will flourish also.”

Exodus 18:17-23 MSG

Creating a spiritual culture requires spiritual leaders capable of working together as a team. The Scriptures call these “competent leaders,” and here are their eight qualities:

1. They fear God – Spiritual leaders are spiritually humble.

2. They have integrity – Spiritual leaders have spiritual conviction.

3. They are incorruptible – Spiritual leaders have spiritual courage.

4. They are organized – Spiritual leaders are spiritually disciplined.

5. They are responsible – Spiritual leaders have a spiritual conscience.

6. They work – Spiritual leaders embrace spiritual service.

7. They can make good judgments – Spiritual leaders practice spiritual decision-making.

8. They share the leadership load – Spiritual leaders have spiritual confidence.

Let’s look at each of these qualities in more detail to learn how we can develop them.

1. Spiritual leaders are spiritually humble

He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you Except to be just, and to love [and to diligently practice] kindness (compassion), And to walk humbly with your God [setting aside any overblown sense of importance or self-righteousness]?

Micah 6:8 AMP

The first quality found in Exodus 18 describing competence is the quality that makes all the other qualities possible: the fear of God. When someone fears God, they are humble first and foremost with God, as pointed out in Micah 6:8. They set aside “any overblown sense of importance or self-righteousness.”

Spiritual cultures are destroyed by people whose selfish ambition, need for position, or need for attention becomes more important to them than pleasing God. When we are humble with God, our priorities are not based on ourselves but on what God is trying to accomplish. This quality is the key to creating families, small groups, and teams that can work together in unity regardless of role.

2. Spiritual leaders have spiritual conviction

How much longer will you sit on the fence, refusing to make a decision between the Lord and Baal? If you believe the Eternal One is the True God, then devote yourselves entirely to Him. If you believe Baal is your master, then devote yourselves entirely to him. All the people who were gathered together atop Mount Carmel were completely silent. They didn’t know what to say to this.

1 Kings 18:21 Voice

Second on the list of character qualities for the spiritual leader is integrity. This was a quality possessed by the prophet Elijah. Integrity is the ability to keep the important things important. Whether these leaders are dealing with themselves, family, close friends, or an organization they are involved with, they will hold to their biblical convictions without compromise.

3. Spiritual leaders have spiritual courage

[6] “Be strong and confident and courageous, for you will give this people as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers (ancestors) to give them. [7] Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do [everything] in accordance with the entire law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may prosper and be successful wherever you go. [8] This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall read [and meditate on] it day and night, so that you may be careful to do [everything] in accordance with all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will be successful. [9] Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:6-9 AMP

“Incorruptible” is a powerful word because it means we are not for sale. This quality requires courage, which is what Joshua needed to replace Moses as a leader. Those who are incorruptible do not give in to fear when threatened, intimidated, accused, or bribed. As a result, they can be trusted to be just and fair.

4. Spiritual leaders are spiritually disciplined

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control].

2 Timothy 1:7 AMP

The failure to be organized can undermine even the most spiritual leader, which is why spiritual leaders must be disciplined. Discipline is the ability to say “no” to ourselves, and to control our emotions, thoughts, and desires—all of which bring order to our private lives.

Fortunately, the Holy Spirit makes us disciplined, as described by 2 Timothy 1:7. The more we rely on God and listen to the Spirit’s prompting, the more disciplined we will become.

5. Spiritual leaders have a spiritual conscience

[3] I care very little, however, if I am judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. [4] My conscience is clear, but that does not vindicate me. It is the Lord who judges me.

1 Corinthians 4:3-4 BSB

One of the most stressful aspects of leadership is taking responsibility, especially for people or tasks that fall outside our role or purview. This is why spiritual leaders need a spiritual conscience, which is a moral compass made sensitive by reading and obeying God’s Word. Our conscience guides us to take the initiative to be responsible even when it isn’t our responsibility.

6. Spiritual leaders embrace spiritual service

[1] We who are strong in faith should help the weak with their weaknesses, and not please only ourselves. [2] Let each of us please our neighbors for their good, to help them be stronger in faith. [3] Even Christ did not live to please himself…

Romans 15:1-3 NCV

Spiritual leaders embrace the everyday work of leading when they have the spiritual heart to serve. In one sense, service is the most difficult quality of Jesus to imitate unless we become unselfish people, and becoming unselfish people is one of the best signs we are actually walking with and relying on God.

7. Spiritual leaders practice spiritual decision-making

Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. Then, whether I come and see you or only hear about you in my absence, I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel [28] without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved—and that by God.

Philippians 1:27-28 NIV

The quality of “judging” in the Old Testament can be confusing, and yet Exodus 18 points out that it is one of the eight qualities of competent leaders. Those who are called to judge are being asked to make spiritual decisions. Since a significant part of leadership is decision-making, a critical quality for competent leaders is knowing how to make decisions that put God first. This results in them living lives worthy of the gospel. Knowing how to make spiritual decisions, these leaders can then teach others to think spiritually and make spiritual decisions.

8. Spiritual leaders have spiritual confidence

[22] Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. [23] If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”

Exodus 18:22-23 NIV

Spiritual leaders have the spiritual confidence to lead. Their spiritual confidence stems from a character that refuses to yield. They relieve the burden on any one leader because they possess the first seven qualities of spiritual leadership that will not let them quit.

They fear God (have spiritual humility) and have integrity (spiritual conviction). They are incorruptible (spiritually courageous), organized (spiritually disciplined), responsible (have a spiritual conscience), willing to work (embrace spiritual service), and capable of making judgments (practice spiritual decision-making). Because of their unyielding character, they are capable of sharing the leadership load.

When the culture we create is spiritual, we endow people and leaders with the eight spiritual qualities that make us unyielding and unwilling to quit. The result is a home, workplace, school, or spiritual community capable of changing the world.

Conclusion: Competence comes from God

Now the leaders were surprised and confused. They looked at Peter and John and realized they were typical peasants—uneducated, utterly ordinary fellows—with extraordinary confidence. The leaders recognized them as companions of Jesus …

Acts 4:13 Voice

“How to Not Quit When Everyone Else is Quitting” has been an opportunity for us to understand quitting and the prevalence of it in our culture. We were able to examine the leadership crisis created when leaders quit. The solutions we found were creating a culture capable of producing spiritual leaders and the eight qualities of spiritual people and leaders who don’t quit.

Throughout our study and reflection, we might feel inadequate or incapable of creating a spiritual culture or becoming spiritual leaders. This is why it is important for us to consider Acts 4:13 in the Voice translation, where we learn that the extraordinary confidence of the apostles came from being with Jesus. In short, their competence came from God and so does ours.

[4] Such is the confidence we have through Christ before God. [5] It is not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God. [6] He has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter, but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

2 Corinthians 3:4-6 CSB

Now more than ever, Christians have a unique opportunity to profoundly influence society. However, to realize this potential, we must reject the prevailing culture of quitting. Instead, we need to cultivate spiritual communities dedicated to developing spiritual leaders who are skilled in transforming lives and making a global impact. May God bless our endeavor to grow and fulfill his dreams for a world in need of change.

“The stories of past courage can … teach, they can offer hope, they can provide inspiration. But they cannot supply courage itself. For this each man must look into his own soul.”

John F. Kennedy, Profiles in Courage

Clarity about our current times came to me while talking with my mother. At ninety-one years old, she was recalling legendary visitors to her middle and high schools: Jackie Robinson, Eleanor Roosevelt, and Mary McLeod Bethune—each a person of courage.

Among her great presidents, she counts Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Lyndon Johnson. FDR remade America into an international beacon of hope for freedom, and Johnson’s groundbreaking leadership secured rights long denied to African Americans.

Growing up, I remember her placing Martin Luther King Jr., John F. Kennedy, and Robert Kennedy in that same company. She also made me watch the footage of the Democratic National Convention when Shirley Chisholm was the first woman to run for president.

Most of these people were Democrats, because she, like many African Americans, was one. But the impact on me was not political. Their lives impressed upon me the importance of courage. From this perspective, the world of today feels so different.

Historians will give us many reasons to diminish these exemplars of courage. In the effort to tell the whole story, sensationalists have eroded our heroes—using their weaknesses, even their sins, to dismiss them as though we do not all share the same humanity. I am left to wonder if the collateral damage to our culture and collective memory is the loss of courage.

In place of the courageous, we have influencers—people who sell more often than they inspire, people who have done little, people who have never stood up for anything beyond what increases their following. And so we have become a nation of attention-seekers and voyeurs at the very moment we most need to become people of courage. Perhaps you, like me, wonder, what have we done?

The challenges of this world are many, and if we can learn anything from history, the central quality required to manage and master them is courage. Have you ever considered that our world is made worse not because today’s problems are unique, but because we as a society no longer honor courage? How much different might the world be if the conscience of humankind awakened to our need to become people of courage, fearless pioneers in uncertain times with passion and purpose to create a world better than the one we inherited?

“I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. You will have suffering in this world. Be courageous! I have conquered the world.”

John 16:33 CSB

In John 16, Jesus empowered his disciples to face the world and all its problems with courage. He came and lived on earth, died on a cross, and rose from the dead to free us from sin and simultaneously the fears that imprison us. Then he called those who would follow him to free others by venturing into the frontiers of life to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” (Matthew 28:19).

This is the greatest call to courage in the history of humankind. Eleven individuals heard it, became pioneers into the frontiers of their times and sacrificed their lives to the point of death, all with a passion to leave the world better than they found it. At a time when so many are looking for a purpose worthy of their courage, this is it.

Few people exemplify our cultural and spiritual challenge to follow Jesus into a life of courage more than two key figures in the Bible—Saul and David. Let’s take a look at the contrast between them and what it tells us.

Saul and David: Cowardice, courage, and the choice we must make

Courage is rarely rewarded when exercised. It is sometimes acknowledged, often ridiculed, and punished when it’s dangerous. This was the experience of a young man named David, one of history’s most courageous leaders, who would eventually become king of Israel.

When then-King Saul and his army were confronted with the lethality of the Philistine warrior Goliath, “they were scared and ran off” (1 Samuel 17:24). In the midst of their courage deficit and battlefield crisis, David arrived as a food delivery boy from his father for his brothers. He asked a question:

David asked some soldiers standing nearby, “What will a man get for killing this Philistine and stopping him from insulting our people? Who does that worthless Philistine think he is? He’s making fun of the army of the living God!”

1 Samuel 17:26 CEV

Eliab, David’s older brother, heard him and reacted in anger:

David’s oldest brother Eliab heard him talking with the soldiers. Eliab was angry at him and said, “What are you doing here, anyway? Who’s taking care of that little flock of sheep out in the desert? You spoiled brat! You came here just to watch the fighting, didn’t you?”

1 Samuel 17:28 CEV

As is so often the case when someone courageous steps forward, the response David got was diminishing ridicule and dismissive incredulity. His brother punished him emotionally, likely due to the disconcerting effect of sibling rivalry.

But then other soldiers acknowledged the courage that David’s brother would not:

Some soldiers overheard David talking, so they told Saul what David had said. Saul sent for David, and David came. [32] “Your Majesty,” he said, “this Philistine shouldn’t turn us into cowards. I’ll go out and fight him myself!”

1 Samuel 17:31-32 CEV

The Contemporary English Version of the Bible captures the contrast between David and Saul. Goliath surfaced David’s courage and revealed the cowardice of Saul and his army. This is what our modern-day “Goliaths” do to us. Every formidable problem in our lives and in the world will test our character and reveal what is at its core—courage or cowardice.

You and me: Will we run or will we fight?

When Goliath started forward,

David ran toward Goliath, without worrying about whether or not he had what it took to defeat this giant.

Right now, I can name three to four Goliaths in my life. How about you? The world around us counsels the pursuit of comfort, not courage: Avoid, don’t fight. Conform, don’t live with conviction. Amass followers or be silent, but under no circumstances risk being different.

If you and I want to be spiritual, to experience the conquering Spirit of Jesus, and to live like David instead of Saul, then we must choose courage. Like David, we can’t worry about our resources. We must trust what God gives us and run to the fight.

Do I dare? Do you dare? This is our spiritual frontier, and our answer tells us whether we have the courage to conquer it.

Key takeaways

• Real growth begins with self-awareness: You can’t change what you don’t first understand.

• God helps you get honest: Seeing yourself through his eyes leads to confidence and direction.

• Knowing yourself sets the stage: It’s the first step to improving how you manage stress, make decisions, and more.

As water reflects the face, so one’s life reflects the heart.

Proverbs 27:19 NIV

Marriage lessons come in many forms, but this one was unique. While studying the Bible with a friend, I witnessed a life-changing moment of self-awareness. As we explored the Scriptures, a light bulb turned on in his head. He realized that his hatred was holding him back from making the decision to become a Christian. But it wasn’t just any hate—it was directed at his wife, whom he regularly wished would die.

For many, this might seem like a terrible moment, but what I learned that day is that the best things in life begin with self-awareness born out of honesty. Once he identified the hate and recognized the petty reasons behind it, he was able to let it go. This led to reconciliation with his wife, and through the power of forgiveness, they started their marriage over, lasting for many more years.

This transformation happened because of the power of Scripture. As the above verse in Proverbs 27 describes, the Bible allows us to connect our life actions with our heart condition. In other words, it helps us understand why we act the way we do. Once we are aware of our hearts, God can help us change them. Once we change our hearts, we can change our lives.

Instead of fearing self-awareness, we should embrace it because it is the beginning of the best things in life.

The power of self-awareness

Have you ever been surprised by emotions you didn’t know were there? Perhaps someone asked how you felt, and you struggled to explain it. Or maybe you’ve been in a situation where you felt nothing while everyone around you was deeply emotional. Or maybe you misread someone else’s emotions, causing pain and misunderstanding.

In all of these instances, the missing or underdeveloped skill is self-awareness. The good thing is, the more we walk with God, the more he develops self-awareness in us. When we walk with God, several things happen:

• We are known by him (1 Corinthians 8:3, Psalm 139:1-6).

• We listen to his Word, which becomes a mirror for us, cutting through the facades and masks of life to reveal who we truly are (James 1:22-25, Hebrews 4:12-13).

• The truth of God’s Word sets us free (John 8:31-32).

• This freedom from God’s Word allows us to be ourselves and to grow into God’s purpose for our lives (Romans 8:28 Voice).

The self-awareness we develop in our walk with God also deepens our prayer life, empowering us to pour out our hearts to him (Psalm 62:8). Honest prayer opens the door for God to move powerfully in our lives (James 5:16). As God gives us that power through prayer, he helps us appreciate our God-given strengths and begin to change the weaknesses of character that hold us back from our destiny.

Spiritual self-awareness is a life skill that not only deepens our relationship with God but also strengthens our relationships with others. Understanding the impact of our own joys and pain can give us deeper understanding and compassion for the burdens others carry in their hearts (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Regardless of the current level of our own self-awareness, none of us has reached the depth of Jesus, who was so spiritually perceptive that he knew people’s hearts (Matthew 9:4). That means it doesn’t matter how behind or ahead we feel we are in our own journeys to self-awareness, because we all have room to grow. The more we grow together to become like Jesus, the more our prayers and our relationships will grow in awareness, depth, and fulfillment.

Scriptures for reflection

1. Know what’s in your own heart.

Each heart knows its own bitterness, and no one else can fully share its joy.

Proverbs 14:10 NLT

True self-awareness means being honest with ourselves about both pain and joy. Refusing to acknowledge emotions is refusing to let God heal us and bring us close to him (Matthew 13:15). When we share both joy and pain, we can experience a depth of intimacy and connection that is unreachable for the unaware.

2. Speak the truth from the heart.

The one whose walk is blameless, who does what is righteous, who speaks the truth from their heart…

Psalm 15:2 NIV

When we are spiritually self-aware, we do not live in deception—whether that be self-deception or deception toward others. Instead, we speak truthfully about what’s in our heart, leading to a life of integrity and intimate relationships.

3. Draw out the deep things within.

The real motives come from deep within a person-as from deep waters- but a discerning person is able to draw them up and expose them.

Proverbs 20:5 Voice

Spiritual self-awareness requires discernment—the ability to dig deeper to understand why we do the things we do. Our motives, fears, and desires often lie beneath the surface, but with the help of God and spiritual friends, we can bring them to light.

4. Build a strong foundation through self-awareness.

“So why do you keep calling me ‘Lord, Lord!’ when you don’t do what I say? [47] I will show you what it’s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it. [48] It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built.

Luke 6:46-48 NLT

Jesus tells us that following his teachings in the Scriptures involves “digging deep.” Through his Word, God opens our hearts, reveals truths to us about who he is and who we are, and lays the foundation for who we can become.

Questions for reflection

• Have you ever experienced a moment where self-awareness changed your perspective or actions? What happened?

• Are there emotions or thoughts you’ve been avoiding? Why do you think that is?

• How can you use Scripture and prayer to develop greater self-awareness this week?

Get started on your journey

Developing self-awareness is a continual journey; we never finish growing in our understanding of ourselves or God. The more we walk in the light of God’s truth, the more we experience the best things in life: growth, healing, and purpose.

To begin or deepen your spiritual self-awareness, you may find these ideas helpful:

• Use an emotions wheel. If understanding or acknowledging what’s in your heart is difficult for you, try using an emotions wheel. Identify which emotions you feel the most on a daily basis, then write down how you tend to react when those emotions arise, and in what areas of your life they arise most. For example, if anxiety is a common emotion for you, does it come up most at work, home, or somewhere else? Do you react by lashing out, disengaging, or taking control? Share what you find in prayer and conversation with God and friends.

• Ask why (more than once). When trying to understand your behaviors or heart, dig deeper by asking yourself why a couple times. (ie. I snapped at my spouse for not doing the dishes. Why? Because it made me angry and stressed. Why? Because then I’d feel like I have to do it. Why? Because I feel hurt for not being considered.) There’s no magical number for how many times to ask, but the more you ask the more you might understand. Prayer is a good place to do this so that you don’t let your emotions or thoughts get the best of you.

• Dig deep when you read the Bible. When reading Scripture, ask yourself: what do I learn about myself? What do I learn about God and the life he wants for me? How can I follow this today to become who God is calling me to be?

Space: the final frontier.
These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise.
Its five-year mission:
to explore strange new worlds,
to seek out new life and new civilizations,
to boldly go where no man has gone before.

— Star Trek: The Original Series

The Spiritual Frontier is a newsletter whose inception came from an awareness of my own fear and the resulting inclination toward stagnation instead of innovation.

The Scriptures confirmed my realization. Proverbs 28:1 contrasts the godly, who are “as bold as lions,” with the wicked, who are cowardly. Awakened by this awareness, I was forced to question the condition of my faith.

Faith brings extraordinary confidence. We see this in the first Christians in the Bible, whose source of confidence was God:

God, who got you started in this spiritual adventure … will never give up on you. Never forget that.

1 Corinthians 1:7-9 MSG

Powered by this faith, the first Christians were able to enter and conquer new frontiers such that more and more people discovered God.

Through all this upheaval, God’s message spread to new frontiers and attracted more and more people.

Acts 12:24 VOICE

I enjoy both science and spirituality, and when I reflected on the Christians in the Bible, a truth became apparent to me. The spirituality of God through Jesus Christ and science share a pioneering mindset. It’s the mindset described in the iconic Star Trek series: “to explore … to seek out … to boldly go.” No matter whether the measure was spiritual or secular, I was losing my pioneering mindset. I was becoming someone I didn’t want to be.

I needed to get back to exploring the unknown, uncertain, uncontrollable, and impossible. With a trusting faith in God, who is the ultimate source of the courage necessary to navigate every new frontier, I could walk boldly into four areas that my fear told me were off-limits:

• The unknown: I don’t know where this will lead.

• The uncertain: I don’t know how this will work.

• The uncontrollable: I don’t believe I can do it.

• The impossible: I don’t see a reason this should come true.

This is the final frontier, not space. Space is finite. The ultimate and final frontier is the spiritual activity of life.

Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things.

Ecclesiastes 11:5 NLT

I have avoided and resisted entering this spiritual frontier because I am afraid. Fear of the unpredictability of life erodes my faith and produces insecurity. It causes me to run from pain, to anticipate potential suffering and hesitate because of it. Fear confines and cages my life.

Do you ever feel that way?

This is not God’s plan for our lives.

For God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control].

2 Timothy 1:7 AMP

God wants us “to explore … to seek out … to boldly go” into the spiritual frontier. This is the spiritual space he inhabits. The spiritual frontier is where we become free to discover who we are and why we are here.

This is the freedom Maya Angelou described when she heard the caged bird sing. It’s A song of freedom familiar to those of us who feel caged by our fear of the unknown, uncertain, uncontrollable, and impossible

The caged bird sings…of things unknown but longed for still...

— Maya Angelou, “Caged Bird”

God hears our song and offers us this freedom to discover who we are and why we are here. But this is a calling, and it requires courage—the willingness to lose who we have been to become who we are meant to be. Only courage will set us free to embark on the grand adventure of life, which is the exploration of the spiritual frontier.

The question this newsletter asks, and the one I’m asking myself, is whether we will choose the stagnation of cowardice or the frontier of courage.

The frontier is waiting. Will we go?

There are places in life most of us are afraid to go.

The unknown. The unpredictable. The dreams we’ve quietly stopped believing in. The versions of ourselves we’ve glimpsed but never fully become. These are spiritual struggles. And they’re exactly where the most important growth happens.

That’s The Spiritual Frontier.

It’s not a place on a map. It’s the courageous decision to stop letting fear write the story of our lives and to start trusting that God has something extraordinary waiting on the other side of our hesitation. Proverbs 29:18 says it plainly: “Without vision, people perish.” The Spiritual Frontier exists to give us that vision back.

And it’s for everyone. Whether you’re deeply rooted in faith or just beginning to wonder if there’s something more, you belong here.

The Spiritual Frontier includes essays and podcast episodes that will go deep into faith and God—that’s the heartbeat of everything I do. But it won’t stop there. We’ll bring in researchers, psychiatrists, and business leaders. We’ll talk about developing the faith to conquer the things that are real and complex in our lives—like grief, leadership, disabilities, and more. God is the source of all wisdom and understanding, and he wants to fully equip us to be the best we can be in every area of our lives.

I’m learning as I go. I’m overcoming my own fears in real time. And I’m inviting you to come with me.

Watch the video above for my full launch message, where I share exactly what this new chapter is, where it’s headed, and what’s coming in the very first episode. (Spoiler: it might be the best one I’ve ever made.)

The frontier is waiting.

Let’s go.

The best podcasts don’t just inform you. They hold up a mirror.

That’s what happened the first time I listened to Ryan Wexelblatt, founder of ADHD Dude, licensed social worker, and one of the clearest voices on parenting I’ve ever encountered. I was ten minutes in before I started laughing at myself. Not because he was funny. Because he was right.

I knew I had to get him on the Spiritual Frontier.

Here’s the reality: 1 in 9 American children, 7 million kids, are carrying an ADHD diagnosis. Behind that number are millions of parents who love their children fiercely and were never handed a map. That’s not a failure. That’s simply where we begin.

Here’s a number that stopped me cold: 40% of parents want to be the fun parent. Only 7% want to be seen as strict. But Ryan helped me see what I’d been missing. We’ve confused strictness with structure, and they are not the same thing. Strictness controls a child. Structure sets one free. For a child with ADHD, structure isn’t a cage. It’s the scaffolding they climb to become who they’re capable of being.

Ryan doesn’t avoid the difficult. He explains and inspires. That’s his gift. He trades guesswork for what the evidence actually shows: how to read your child’s big emotions instead of fearing them, how to stop rescuing and start equipping, how to raise a child who learns they are capable rather than helpless.

This is one of the most enjoyable, inspiring, and detailed episodes I’ve ever produced. Maybe the best yet. Not because it will make you feel you’ve gotten it wrong, but because you’ll walk away believing you can get it right.

Don’t miss it.

▶️ Watch: The Empowered Parent: Raising a Child With ADHD With Hope and Direction

Who is Ryan?

Ryan Wexelblatt, LCSW, is a licensed social worker, ADHD specialist, and founder of ADHD Dude. An expert in behavior management and executive functioning, Ryan combines clinical expertise with his personal experience to help families replace daily chaos with structural discipline, resilience, and real-world independence.

Ryan’s links

• YouTube

• Podcast

• Website

… what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. [20] For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.

Romans 1:19-20 NIV

Romans 1:20 tells us that creation itself is enough to reveal God. God built the world not just to exist, but to explain. He wants to be known and discovered through every aspect of our lives—through nature, science, and the world as well as through our relationships, our emotions, and our souls. Every molecule in existence makes God audible, reachable, and knowable. Every biological system is a clue to who God is.

When we move through life with this understanding, we will always be in God’s classroom. We will find opportunities for spiritual discovery in places that some might think unlikely, such as the one I found while reading the fantasy book series His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman. A young girl named Lyra is at the center of this story, and her conversations with other characters reveal her struggle to understand the spiritual forces at work in the world.

“Quick now, child,” he said quietly. “The powers of this world are very strong. Men and women are moved by tides much fiercer than you can imagine, and they sweep us all up into the current.”

Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass (Book One)

Like Lyra, I’ve discovered there is much I don’t know about the powers of this world. I, too, am often naïve about the fierce tides at work within men and women.

What I do know is that this world is both physical and spiritual, so understanding it and the God who made it requires a commitment to understanding at least the rudimentary foundations of science and spirituality.

Pullman pulls on this string when he describes Lyra’s need to navigate the perceived conflict between faith and science:

“But…” Lyra struggled to find the words she wanted: “but it en’t true, is it? Not true like chemistry or engineering, not that kind of true? There wasn’t really an Adam and Eve?”

Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass (Book One)

Lyra is not alone in her struggle to reconcile the seemingly disparate principles of faith and science. I have felt caught in the tension between the two, and I’m sure that many other readers have too. Continuing their conversation, Lord Asriel responds to Lyra’s confusion by clarifying that this tension between faith and science is not an argument to be solved, but an idea to be explored:

“…think of Adam and Eve like an imaginary number, like the square root of minus one: you can never see any concrete proof that it exists, but if you include it in your equations, you can calculate all manner of things that couldn’t be imagined without it.”

Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass (Book One)

As we consider this potential conflict between faith and science, we must resist the temptation to engage in argument. As always with The Chemistry Lab, my proposal is that we approach this topic with curiosity and exploration instead.

Pullman may not have intended his words for the reason I use them, but I believe his writing invites us to explore not merely faith and science, but the one word which, in my view, combines them both: spirituality.

“Incidentally, the Bible gave us the name Dust as well. At first they were called Rusakov Particles, but soon someone pointed out a curious verse toward the end of the Third Chapter of Genesis, where God’s cursing Adam for eating the fruit.” He opened the Bible again and pointed it out to Lyra. She read: “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return….”

Philip Pullman, His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass (Book One)

Pullman uses the term “Dust” in his novel to describe the physical particles that form a person’s consciousness, highlighting the connection between science and faith, between the physical and the supernatural. Pullman’s writing seems to come to the same conclusion that the Bible has been revealing all along: the world we inhabit is more than science or faith alone, but their combination—spirituality!

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this [present] darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) places.

Ephesians 6:12 AMP

By no means do I claim to understand all of this. But the questions these concepts raise challenge me to grow. What is the connection between faith and science? What is spirituality, and how does it allow us to integrate science and faith? How does it help us discover God? How does it change the way we live and see the world?

We don’t have to know the answers definitively; we merely need to keep an open mind and a learning heart. In today’s edition of The Chemistry Lab, join me as we explore the essence of spiritual chemistry, learn how to make God more discoverable in our lives, and reimagine Jesus in ways we never have before.

Notebooks open. Let’s see what we can learn today.

The Workshop

A place of discovery where a story sparks insight, observation, and a deeper understanding of walking with God.

Chemistry was the first and only course I wanted to take when I entered high school. I signed up for it as a freshman; I remember this because my older sisters reported to my mom that this wasn’t supposed to happen. “No one takes chemistry as a freshman,” they said.

While this wasn’t completely true, it was unusual. But as an incoming freshman who didn’t even know my way around a high school of 2000 students, how would I know this unspoken rule?

I’m not a genius, but I aced that class. Why? Because a passion for the subject was lit inside me. The moment I saw the high school lab equipment and listened to my teacher reveal things I didn’t know about chemistry, my heart raced, my mind was illuminated, and I knew I was going to become a chemist. For me, chemistry was the central science that connected all the others, and I wanted to possess the knowledge that I believed unlocked the secrets of life.

Despite the fact that I never became a chemist, what has always stuck with me is the understanding that chemistry connects the foundational science of physics to all the others—hence the term “central science.” In the same way, I believe spiritual chemistry, if understood, can connect the dots of what the Bible truly teaches about following Jesus and walking with God.

Defining spiritual chemistry

We are well into our Chemistry Lab journey, so it is time to define the core concept of spiritual chemistry. We are on a mission of discovery, so we can refine this definition as we go. But for now, my definition finds its genesis in this quote about making God audible from Susannah Heschel (which you may remember from an earlier edition of The Chemistry Lab):

… For my father, the importance of prophecy lies not only in the message, but in the role of the prophet as a witness, someone who is able to make God audible and to reveal not only God’s will, but inner life.

Susannah Heschel, Introduction to The Prophets by Abraham Joshua Heschel

When we combine this idea of “making God audible” with what we learned earlier in Romans 1:19-20 about how God’s creation makes him known, we come to this working definition:

Jesus is the ultimate explainer of spiritual chemistry.

No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known.

John 1:18 NIV

Jesus is the ultimate explainer of spiritual chemistry. In his hands it becomes a discovery process that begins when we stop separating science from faith and begin to experience their unity.

As Colossians 1:15-17 teaches, God created the world through Jesus and for Jesus. The purpose of this is that Jesus might use every aspect of creation to explain and express the heart of God, so that all of humanity might know him:

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. [16] For in him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. [17] He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.

Colossians 1:15-17 NIV

For far too long, far too many have created a scaffolding that places science and faith in different rooms, if not different houses. But these are the actions and ideas of people, not God. He does not separate; he unifies science and faith through spirituality, and Jesus is the human expression of this unity.

What does this mean for us? Every atom, cell, and chemical; every land mass, ocean, and organism; anything and everything in our universe, including the forces of darkness and light, are all part of a creation to help us know and understand God. One might say creation is God’s communication with us.

Jesus makes sense of everything. He is the one who explains this communication and helps us understand and follow the path to our fulfillment, where we maximize our spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical potential as human beings.

God lives in Jesus like he has never lived in any other human: without hindrance. This distinction is what makes Jesus the height of spirituality, love, purpose, and power. This explains Jesus’s transformative effect on the world.

For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit.

John 3:34 NIV

Jesus experienced the Spirit’s power without limit because he was undefeated by sin. Sin limits our potential, pulls us into a dark and empty life, and hinders our ability to see God move in our lives.

We can never reach Jesus’s level of transcendence on our own because we are limited by sin, but he opened the door for us to follow in his footsteps. He came to reveal the spiritual chemistry of a powerful life and make it available for everyone. He shows us what’s possible when the human spirit aligns with God’s.

For God called you to do good, even if it means suffering, just as Christ suffered for you. He is your example, and you must follow in his steps. [22] He never sinned, nor ever deceived anyone.

1 Peter 2:21-22 NLT

It is this Jesus we are to focus on, follow, and imitate. When we do, we will defy the gravitational pull of life into the emptiness and darkness that limit our potential and even destroy us.

Reimagining our view of Jesus

Many people, both secular and religious, admire Jesus’s life. He was an exceptional teacher and leader who made an exceptional impact. But Jesus wasn’t just exceptional. He was extraordinary. And he was extraordinary because he mastered and personified the powerful connection between science and faith, the natural and the supernatural.

Jesus became a priest, not by meeting the physical requirement of belonging to the tribe of Levi, but by the power of a life that cannot be destroyed.

Hebrews 7:16 NLT

Jesus lived a powerful life not so that we would admire it but so that we would choose to live it ourselves. Believing in a Jesus any less extraordinary than this is a failure to grasp his true spirituality.

An exceptional (but not extraordinary) Jesus is limited by both the secular and religious insistence on compartmentalizing science and faith into separate categories (1 Corinthians 1:20-23). This thinking will prevent the exploration and discovery meant to occur when we examine the life of Jesus and the spiritual chemistry he can teach us.

Legendary scientist Max Planck warned of this type of rigid resistance and opposition toward new scientific truths:

A new scientific truth does not triumph by convincing its opponents and making them see the light, but rather because its opponents eventually die, and a new generation grows up that is familiar with it.

Max Planck, Scientific Autobiography and Other Papers

We must not become people of God who are opponents of discovery, as described by Planck. Instead, we must be the new generation willing to reimagine Jesus and the faith he seeks to explain to us.

Weekly Experiment

A hands-on reflection and action guide designed to turn insights into growth.

Our journey to living a powerful life and discovering God in everything starts with Jesus, who delivered a message on spiritual chemistry in John 3:

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” …[5] Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. [6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.”

John 3:3,5-6 NIV

Let’s break these verses down for a moment. Jesus tells us that to be born again, we must be born of water and Spirit. This isn’t a suggestion but a command. Some believe these verses point to baptism, which would turn what many consider to be a ritual into something much more transformative. Might it be a formula to produce the chemistry of change? Our bodies are already made up of 60-70% water—you could say this is our physical chemistry. So if Jesus is saying we must be born of both water and Spirit, then maybe this spiritual rebirth is a recalibration of our chemistry, bringing the physical and spiritual into perfect alignment. Being “born again” is the moment when our physical and spiritual dimensions finally integrate—when we stop living in fragments and start living in flow.

As we covered in the first issue of The Chemistry Lab, God made us with four primary dimensions:

• Heart (emotion)

• Mind (thought)

• Body (action/energy)

• Soul (spirit)

But few of us live in all four. Most of us operate from two or three at best. The goal of spiritual chemistry is to realign these dimensions into unity—not just to know God, but to walk in his power.

Jesus lived a powerful life. What if he experienced this power and did miracles because his spirit was perfectly aligned with God’s? What if spiritual growth isn’t just about learning more or gaining insight, but removing every barrier that hinders our ability to see God?

So for our weekly experiment, let’s ask ourselves these questions:

What is the chemistry of my life right now? Is it led by the physical or the spiritual, or are the dimensions of my life aligned and balanced?

If spiritual chemistry reveals God to us in every created thing, it will change the way we see and interact with every part of our lives. It will transform our friendships, marriages, churches, families, companies, and communities as we learn to see people the way Jesus did.

Here are a few more questions to help us reflect on and reveal our spiritual chemistry:

• How am I making choices in my life? Which of the four dimensions guides my choices more than the others?

• Am I exploring all areas of my life—the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual? What areas of my heart am I leaving unexplored?

• Which dimension dominates my relationships most? How does that affect the spiritual chemistry of those relationships?

• Are there areas of my heart that I am insecure or defensive about exploring? How do these areas reveal the need for deeper experimentation with personal transparency, spirituality, and even change?

Once we have answered these questions, let’s come up with our own experiments to act on what we learned. What experiment can you run to bring your spiritual and physical life into alignment? How will you know that this physical and spiritual alignment has happened? What will be your indicator?

As we have suggested in earlier issues of The Chemistry Lab, finding a lab partner to work with is a way to discover the answers to these questions.

The Field Notes

Key takeaways and final thoughts to carry with us into the week ahead.

Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.

Hebrews 2:11 NIV

For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.

Romans 8:29 NIV

Hebrews 2:11 and Romans 8:29 clearly reflect a call from God to experience a relationship with him that produces the same type of spirituality with which Jesus walked this earth. In fact, 1 John 2:6 ESV says, “Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” To me, this means that our walk with God ought to imitate Jesus’s, which means we should be understanding, experiencing, and inspiring the same type of spiritual chemistry Jesus taught and lived.

Here are some areas I am examining, questioning, and planning to experiment with so I can experience the spiritual chemistry of Jesus:

1. How much am I experiencing the spiritual chemistry of forgiveness?

2. Does my life manifest the spiritual chemistry of humility?

3. Do I embrace the chemistry of change and transformation in my life?

4. Do I have the resilience of someone experiencing the chemistry of destiny?

5. What is the quality of my chemistry with God when I pray?

6. How do I experience the chemistry of obedience to Scripture?

7. Am I experiencing spiritual chemistry in my marriage?

8. How effective is the spiritual chemistry of my personal leadership?

9. What is the spiritual chemistry of our small group, team, leadership team?

10. How much have I allowed God to change the chemistry of my character?

11. Am I experiencing the spiritual chemistry of creativity in my life?

12. What is my spiritual chemical reaction to mentorship and discipleship?

13. How is the organizational chemistry of my company or church? Is it spiritual?

14. How does my view and thinking about Jesus affect my capacity to experience spiritual chemistry?

God can bring incredible spiritual transformation into the life of anyone who chooses to follow and imitate Jesus. Jesus promised this, and he died to deliver it for us—something no one else in history has ever done. He is the ultimate explainer of spiritual chemistry who makes God audible through every molecule, every relationship, every emotion, thought, and person. When we reimagine Jesus in this way, he comes alive, and we experience the spiritual chemistry of a powerful and beautiful life.