Learning to Feed Your Soul

Growing in Faith Outside the Walls

Leaving the traditional church wasn't just about stepping away from a building or routine; it was about leaving behind a safety net that had kept me spiritually comfortable. It was where I could sit back and let someone else do the heavy lifting in my faith. But when that net was gone, I faced a stark reality: my faith was weak, not because I didn't believe, but because I had relied too much on others to sustain it. That realization hit me hard one Sunday morning as I sat on my couch with nothing to do and nowhere to go. Then, I knew I had to take ownership of my spiritual journey.

Finding Christian Teaching Beyond Sunday Preaching

The first few weeks after leaving were disorienting. Every Sunday morning, I woke up with a strange mix of freedom and unease. There was no rush to get dressed, no need to hurry out the door for service. But that freedom was paired with a deep sense of loss. The rhythm that had structured my week was gone, leaving me feeling adrift. I missed the routine—the predictable flow of worship, the familiar faces, the comfort of sitting in the same pew each week. Most of all, I missed the sense of belonging, of being part of something larger.

Even as I longed for those things, I couldn't shake the feeling that had been with me for a long time—something was missing. Despite all the time I had spent in church, my soul still felt hungry. The sermons, though well-meaning, often seemed to skim the surface of issues I was grappling with. They rarely delved into the messy, complicated parts of faith I was trying to navigate. I needed something more that spoke directly to my struggles and questions.

I found it overwhelming when I began searching for more profound spiritual teaching. There were countless voices—pastors, theologians, authors, speakers—each offering their interpretation of what it meant to follow Christ. It felt like being thrown into a vast ocean with no life raft, surrounded by conflicting opinions.

There were moments when I questioned whether I had made the right decision to leave. The certainty I had once felt about what to believe and how to act had been stripped away, leaving me vulnerable to doubts I had never faced before. The questions swirled in my mind, threatening to pull me under.

But during that chaos, I remembered something a mentor had once told me, words that have stayed with me ever since: "If you seek Him, you will find Him if you search with all your heart." Those words became my anchor, reminding me that my journey wasn't about finding the perfect sermon or teacher. It was about seeking God with everything I had, trusting He would guide me even when the path wasn't clear.