🏃♀️ Are You Growing or Just Grinding? Breaking Free from the Spiritual Treadmill
Updated: 3 days ago
Ever feel like you’re hustling hard for spiritual growth but not actually getting anywhere? Like you’re sprinting on a spiritual treadmill, sweaty and breathless, but somehow still stuck in place? 🏃♀️💨
You're trying to do all the things...
🎧 Bingeing podcasts and devotionals like your spiritual life depends on it
💬 Journaling every thought... but still circling the same questions
🗂️ Color-coding Bible verses like it’s finals week
✍🏼 Writing down prophetic words you’re not sure what to do with
😩 Saying yes to everything at church hoping something finally clicks
And still... something feels off.
You are definitely not the only one!
Most of us really want to grow. We want to feel spiritually mature, with some real wisdom under our belt. Some depth. Some traction. We want to know we’re actually becoming who God created us to be.
Trust me, I’ve seen it again and again over 24+ years of pastoring, and I’ve lived it too.
The spiritual hustle usually starts from a good place. We want to be good, do things right, and love God back with passion. Somewhere along the way, though, it’s easy to get lost in all the doing and wind up spiritually exhausted instead of spiritually alive.
Let me tell you about Lindy, one of our Revival Life ladies:
She grew up a pastor’s kid. She knew the Scriptures, led the prayers, and raised her hands like a pro. But deep down, she couldn’t connect any of it to her real life.
She constantly felt like she was missing it. No matter how much she knew or did, she still felt like God was disappointed in her. Eventually, all that pressure, striving, stress, and serving everybody but herself started wrecking her body.
(To be continued... 👇🏼)
The Lie We've Been Sold:
“More knowledge = more spiritual maturity.”
Here’s the problem: knowing something ≠ living it
I mean, we all know we should eat clean and stick to a budget. 🥗💳😂
Doesn’t mean we always do it.
The same thing happens spiritually. You can binge sermons, memorize Greek, journal your heart out, and still feel stuck.
Jesus gave us a different picture:
“Everyone who hears these words of Mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.”— Matthew 7:24
He didn’t say, “Everyone who takes killer sermon notes.” 😜
He said: puts them into practice.
Sometimes that means getting up and doing the thing. 😂 Tell someone about Jesus. Help your neighbor. Make the call. Give generously. Apologize. Try the thing God’s been nudging you toward. Think beyond yourself. Step out in faith.
And sometimes, the thing He’s asking you to practice is rest.
It’s Mary choosing the one thing while Martha is spinning in a whirlwind of doing. It’s trusting that sitting with Jesus can be just as obedient as getting up and moving.
Think about sleep, winter, pruning. 🌱 So much important growth happens quietly. Stillness doesn’t mean nothing is happening. Sometimes the deepest work is happening where nobody can see it yet.
That’s the point: spiritual maturity isn’t measured by how much you’re doing OR how much you’re resting. It’s learning to recognize what God is saying and actually live it.
Sometimes He says, “Go.”
Sometimes He says, “Stay.”
Maturity learns His rhythm.
Less grinding. More growing. ✨
🫣 Enter: The Dunning-Kruger Effect
This is that sneaky little phenomenon where someone learns a little bit about something and suddenly feels like an expert.
You know...
That friend with no kids who read one article & is suddenly ready to coach you 😂
You, after half a DIY video: I can absolutely renovate this bathroom. 🔨
My husband has Master of Divinity degree… Turns out that didn’t make him a master in divinity. 😬 (Love you, babe.)
Knowledge is valuable. But knowledge alone isn’t maturity.
Jesus lived this beautifully. Before He ever preached His first sermon, He spent 30 hidden years being the message—loving His family, working with His hands, staying connected to the Father. There was no rush to build a platform. His life and His words belonged together.
Jesus lived and was what He said. 🔥
Real Maturity: Embodied Truth
“Don't merely listen to the word... do what it says.”— James 1:22
That’s where the shift happens. Wisdom grows legs. The things you believe begin showing up in the way you actually live.
I LOVE reading the Bible. I just don’t want truth to sit beautifully highlighted in my notes. I want to live like the promises I’m reading are actually possible for me, as a breathing bible character and a living epistle!
I want to discern the season I’m in, recognize the gems God has already placed within me, and pay attention to the growth He’s cultivating right now.
And I want it to be simple.
(Hint: it actually is.)
Maybe I hear God say, “I love spending time with you. You’re such a delight to Me.”
So I linger a little longer. Or I keep chatting with Him while I fold the laundry.
Maybe I sense Him highlighting an idea: “That idea you had? Let’s do it. It’ll make them feel so seen.” So I do it.
Truth becomes simple, bold action. And growth starts feeling like joy and freedom again. ✨
“True enrichment comes from the blessing of the Lord, with rest and contentment in knowing that it all comes from Him.” — Proverbs 10:22
Imagine Ditching the Treadmill Vibes 🙅🏼♀️
Picture the wind in your face, the sun on your skin, a gorgeous view ahead, and people cheering you on. You’re actually going somewhere.
This is what spiritual growth can feel like: freedom, progress, joy.
You get to run with God, learning His pace and moving in step with Him. You get to experience His delight over your life while you grow.
👉🏼 And that’s what happened with our girl Lindy.
The internal pressure started lifting. She began experiencing God’s peace and pleasure again. She didn’t need to study harder or prove herself more. She began taking what she knew about God and actually living from it, one simple step at a time. She came ALIVE in ways she knew she was made for!
And she had a crew beside her all the way. 🙌🏽
Here’s Your Permission Slip:
❌ You don’t have to be a spiritual robot.
❌ You don’t have to podcast yourself into perfection.
❌ You don’t have to earn God’s approval.
✅ You get to be you. Full of fire, moving in faith, and letting truth transform the way you actually live.
Jesus said:
“Abide in Me… and you will bear much fruit.”— John 15:4-5
Real growth doesn’t have to be complicated. Hear what God is saying and put it into practice.
Head → heart → hands. 💛
Simple. Daily. Lived.
And little by little, your life starts looking like the truth you believe.
You’re not meant to stay stuck on the spiritual treadmill. You’re invited to walk (and run!) with Him, one faithful, freeing step at a time.
Let's Keep Growing Together!
This journey with Jesus was never meant to be walked alone. We need people who see clearly, call out the gold in us, challenge us when we need it, and reflect Jesus back to us when our own lens gets foggy.
That’s one of the beautiful things about godly community. We help each other hear God, shake off shame, and remember who we are when we forget.
I love that you’re here. 💛 Kelsi and I are in your corner, praying for you, cheering you on, and believing for the wild, beautiful story God is unfolding in your life.
So keep going. Keep listening. Keep putting truth into practice.
You’re building Kingdom muscle. You’re becoming unshakable. 🔥
Let’s run wild, free, on fire, and in step with Jesus.
Cheering you on, CHAMPION!
Kandi
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