Why don’t I enjoy praying or reading the Bible

I can understand why it makes me anxious in the first place but like isn’t it such a big part of faith or a relationship with God? People online seem to just feel so comforted by praying and reading into the stories of the Bible, am I just too self aware or is this just how my ocd tendencies work? I used to feel so much more at peace before this big religious spiral started about 9 months ago. And now that I know I should be doing these things like praying and stuff it’s making me scared to heal and go back to being oblivious to this whole thing. And I don’t feel comforted when they’ll say stuff like “just pray more and God will fix your heart” or stuff like that. IM TOO ANXIOUS!!!

Rae226

Date posted: Yesterday

I'm the EXACT same way! Sometimes I feel distant from God, and everyone says "oh just read your Bible and the feeling will come back!" But something I've learned is that what makes us Christian isn't exactly how much we read or pray, though those things are good for growing in our faith, but is more about loving and following God. Remember, the disciples didn't read religious text every day, but they still followed Jesus and followed him and what he said. And that feeling you get when you're all excited about God is good, but it doesn't mean you're distant or not a real follower of you aren't feeling it. Following Jesus isnt about a feeling or how much we read, it's about loving others and following his teachings. The Bible isn't a task or rulebook. It's a compilation of records. It's something we can read to learn about God and find answers to our questions. Praying isn't just a task either. It's communication to God, no matter what about. Like talking to a friend, sharing your worries and joys with them and telling them about your day. And remember, even if God feels distant, he is right with you and will never leave your side.

Estrid

Date posted: 23h

You can put your Bible aside for a while. You can rest in His deep love for you. He wants you to enjoy life and love yourself and others. Don't make it complex.

Brianna J

Date posted: 21h

Needed this too. Thank you.

Brianna J

Date posted: 21h

I can relate. Something I've been doing is listening to scripture meditations at night on YouTube. I'll find a video focused on anxiety or God's love and just let it play as I go to sleep. I also read a verse in the morning and try to pray throughout the day, nothing formal or long, just like talking to a friend. But if you're in a crisis or spiral, it's hard to do much more than that. It's like asking someone to run a marathon with a broken leg. Start small. Remember God has compassion on you. He knows your limitations and can work through that.

Serenajj

Date posted: 21h

Fasting helps, gets rid of it. Focus on 10 commandments. Brain reset, fasting helps, as a restart in ur brain. It helped my with OCD and psychosis.

CaspersKeeper

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 13h

@Serenajj Fasting isn’t a good recommendation for a lot of people and can be dangerous- discuss first with a doctor and a spiritual leader about the best ways to do that for you if you feel called to do that. 🫶

CaspersKeeper

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 13h

@CaspersKeeper I’m mainly replying for OPs sake or for anyone reading who is looking for advice in this regard.

CaspersKeeper

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 13h

Personally for me, I took a break. I came back, and found that christianity didn’t work for me anymore- for my OCD themes and just things I couldn’t reconcile with personally within the faith. I have no idea if your anxieties and negative feelings are just OCD related or other things or both. But I recommend looking deeper into what your big fears are here in regards to your spiritual practice- if it is fears of not being good enough, possibly not being saved, something similar- it’s probably OCD. That means you will need to identify what your compulsions are so you can refrain from them. I do want to say if it is something more than that, that has to do with issues surrounding the structure of the religion you practice or the culture of it- it is okay for you to build your own practice around what you need and it is okay for you to take as much time as you need to, to do that. If God is loving, and created you with love, then he shouldn’t want you to be hurting. 🫶

CaspersKeeper

User type: OCD Conqueror

Date posted: 13h

@CaspersKeeper Also many stories in the Bible are awful and disgusting- it isn’t a pleasant time a lot of the time- especially in the Old Testament. It is completely fair to feel anxious when reading.

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