What If I’ll Never Be a “Strong Christian”?

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There’s this girl I follow online who wakes up at 5am, fasts twice a week, never misses a morning quiet time, and journals her prayers in three different colors of gel pen. She’s always saying things like, “God gave me a word this morning during my 2-hour devotion” and honestly? I don’t know whether to clap or cry.

Because on most days, I’m just trying not to cuss at my WiFi for cutting out again. Or zone out mid-prayer. Or scroll Instagram while pretending it’s “rest.”

And here’s the weird truth I’m kinda scared to admit.

What if I’ll never be that strong Christian?
What if my spiritual life always feels a little wobbly? A little inconsistent? A little… messy?

This one might flip your definition of “strong” upside down. You might leave feeling closer to Jesus than you thought.

There was a season where I believed strength in faith looked like performance. Consistency. Memorizing Leviticus just for fun. Crying every time Hillsong came on. And honestly, I tried. I tried to read the Bible in a year and got stuck at Leviticus. Twice. I tried to keep a prayer journal but kept doodling eyes in the corner of every page.

I wanted so badly to be someone with spiritual grit. The kind of Christian that didn’t flinch when storms hit. The kind that didn’t doubt. Didn’t falter. Didn’t skip church because “I’m tired and God understands.”

But somewhere between trying to prove I was strong and realizing I wasn’t, I hit a wall.

Isn’t God supposed to make us strong?

I used to think I needed to earn that identity. Like, once I proved I was serious enough about God, He’d hand me a shiny badge: “Certified Strong Christian. Now you may proceed to deeper revelation and better Spotify worship playlists.”

But here’s what I never saw coming.

Some of the strongest Christians I know have been through hell and didn’t come out looking neat and composed. They came out limping. Raw. Wrestling. But still believing.

And that is what caught Jesus’s attention over and over again in Scripture.

Not the polished. Not the put-together. Not the ones who got up at 5am.

The ones who held on even when they didn’t understand.

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Jesus never said, “Blessed are the consistent, for they shall become influencers for the kingdom.”
He said, Blessed are the poor in spirit.

That means: the empty. The needy. The ones who are spiritually broke and know it.

I don’t know about you, but that’s good news for someone who doesn’t always feel strong.

Because maybe strength isn’t about how high you raise your hands in worship, or how fast you can quote Romans 8:28 when life falls apart.

Maybe real strength is in the clinging. The choosing to show up one more day when nothing makes sense. The whispered “God help me” on a bathroom floor. The small, unsexy acts of obedience that nobody sees.

There’s a quiet kind of strength that doesn’t trend online.

It looks like:
• Asking for prayer even when you’re embarrassed
• Saying no to sin and yes to rest
• Reading one verse and chewing on it all day
• Crying while singing “It Is Well” and barely believing it

And you know what? Jesus isn’t standing over you with a clipboard tallying your spiritual achievements. He’s sitting beside you, delighted you even looked His way today.

God isn’t disappointed in your weakness. He’s drawn to it.

“My power is made perfect in weakness,” Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians. Not in strength. Not in perfection. Weakness.

So maybe the strongest Christians are the ones still showing up when they feel like a fraud.

Maybe the strength isn’t in having zero doubts, but in running to God with those doubts instead of away from Him.

I remember once telling God, “I’m sorry I haven’t been reading the Bible. I just feel so distant from You.”
And in the quiet I felt Him whisper, “That’s not distance. That’s awareness.”

Like… what if your very insecurity about being weak is evidence that you’re already near? That you already care?

The enemy loves to weaponize that feeling. He says: “You’re inconsistent. You’re lukewarm. You’ll never be like her.”
But Jesus says: “Come to Me, all who are weary.” Not just the ones crushing it at spiritual disciplines.

You don’t need to feel strong to be strong.

You just need to keep coming back.
Crawling back if you have to.
Stumbling, limping, crying back.

Because spiritual strength isn’t the absence of struggle. It’s choosing Christ in the middle of it.

And that means:
If you’ve got nothing left but a whisper of hope…
If your faith feels like one single thread holding things together…
If you’re just barely still believing that Jesus is who He says He is…

You’re probably stronger than you think.

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FAQ

Q: What does the Bible say about weak believers?

A: The Bible says that God's strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9), meaning He doesn’t reject or shame weak believers, He draws near to them. Scripture honors those who admit their need for God, not those who pretend to have it all together. In fact, Jesus consistently welcomed the weary, the doubting, and the struggling, calling them blessed (Matthew 5:3).

Throughout Scripture, God uses people with glaring weaknesses to accomplish His purposes. From Moses who doubted himself, to Peter who denied Jesus, to Paul who begged for his “thorn” to be removed. Rather than disqualifying them, their weakness became the very space where God’s power was displayed most clearly. So if you feel weak in your faith, that’s not a liability, it’s a doorway to deeper dependence on God.

Q: Is it okay to mess up as a Christian?

A: Yes, it’s okay to mess up as a Christian because your identity is rooted in grace, not perfection. The Gospel isn’t about earning God’s approval through flawless behavior; it’s about receiving forgiveness through Jesus, again and again. Proverbs 24:16 says the righteous fall seven times but get back up, not that they never fall at all.

Messing up doesn’t make you a fake Christian, refusing to return to God might. The whole story of Scripture is God pursuing imperfect people who keep falling short. From David’s huge moral failure to Peter’s public denial of Christ, God’s mercy met them in their lowest moments. So if you’ve messed up, you’re in good company. Repent, receive grace, and keep walking.

Q: Will God ever get tired of me?

A: No, God will never get tired of you. His love isn’t based on your performance, but His unchanging character. Psalm 103:14 says He “knows our frame”, He remembers we’re dust. That means He expects weakness, not perfection, and never grows weary of your need for Him.

God is a Father, not a frustrated boss. He doesn’t roll His eyes when you come back for the hundredth time. In fact, Luke 15 shows Him running toward the prodigal, not away. His mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22–23), which means you can’t outrun His patience. He knew what He was getting when He chose you, and He’s not regretting it.

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Share your side of the story

Has there ever been a moment when you thought, “I’m not strong enough for this Christian life”? Or a time when you surprised yourself with unexpected faith in the middle of your mess? Scroll down and leave a comment. I’d love to hear your raw, real, in-progress stories.

No pressure to be polished. Just be here. That’s strength too.

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