Perhaps the greatest sign of drift is that the cross becomes familiar instead of glorious. You know the facts, but they no longer move your heart. Paul resolved to know “nothing…except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2)…Spiritual drift is dangerous, but it is not hopeless. Christ welcomes repentant sinners.

Spiritual drift is not something that happens overnight. Nobody wakes up one morning and decides to abandon Christ. Drift is a subtle and slow fade. It’s often unnoticed until the shoreline of intimacy with God has disappeared in the distance. The writer of Hebrews warned believers to “pay much closer attention” so that we do not “drift away” (Hebrews 2:1). If you’re wondering whether your heart has begun to wander, here are 8 warning signs that can help you change course.

1. God’s Word feels optional.

When you begin treating Scripture like an accessory instead of your daily bread, you’re drifting. When your morning or evening devotions are not seen as a necessity for your spiritual well-being, it’s time to wake up. Jesus said, “Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). Your spiritual appetite reveals the condition of your soul. A well-worn Bible is usually a sign of a healthy spiritual life. A neglected Bible usually signifies a shallow spiritual life.

2. Prayer becomes your last response instead of your first.

Prayerlessness can be rooted in ignorance because not knowing how to pray can make it hard to pray, but it’s usually rooted in self-sufficiency. We don’t pray because we don’t feel desperate to pray and we don’t see how important prayer really is. Paul commands believers to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) because a lifestyle of prayer is essential. If you only pray when life falls apart, you’ve begun trusting yourself more than your Savior. And if you think you’re too busy to pray, remember that Martin Luther famously said, “I have so much to do today that I shall spend the first three hours in prayer.”

3. Sin stops bothering you.

One of the clearest evidences of spiritual health is ongoing repentance. David cried, “Against You, You only, I have sinned” (Psalm 51:4). When conviction fades and excuses increase, your conscience is becoming dull. Christians are not sinless, but they are sensitive to sin because the Holy Spirit is at work within them. Worldliness eats at the Spirit-filled Christian because it’s the opposite of the Spirit-filled life!

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