Most Christians are living on spiritual “food stamps” when God has prepared a feast.
What if we’re camping in the foyer of a mansion we’re meant to inhabit? What if the “normal” Christian experience is actually a tragic settling for far less than God intends?
Here’s something many believers never discover: it’s both the privilege and the duty of every Christian to have a rich and abundant experience in the things of God. Not just some Christians—the super-spiritual elite. Not just those with special gifts or unique calling. Every believer is meant to experience depth, richness, and abundance in their walk with God.
Think about that for a moment. God doesn’t offer a two-tier system where some Christians get the basic package while others get the premium experience. He doesn’t reserve deep communion, profound understanding, and transformative encounters for a select few. He offers abundant life to everyone who follows Christ, yet most believers seem content with subsistence living.
Why is this? Why do so many Christians settle for shallow experiences, minimal growth, and mediocre spiritual lives when God offers something infinitely richer? The answer usually isn’t that God is withholding—it’s that believers aren’t pursuing.
We’ve become satisfied with services attended rather than lives transformed. We’re content with doctrines believed rather than truths experienced. We settle for religious activity rather than spiritual vitality. We’ve mistaken knowing about God for actually knowing God.
But here’s what changes everything: recognizing that a rich spiritual experience isn’t for the elite—it’s for the earnest. It’s not reserved for those with special abilities—it’s available to those with sincere desire. It’s not limited to those who have time for hours of daily devotions—it’s open to anyone willing to prioritize communion with God above competing demands.
Here is what a rich and abundant experience in the things of God actually means. It means knowing His presence so intimately that you recognize His leading in daily decisions. It means understanding His Word so deeply that it transforms how you think about everything. It means experiencing His power so consistently that you depend on it for challenges you couldn’t face in your own strength.
This isn’t mysticism or emotionalism. It’s what Scripture consistently presents as normal Christianity. Jesus promised “abundant life” (John 10:10). Paul prayed that believers would “know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge” and “be filled up to all the fullness of God” (Ephesians 3:19). Peter wrote about believers being “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4).
These aren’t exaggerations or promises for some future state. They’re descriptions of what’s available now to every believer who will pursue it. The question isn’t whether God offers this kind of experience—He clearly does. The question is whether you’re willing to pay the price to obtain it.
And there is a price. Not in terms of earning God’s favor—that comes freely through Christ. But in terms of priority, focus, and commitment. A rich spiritual experience requires time spent in God’s presence that could be spent elsewhere. It requires attention to spiritual disciplines that don’t always feel immediately rewarding. It requires choices that prioritize eternal realities over temporal pleasures.
But here’s what those who’ve paid this price consistently testify: what you gain is infinitely more valuable than what you give up. The depth of communion with God, the clarity of spiritual understanding, the strength of divine enablement, and the joy of intimate fellowship with your Creator make every sacrifice seem trivial by comparison.
Think about your own spiritual experience honestly. Is it rich and abundant, or is it thin and minimal? Do you know God deeply, or do you just know about Him? Is your faith transforming every area of your life, or is it confined to religious activities and theological positions?
If you’re honest enough to acknowledge that your experience falls short of what Scripture describes, here’s the encouraging truth: God isn’t withholding. The abundance is available. The depth is accessible. The richness is offered. What’s needed is the decision to pursue it with the same intensity you pursue lesser goals.
This means evaluating every commitment, every activity, every use of time and energy through this lens: is this moving me toward the rich spiritual experience God offers, or is it keeping me settled in spiritual mediocrity? Is this helping me know God deeply, or is it just religious noise that substitutes for real communion?
You can continue with a thin spiritual life that meets minimal requirements, or you can pursue the abundant experience God intends for you. You can remain content with knowing about God, or you can press on to know Him intimately. You can settle for spiritual survival, or you can seek spiritual abundance.
“The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” - John 10:10
