Use It or Lose It: The Cost of Spiritual Inactivity
Yesterday, I went out for a walk.
It was the first time I’ve been able to cover any real distance since having my toe surgery. I was excited to get outside, put one foot in front of the other, and hit my stride. But it didn't take very long before reality set in: I couldn't walk nearly as far as I used to.
Because of the injury, because of the downtime, and because of the season of resting and healing, my endurance had shifted. As I was walking, the Holy Spirit arrested me with a familiar phrase that carries immense spiritual weight:
"If you don’t use it, you lose it."
In the physical body, when a muscle sits idle, atrophy sets in. You don’t lose the leg, but you lose the strength in it. You don’t lose the foot, but you lose the stamina you once operated in. As I walked, God began to deal with my heart. He said, “Tammy, this isn't just about your foot. This is about My people.”
The Danger of Atrophy in the Kingdom
How many times do we go through an injury—whether it’s physical, emotional, or spiritual—and during the season of sitting down, we let our spiritual muscles go completely cold?
We have people sitting on the sidelines carrying:
The gift of preaching who haven't opened their mouth in months.
The gift of singing that has been silenced by disappointment.
The gift of teaching that is gathering dust on a shelf.
The prophetic mantle that hasn't released a word because fear whispered, "What if you stumble?, What if no one receives you?, What if?"
God never gave you a gift for it to sit in storage.
In Matthew 25, Jesus tells the parable of the talents. The servant who received one talent didn't lose it in the street—he went and dug a hole in the earth and hid his master’s money. He was afraid. He sat on what he was given. And what did the Master say?
"Take therefore the talent from him, and give it unto him which hath ten talents." (Matthew 25:28)
In 2 Timothy 1:6, the Apostle Paul told young Timothy:
"Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee by the putting on of my hands."
Notice Paul said you have to stir it up! The Holy Spirit won't force your voice to speak, your pen to write, or your feet to move. When you stay seated too long, spiritual stiffness takes over. The sharpness of your discernment dulls. Your capacity shrinks.
Rehabilitation Starts with the First Step
Walking after an injury isn't always comfortable. It takes intentional effort. You have to push past the stiffness, rebuild the stamina, and refuse to let the injury dictate your permanent boundary.
Maybe life knocked you off your feet. Maybe church hurt, physical illness, or a sudden storm caused you to retreat into a corner. God understands the season of healing, but He does not call you to a lifetime of paralysis!
It is time to stir up the gift.
If you write—write today.
If you prophesy—open your mouth.
If you teach—open the Word.
If you serve—get your hands back to work.
If you....
Don't let the enemy convince you that because you had to pause, you can never finish the race. Shake off the spiritual stiffness. Put your spiritual boots back on. Take the first step, put that anointing back into practice, and use what God put in you before you lose the edge of your impact!
Reflection for Today:
What gift, calling, or spiritual discipline have you kept on the shelf during your recovery season? Ask the Holy Spirit today for the strength to take the first step and put it back into motion.
Apostle Tammy Bradford
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