Jessa Duggar Seewald rose to fame as a member of the Duggar family. The prolific Arkansas clan at the center of the long-running TLC reality show “19 Kids And Counting” is known for their strong Christian faith. So it came as a surprise over the weekend, when 27-year-old Jessa decided to open up about the struggles of her own religious journey.
Jessa Duggar Seewald Opens Up About Her Faith
Though the “Counting On” star is closer to God than ever these days, Jessa admitted to her fans that she struggled with her relationship with him in her teenage years. And even into her early 20s.
“I felt a bit dry in my relationship with the Lord. I didn’t have drive to be in God’s word…I wasn’t praying like I should,” Seewald confessed. “I could see this goal of where I wanted to be in my relationship with the Lord, and I wasn’t there.”
Jessa added that at times, growing up in a religious family, she even had “doubts about [her] salvation.”
“I felt unsettled, restless and frustrated,” Seewald continued. “I think if Christians were more open about the hard times, I think if Christians were more raw, you might find that more people go through this.”
‘Spiritual Depression’
While Jessa did not feel like she was in a depression at the time, she now has the clarity to see that she was as she looks back.
“If somebody asked if I was depressed, I probably would have said no,” Seewald said. “But I guess you probably could call it a spiritual depression.”
To get herself out of this hole, Jessa said she had to let go of the unrealistic expectations she had put on herself as a Christian.
“We have to account for the fact that there are trials of faith… there are difficulties that we walk through,” she explained.
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The reality TV star also took solace in the words of her teacher and pastor John Piper, who told her that “there’s no chapter or verse in the Bible that says we have to read our Bible every day.”
“I feel like I had a burdened down conscience with an unspiritual expectation,” Seewald continued. “Yes, we should prioritize time in the word, but I had taken it a step too far, and I was hinging whether or not I was a good Christian on if I had good quiet time [with God].”
Another thing that gave her comfort in her spiritual journey was Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ book “Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure.”
“I didn’t have gospel rest. I wasn’t resting in my justification. I wasn’t resting in what Christ did for me,” Seewald remembered. “For a Christian to rest in their justification, the fact that they are saved, Christ lived the perfect life that I could never live.”
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Jessa Duggar Seewald Is Still On Her Spiritual Journey Now
While she admits that she is doing better now, the former “19 Kids And Counting” star admits that there is “still got a long way to go.”
“Nothing can separate us from the love of Christ, so that is our justification and we can rest in that,” she said, adding that she was able to “release” her soul of “so many burdens I had placed myself under, and helped me to look to Christ.”
“We’re in this journey until we die, and then in an instant, we are changed into the likeness of Christ,” Seewald concluded. “In this life though, we experience hardships, and yet we keep running after Christ and Christ holds us fast. I hope this is an encouragement to you, and I pray you will rest in Christ and his work of righteousness on your behalf.”
This serves as a perfect reminder that none of us are perfect Christians all the time. And that it’s important not to burden yourself with unrealistic expectations as you embark on your own spiritual journey.
God bless Jessa Duggar Seewald for having the courage to be this open with her fans about her personal religious journey!
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