For years, I had faith, prayer, Scripture, church experience, and a sincere desire to follow God. But I did not have a clear category for spiritual formation.

I needed it desperately. I just did not know what it was called.
In this episode, I reflect on the moment I began to see spiritual formation not as an optional topic for unusually serious Christians, but as a central part of the life of faith — especially when life does not unfold the way we hoped.

When disappointment, waiting, failure, or confusion enter our lives, we may need more than encouragement. We may need to ask a deeper question:

Who is God forming me to become here?

Deep Water Labs is for people learning to keep walking when life does not go according to plan.

Have Faith. Expect Fire. Keep Walking.

What happens when God allows loss, or a closed door to become part of our spiritual formation?

In this episode, we look at the life and writings of François Fénelon, a 17th-century French archbishop, spiritual writer, and teacher whose life brought him close to power — and then into public correction, loss of influence, and surrender.

Fénelon's story raises a painful but necessary question:

Do we want God, or do we want the life we thought God was going to give us?

This episode explores spiritual ambition, detachment, surrender, humiliation, and the hidden work God may be doing when the visible assignment seems to disappear.

For anyone who has felt benched, misunderstood, corrected, or stripped of the thing they thought proved their calling, Fénelon offers a hard but hopeful reminder:

Sometimes the soul does not become free when the doors open. Sometimes the soul becomes free when the doors close, the applause fades, and God is still there.

Deep Water Labs explores faith, failure, formation, and how to move forward when you can't go back.

Subscribe for more reflections on spiritual formation and finding God in the deep water.

00:00 When Doors Close
00:23 Meet Fénelon
01:20 Loving God Alone
02:09 Quietism Controversy
03:27 Exile and Loss
04:48 Humiliation as Mercy
05:54 Spiritual Ambition Exposed
07:58 Calling Without Ego
09:06 Strength to Be Misunderstood
09:52 Benched by God
10:29 Grieve Before Interpreting
11:03 Final Reflection

** Book Recommentaion **
Deeper Experiences of Famous Christians
https://amzn.to/4oEMCl3

Feel free to reach out to me at Jason@DeepWaterLabs.com

I write at DeepWaterLabs.com/blog

My substack is Notes.DeepWaterLabs.com

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