August 16, 2025
By Natalie Pray
What It Means to Keep Growing Spiritually—Even When You Feel Stuck
There’s a Greek word that has been stirring in my spirit lately: Epektasis.
It comes from epekteinomenos (ἐπεκτεινόμενος), meaning “stretching forward” or “reaching out.”
Early Christian theologian Gregory of Nyssa used this word to describe something beautiful in the Christian life.
It is mysterious too.
It refers to the soul’s eternal movement toward God.
Not a race to finish.
Not a checklist to complete.
But an endless journey into God’s infinite goodness.
Epektasis and the Christian Life
Epektasis reframes spiritual growth in a way that feels deeply freeing.
Instead of striving for spiritual perfection, it invites us into continual becoming.
As long as God is infinite, our growth will always be unfinished—and that isn’t failure.
It’s grace.
This truth gently loosens the pressure that many of us carry.
We often feel the need to be done, fixed, or fully healed by now.
When Growth Feels Quiet
I feel this truth in my own walk with God.
In my journal, I once wrote, “I want to heal and live my best life.”
And even in seasons of stillness, uncertainty, or struggle, I find myself still reaching—still seeking Him.
Some days, Epektasis looks dramatic.
Other days, it looks almost invisible.
It looks like reading Scripture when I feel spiritually numb.
Choosing gentleness with myself instead of shame.
Praying honest prayers instead of polished ones.
Trusting that God is still working beneath the surface.
That quiet trust—that unseen movement forward—is Epektasis.
It’s the belief that my life is being gently pulled toward God, even when I feel like I’m standing still.
Epektasis Is Not Self-Improvement
One of the most comforting truths about Epektasis is that it isn’t about self-perfection.
It isn’t a Christian version of hustle culture.
It isn’t spiritual self-optimization.
Epektasis is relational. It’s about being drawn forward by love, not driven by fear.
God is not standing at the finish line with arms crossed, waiting for me to arrive.
He is walking with me, continually inviting me deeper—into trust, into truth, into wholeness.
Every stretch is an act of grace.
The Long Obedience of Becoming
Epektasis reminds me that faith is a long obedience in the same direction.
It is not because the road is straight, but because God is faithful.
There are seasons when faith feels strong and clear.
There are seasons when it feels fragile and unfinished.
Both belong.
Even doubt can become a form of reaching when it’s brought honestly before God.
Even rest can be holy progress.
Ever Unfolding, Never Left Behind
This understanding reshapes how I speak to myself.
When I feel behind, Epektasis whispers, You are still being drawn forward.
When I feel unfinished, it reminds me, You were never meant to be complete on your own.
The soul never stops reaching—not because it lacks something, but because God’s love has no limit.
Like the path of the righteous, the light doesn’t arrive all at once.
It grows brighter, step by step.
Reflection Questions
- Where in your life does growth feel slow or invisible right now?
- How might God be inviting you to trust the process instead of rushing the outcome?
- What would it look like to believe that becoming is part of holiness?
Prayer
God,
Thank You that I don’t have to arrive to be loved.
Teach me to trust Your slow, faithful work in me.
When I feel behind or unfinished, remind me that I am still being drawn forward by grace.
Help me rest in the unfolding.
Amen.
Affirmation
I am not behind. I am being stretched forward into God’s infinite goodness.
Each step—seen or unseen—is part of my eternal unfolding.
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