The 10 Spiritual Stops: Are You Stuck in the 98% of Faith?

“Only 1 percent of the population experiences ‘profound’ love.” What if that statement is completely true?

The other day, I was discussing the spiritual growth with someone, debating how we can actually recognize if we are growing dynamically in our faith. A piercing question came up: “What does it mean to have ‘profound love’?” This phrase isn’t just a casual descriptor; it represents the absolute ceiling of what we are capable of as human beings when it comes to our relationship with Jesus and our interactions with other people.

Let’s look at the word profound for a second. Its synonyms tell the whole story: heartfelt, intense, keen, great, extreme, sincere, deep, overpowering, radical, overwhelming, and fervent. Knowing our authentic self and exploring our true passion requires hitting these exact emotional depths. But how many of us are actually experiencing it?

Love Equals Time (The Pain of Truth)

How do we measure things that are fundamentally invisible, like love, devotion, faith, or obedience?

How do you measure the love you have for your spouse or your child? How can you tell if that love is growing stronger, more keener, and more profound?

Love is invisible until it shows up in action. Our actions are the only reliable indicator of whether or not our love is profound. It is explicitly tracked in how we choose to spend our time, what we do with that time, and where we place our daily priorities.

It is easy to say, “I have a profound love for Jesus.” But is that love evident in your calendar? Is it visible in your knee-jerk priorities? What about a profound love and compassion for other people? Are you exhibiting an “overpowering, radical” love in your actions at home or down in the trenches at work?

When we force ourselves to answer these types of questions, we quickly hit the pain of truth. Truth burns, and truth hurts. But that sacred fire is exactly what burns away the convenient lies we tell ourselves to maintain a false self. It strips away the armor to leave us with our true, authentic self.

What is the Authentic Self?

Our authentic self is the unique image and architectural blueprint that God had in mind when He originally created us. It is who we were meant to be, doing exactly what we were designed to do, confidently deploying our hardwired gifts, and sharing the unique love we were allocated to give. The only way to unlock this state is through a growing, thriving, intimate relationship with Jesus. We cannot fully know ourselves until we intimately know who He is.

Faith with No Direction or Meaning

I recently came across some remarkable research that completely grabbed my attention while I was editing my third book, Challenge Your Fear, Empower Your Spirit (which focuses on overcoming fear and breaking out of complacency to fulfill our purpose).

This isn’t speculative opinion; it is backed up by cold, hard data from the Barna Research Group. Over a six-year period, they conducted extensive surveys analyzing spirituality, Christianity, and spiritual maturity across more than 15,000 adults. The data is summarized in George Barna’s book, Maximum Faith, and the findings are absolutely startling:

“More than 100 million American adults who describe themselves as Christian contend that despite their commitment to God they are still searching for clarity regarding their purpose in life. Tens of millions of self-described Christians feel unfulfilled in life, admit they lack direction, and are disappointed that their faith has not produced the kind of meaning and identity they need, and question whether their life makes a difference.” > — George Barna, Maximum Faith

In medicine, when a study layout tracks 15,000 subjects, you pay strict attention. The data is powerful.

This means millions upon millions of believing, church-going, active Christians are walking around completely starved of spiritual energy . They:

• Feel unfulfilled

• Lack direction

• Are seeking meaning

• Are seeking identity

• Are looking to make a difference

I often talk about the “walking dead”—unbelievers drifting aimlessly through a broken world with no compass. But this data proves that millions of believers are trapped in the exact same cycle, operating with no fulfillment, no direction, and wondering if their lives matter at all.

The Ten Spiritual Stops On the Spritual Growth Journey

Barna’s research concluded that there are 10 distinct “stops” on the human spiritual growth journey. These numbers are not meant to judge, guilt, or shame anyone. They are a diagnostics tool to show us exactly where we are standing, and where we need to head next.

The 10 Stops of Spiritual Growth:

1. Ignorance of the concept of or existence of sin (1% of the population)

2. Aware of and indifferent to sin (16% of adults)

3. Concerned about the implications of sin (39% of adults)

4. Confess sin and ask Jesus to be their savior (9% of adults)

5. Commit to faith-based activities (24% of adults)

6. Spiritual discontent: Experiencing a prolonged period of unrest (6% of adults)

7. Personal brokenness: Experiencing deep, transformative brokenness (3% of adults)

8. Surrender and total submission to God (1% of adults)

9. Profound love and intimacy with God/Jesus (.5% of adults)

10. Profound love and compassion for people (.5% of adults)

The Five Spiritual Groups:

To see the big picture clearly, let’s look at how the total population clusters across these stops:

• Group A (Stops 1-2): Ignorant or completely indifferent to sin (17% of the population)

• Group B (Stop 3): Concerned about the implications of sin but stationary (39% of the population)

• Group C (Stops 4-5): Confessed sin, accepted Christ, and committed to religious activities (33% of the population)

• Group D (Stops 6-7): Wrestling with prolonged spiritual discontent and personal brokenness (9% of the population)

• Group E (Stops 8-10): Living in total surrender, profound love for God, and radical compassion for people (2% of the population)

Look at those groups objectively. The numbers scream a sobering reality: It is incredibly difficult to reach the highest levels of profound love. If it were easy, the data would look entirely different.

The majority of Americans never get past Stop 3 (worrying about sin but never cooperating with Christ to fix it). Furthermore, the vast majority of “born-again Christians” get permanently stuck at Stop 5. They invite Christ to save them, dive into a mountain of religious activity, and stop moving.

Alarmingly, the research notes that most modern church programs are explicitly engineered to get people to Stop 5, but offer no roadmap to push them further down the line into true, authentic Christ-likeness.

It Is Personally On You

If you are a Christian who feels unfulfilled, empty, or lacking direction, this data is your invitation to move forward.

In my books Brave the Wave and Discover Your Passion, Release Your Power, I heavily emphasize self-examination and self-awareness because you cannot reach authenticity without them. But as we push past complacency and fear into maximum faith, we have to add a new element: personal responsibility.

It is the mature attitude of: “It’s on me.”

If we refuse to audit our own behavior, look into the mirror of Scripture, and compare our priorities to the perfect model of Jesus, we will remain completely stagnant. We will live with no real power, no passion, no direction, and no hope of creating a home filled with supernatural peace.

If you want a life that echoes into eternity, stop riding the pine in the dugout. Take ownership of your spiritual trajectory. It truly is on you.

I do need your help though, if you are a fellow Christian believer and would like to help spread this message, please take the time to leave a review on one of my books.   This is the only written review I have for my Challenge Your Fear book that has been on sale for 1 year.

It is clear from the moment of the introduction that Challenge Your Fear Empower Your Spirit was written by a Christian for Christians, and there is plenty of helpful tips that do not involve faith.

One thing I have learned is that this is a huge war we are in as Christians.  We are going to face ridicule, rejection and criticism, just like Jesus did. But we need to stick together and help each other.

What blessings await you when people hate you and exclude you and mock you and curse you as evil because you follow the Son of Man. When that happens, be happy! Yes, leap for joy! For a great reward awaits you in heaven.

(Luke 6:22- 23 NLT)

I’m not asking for money, I just ask that if you buy one of my books, please take 30 seconds of your time to leave a written review that can help to counter some of the anger and hatred that comes when anyone mentions Jesus.

Thanks

Johnny Cavazos MD

https://www.google.com/search?q=https://bravethewave.org/2026/05/26/breaking-the-grip-of-fear/