“Doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is one element of faith.” ~ Paul Tillich
I’ve always thought one of the most powerful stories in the Gospels was the man who came to Jesus asking for help. He said that his son was possessed by an unclean spirit that often caused the boy to injure himself. He asked Jesus to come and help if He could. Jesus’ response was a terse, “IF?” He asked the man if he had faith in Him. The man replied, “I do believe. Help my unbelief.”
What a powerful statement. I do believe. Help my unbelief. How can we believe and yet, at the very same time, not believe. The answer to that is quite simple. We can because we are frail human beings who are often distracted. When our eyes are taken off of the Lord, doubt can easily swirl in our minds and consume us.
We can then think the worse of ourselves. We judge ourselves for being unworthy since we doubt. Come on. Everyone has doubts. Sometimes those doubts are placed in our mind by the devil who is trying to knock us off track. Other times, the doubts are very legitimate and come from our flawed humanity.
God knows us inside and out. He knows who we are. If we do not question Him in our doubt, He will know that we are not sincere. If you doubt, ask God for answers. If you are angry, tell God. If you are lost, seek His help. We do these things with our best friends. What keeps us from acting the same with God who should, in all actuality, be our very best friend?
FAITH ACTION: Ask God to help you in your unbelief and don’t be afraid to question God in your doubt.