For those who’ve found the gift of faith, suffering with doubts can prove to be extremely painful at times. But difficult as they may be, situations like these often carry the potential to increase our faith instead of destroying it. We often hear how courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to overcome it, and the same dynamic applies to faith and doubts. Putting our faith in God’s Word doesn’t mean you won’t have questions, it just means responding in a way that builds you up instead of breaking you down. if one doesn’t run from their doubts, but chooses to walk through them prayerfully and patiently, the end result is usually a more well tested faith and stronger relationship with Christ.
Doubts can actually be a good sign of healthy faith. It means that the person struggling already cares enough about their faith to try and solve whatever it is they are conflicted about. And in the long run, dealing with your doubts in an appropriate way only serves as a refining agent to make our beliefs well tested. Without challenging a belief, it will always live in the world of the superficial. Just like a fighter who may have trained their whole lives but never gets the opportunity to square off against another person may have difficulty in a real fight, so never questioning our own doctrine may leave us unprepared for real dialogue or critical thinking. Being willing to deal with intellectual difficulties means that we care about the integrity of our beliefs and take them seriously.
PERSPECTIVE MATTERS
It’s also important to remember not to blow potential problems out of proportion. At first glance, a looming doubt can appear like a dark cloud, waiting to smother out what’s left of our faith. Behind the smoke and mirrors however, most doubts have a bigger bark than bite. People who struggle with doubts typically struggle with the anxiety they bring, not the seeming conflict itself. When the anxiety is neutralized, through prayer and walking in the Presence of Jesus, the intellectual difficulty, the tangled knot, tends to untie itself more easily.
The key depends on where we place our sight. The more we look at the problem, the bigger it becomes. What we feed will grow and feeding your doubts with fear and anxiety turns them into a monster of a mirage. Instead of feeding fear, the proper response is to look at Christ and do what contributes to your relationship with Him. Jesus isn’t afraid of our questions, but He also desires that respond with a mature composure. That means not jumping to exaggerated conclusions and falling prey to every skeptic argument available.
Think of it this way. If you had a close friend whom everyone else was saying is unreliable, or a liar, how do you think your friend would want you to respond? It would probably be disrespectful to pay more attention to those accusations than to speak with your friend directly about what your hearing. Those who value faith and their relationship with Jesus have a basic understanding of His reality and goodness, otherwise doubts wouldn’t be an issue. So instead of paying attention to the fear and anxiety, draw near to Jesus and listen for His response to the intellectual problem.
UNDERSTANDING LIMITS
It’s also important to remember the limits to our own human understanding. Scientists today still have a hard time trying to comprehend things they know are real, such as the fact that light is both a particle and wave, entanglement and other Quantum realities, but that doesn’t mean they doubt their existence. In the same way, Biblical and theological mysteries, such as the Trinity, or predestination and free will, may not be immediately comprehensible, but that doesn’t mean they’re any less factual. Think of Isaiah’s admonition: ““For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:8-9). God’s ways are far beyond our own, so a healthy dose of trust and humility puts us in a more realistic position when trying to comprehend His revelation.
Even great thinkers like Augustine of Hippo struggled with trying to comprehend the Trinity. Tradition tells us that he was walking along the beach one day when he spotted a boy scooping up cups of ocean water and putting them in a hole in the sand. When the Bishop asked what he was doing, the boy replied that he was putting the whole ocean into his hole. Augustine said that was ridiculous, to which the boy responded along the lines of, “then why do you think you can fit God’s great revelation into the small container of your mind?” The story may be legend, but it’s point is helpful.
BEING PROACTIVE
A famous First Nations proverb tells a story of two wolves fighting inside of all of us, and when an elder is asked which one wins, he responds by saying, “whichever one is fed the most.” To reiterate the point above, whatever you feed is what will gain power over you. Feed your faith, not your doubts. Feeding your faith can involve the following: prayer, research and Godly counsel. Our first step should always be to turn to God in prayer, asking Him to resolve the alleged problem on our behalf. “God how can this make sense?” or, “Lord, help me to understand this passage please?” are legitimate prayers. Even in the Bible we hear people asking Jesus to “help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). Jesus isn’t afraid to walk you through your intellectual storms and bring you peace. We just have to ask.
Research is also important. There are a number of people out there who’ve devoted their lives, to researching potential questions people might have about Christian doctrine. This is called the discipline of apologetics, which comes from the Greek word “apologia” or defense. Virtually any question that you may have, has probably been asked before and written about by someone. Do your due diligence by researching what accomplished writers might have to say on the subject. You might get a few different answers, but the research itself will help you to make an informed response.
Finally, Godly counsel is an amazing resource to have. If you have someone, or a group of people in settings like a Bible study or young adult group, who believe in the Bible’s authority and are willing to hear your thoughts, share them with them. Darkness festers and grows when its hidden but bring it out to the light of counsel and see how quickly your mind can shift. Sometimes friends or mentors with wisdom are able to see through the intellectual difficulty and into the root of our doubt and can help address what may a deeper issue. Sometimes the doubt is rooted in a relational aspect between you and God and that needs to be dealt with as well. Other times they may have asked the same questions or at least heard a few good responses. Never doubt the potential a brother or sister in the faith may have, especially if they’re older and have been through a few rodeos themselves.
The Bible says we are to love God with all our “minds.” That means not neglecting the intellectual nature of our faith. It’s not a crime to question, research and explore Christian doctrine. In fact, that’s what we’re called to do. Just like the Bereans were called noble for researching what the Apostle Paul taught them, so testing our faith, exploring potential questions we may have doesn’t have to be a scary endeavor. Instead, walking through our questions, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the “author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2), has the power to strengthen us into new dimensions.