Practical Tips for Overcoming Doubt

“Doubt as sin. – Christianity has done its utmost to close the circle and declared even doubt to be sin.” – Friedrich Nietzsche

Christians are taught from a young age that doubt is wrong. They are taught never to question God or wrestle with their beliefs. People will even say that doubt cannot coexist with faith, because “faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

If this argument is true, then do any of the people mentioned in the hall of faith in the rest of Hebrews 11 truly have faith? Abraham and Sarah doubted God would give them a son, so Abraham took it upon himself to make his own child with his servant, Hagar.

Moses doubted that his voice would be effective in setting the Israelites free. David asked, “Where are you, God?” and “Why have you forsaken me?” Job, a man considered blameless in the eyes of God, did not understand why God brought about all of his sufferings.

It is safe to say that God wants his people to be people of faith and to take him at his word, but does he cast them aside when faith is shaken? Did he cast Abraham aside? No, he still made him the father of many nations.

Did he cast Moses aside and pick another? No, he used Moses to deliver the nation of Israel. Did he neglect the questions of David? No, he gently reminded David of the truth. Doubt and faith can be present at the same time, just like fear and peace, just like joy and sorrow.

It would be a lie to say that one never has felt a nugget (or a mountain) of doubt, but because Christians are taught that it is wrong, they feel shame in feeling and expressing their doubt. However, the presence of God is safe to express one’s deepest feelings, including doubt.

It is in this place where he listens, and with kindness, tells someone what is true, the truth that can weed out the doubt. A person needs to remember that his doubt does not make him a bad person, it just makes him human.

If doubt leads to sin, as it did with Adam and Eve, then it takes root and does not leave much room for faith. If a person chooses to be honest with God about those feelings of doubt, then God has room to heal and restore what has been broken and lead a person back to himself.

Situations That Often Lead to Doubt

Trauma

A traumatic situation is any situation (major or minor) that leads to significant and deeply disturbing distress. Some of the examples below are also forms of trauma, but others include physical, sexual, and emotional abuse, war, unexpected and traumatic loss (car accidents and suicide, for example), bullying, financial strain, and extreme injury. These are moments when people (most often the victim) wonder where God was in all of it, why He let it happen, why He did not stop it.

Loss

Job loss, loss of material possessions, death, divorce, miscarriage, big life transitions (such as moving), and loss of relationships can all bring up questions about the goodness and kindness of God. People think, “I don’t feel you near, God. Have you left me?” and “I can’t go on” and “Why are you making me suffer?”

Natural Disasters

Hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, famine, drought, fires, and floods are all forms of natural disasters. People often think God must be punishing them when they are gravely affected by a natural disaster. They wonder why he did not make it go away if the wind and waves obey him. Does he enjoy causing his people to suffer, they wonder. In a New Testament world, it is difficult to comprehend that God would intentionally cause natural disasters as he did at times in the Old Testament.

Global Crises

The world is living through a global crisis with the COVID-19 pandemic, but other generations have suffered through world wars, disease, poverty, and persecution. When the world is suffering collectively, people struggle to believe that there is a God at all. They think that a good God would not do this to His world.

“Unanswered” Prayer

Some doubt creeps in smaller, more intimate moments between one person and God. This could be when a person asks God for a spouse for years, and he does not give them a spouse or when a woman begs God to give her a biological child, but he does not.

It could be someone begging God to show them what to do with a big decision, but she does not feel like she gets a clear answer. These situations can lead a person to believe that God is not kind or that He does not care about him, that he or she is invisible to God.

Heartache and Suffering

Breakups, confusing and serious diagnoses, mental illness, chronic pain, loneliness, church hurt, betrayal, and financial difficulty can all lead to doubt, too. It is hard to believe that God is perfect, holy, compassionate, and good when so much of life feels painful.

Though doubt may never fully go away because the pain in life is inevitable, as Jesus says in John 16:33, it is possible to replace doubt with faith. It requires laying down what seems logical and embracing the illogical, learning to be content with the unknown, and embracing the absolute truth of God’s word.

The Path to Overcoming Doubt

Ask Hard Questions

Be like David, and pray with all your mind, body, soul, and spirit. Pour yourself into your prayers and be honest with God. He can handle your hard questions, so ask them. Ask “Where were you God” and ask, “How long, O Lord.” Tell him when you do not feel him near. Bring it all and lay it at his feet.

Lean on Truth

When you speak what is really on your mind, allow him to speak truth back into your situation. Open your Bible and read it every day. It is the absolute truth, and though it does not always make sense, it is the truth that can be an anchor when doubt threatens to take you out to sea.

Listen to Scripture read to you. Meditate on passages. Memorize verses and put them in front of you during your day. Lean hard on the truth because it is the only thing that will set you free from your prison of doubt.

Accept that you may not get the answer you are looking for

Ask your hard questions, every last one. Listen in for the truth to fill you when you question God. Then know that your questions may not be answered in the way you hoped. If you question God’s goodness, go to scriptures that speak of his goodness and stay there.

That is your answer. If you question his presence, go to scripture that reminds you he will never leave you. That is your answer. However, if you ask why something happened or why God is not changing a situation, understand that He may not answer this directly.

He may provide an answer with a lesson on what he is trying to teach you in this season. He may use friends and close loved ones to show you the truth and help you see your situation differently.

Doubt can be present at the same time as faith, but doubt can lead to sin and separation from God. Don’t let your doubt take you that far. When you feel it creep in, immediately take it to Him. Don’t hide it. Expose it.

Let God give you a new perspective, a new faith in him. Let him heal you and cover you with his kindness and truth. Let him remind you that He is not the author of pain, the enemy is. Let him remind you that though suffering will come, joy comes in the morning. Hold fast to the anchor of hope.