It Can be Good to Doubt God

 I wrote a post on Jeremiah 17:5. The post was about the difference between men who trust in God verses a man who does not. Trusting in God will help you to flourish and feel God's protection. While this is beautiful sentiment it does not help much when you are in the midst of struggling with doubt. I trust God but I still experience a lot anxiety about money, resentment against injustice and frustration with the lack of clarity of my purpose. Can you relate? Have you had moments in your life where you believe in God's existence but have a hard time praying or asking him for guidance because something you've experienced leaves you doubting His power, His grace, His goodness or even maybe His existence all together?

When we hold on, for dear life, to doctrines or belief systems that don't answer life questions it leaves us superficial, full of doubt or anger, and stuck with weak and unstable convictions. Romans 8: 28,"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose". Everything that we experience in life can become good and purposeful, even doubt or any emotion that we deem as negative. Doubt happens when we hit a wall, when something happens that our beliefs tell us was impossible. Let's say that you belief that God loves good people and will protect them from harm. What happens when someone you know and love is tragically killed? You hit a wall. You ask yourself if God protects every good person then there are only two choices: either that person was not good or God does not exist.  People are meant to have experiences like these in order to grow in faith, wisdom and discernment. As people mature they gain a new perspective that will help them deal better handle new experciences. A new perspective comes when you allow yourself to doubt.  Doubting leads to asking new questions.  The answers don't always come right away but if you stay persistent you will find what you are looking for.

People have said don't put God in a box. It is so easy to believ that you know everything you need to know about God.  You may want to believe that it is imporant to know everything that he knows, or why He does what He does. Our comprehension of God is limited but becomes more profound with each related excperience. When you feel like God's ethics, power, or existence are questionabl, spend time with Him: in prayer, learning to love people more deeply and getting in touch with your own soul and spirit. The more time you spend with Him the more you will understand that though He is stable and dependable he is also flexible. His plan and purpose is different for everyone; but without knowing Him personally it can look as if He doesn't care or shows favoritism.

I went through a somewhat legalist time in my life. I had a long list of can'ts and won'ts that left me spiritually stagnant, insecure and feeling controlled. Allow myself to doubt and asking God some tough question help me to conquer my  spiritual walls now I feel more freedom, gained discernment and a deeper relationship with God. Hitting a wall never feel good at the time but they are there to keep you safe and provide stability: the walls in your house keep out most thieves, highway walls (or dividers) keep a lot of cars from crashing, and emotional walls keep out people with selfish or abusive.  So if you hit a wall, figure out why it's there; if it is protecting you than you need to change directions,  if it is hinderindg you it's time to for a break through. A breakthrough can lead to more faith and joy than you could have ever imagined, so don't worry if you find yourself doubting your faith; instead fight all the boxes of confinement in your life.

Can you think of a time when doubting something or someone has helped you?