Call in the therapist! A newly released study has found that one in every two Christians has doubts about God at times.
Sounds normal, right?
It really is a trust issue, and these moments of doubt are wide open entrances for the enemy and should not be encouraged.
Trust is a big deal. If those who trust in God are as unshakeable as Mount Zion, those who don’t are like a collapsing ant hill.
It must be pretty odd to be bold, strong, filled with aplomb, and towering one moment, and a few seconds later, you are timid, teetering, and torpid.
This bipolar approach to faith is fodder for the enemy. The great thing is that God is mightily faithful and incredibly unshakeable at all times.
So even when we are triffling and change our minds like we change our clothes, He is still the same.
This new study that tries to explain faithlessness among the faithful was conducted by the prominent evangelical research organisation, the Barna Group. It is titled “Doubt and Faith: Top Reasons People Question Christianity.” It polled 2,005 U.S. adults and teenagers ages 13–17 online from December 13–22, 2022, with a margin of error of +/- 2.0 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
The study also utilised a survey of 511 U.S. Protestant senior pastors conducted online from December 13, 2021, to January 3, 2023.
“Over half of teens and adults (so, the U.S. general population ages 13+) report that they’ve experienced doubts about their religious beliefs at least sometimes (12% frequently, 16% occasionally, and 24% sometimes) in the past few years,” an overview of the study states.
Remember now: faith like a mustard seed can still move mountains. It may be reasonable to assume that some may not be able to find even a mustard seed-like faith on any given day, but this really does not change anything.
About two years ago, the Lord through one of His angels told me that whenever I fall, I should get up and that if I don’t feel His presence, I should call on Him because He is always there.
Faith is not dependent on how we feel; we either believe God or we don’t. When we are weakened by tough situations, remember that is when we need God most. He is made strong in our weakness.
Whether or not we “feel” His presence, He has already told us that He will never leave, nor will He ever forsake us.
Like King David declared time and time again, ‘I will trust in the Lord…”
- Psalm 4:5 (KJV)
- O LORD my God, in thee do I put my trust: save me from all them that persecute me and deliver me. – Psalm 7:1 (KJV)
- In the LORD put I my trust: how say ye to my soul, Flee as a bird to your mountain? – Psalm 11:1 (KJV)
- Preserve me, O God: for in thee do I put my trust.
This timeless declaration is replicated throughout the Scriptures. To trust God is a deliberate act on the part of the believer.
Situations and circumstances cannot alter the faith of those who love God and are called to His purpose. They know that all things are under divine control, and they are bound to work together for their good. It is really a matter of whether we believe God’s Word or not.
Some people senselessly argue that trust has to be earned. It cannot be given away for free.
Even if one jumps down this rabbit hole, the hard evidence of God’s existence and His love for humanity is real and up in your face.
Nature, by itself, presents hard evidence of God’s existence, but some people wake up every morning to sunlight, enjoy the majesty of mountain ranges, bask in the wide variety of beautiful plants, and enjoy animals in their various forms, yet they look past the fact that these things tell the story of creation, the Creator, and His eternal love and compassion for humanity.
From the first day of Creation when God instructed the sun to shine, when He spoke into the darkness and commanded light, that massive star has remained under divine instruction to provide daylight to the earth, cause plants to provide food, give warmth against cold, disinfect the dingy places, cause condensation so that rain will fall in season, and many other things. Every single day, the sun rises in the morning and sets in the evening. So certain are we that the sun will rise that we make plans for days to come. We have no idea if we will wake up in the morning, but we are dead sure that the sun will rise. The sun must obey divine order. It is as if we trust the sun to rise more than we trust who causes the sun to rise.
We not only trust nature to do what God instructed, but we also trust other people around us to do what people do—at least until they prove that they do not always live up to our expectations.
These same Christians will speak about plans they have for tomorrow and next year with absolute certainty and will go about their business as if they can determine what lies ahead.
When God counted Abraham’s faith in Him for righteousness, it was serious business. The Word is very clear:
Hebrews 11:6
“And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.’
So, even when we don’t feel God’s presence, we must walk with the certainty that He is always with us. Because He said so.
