Doubting is a luxury we cannot afford. Some would say that doubting is not a luxury but instead a terrible trial and burden. We love to give up trials and burdens, we hardly like to give up luxuries. And that is what doubt is, a luxury, something we tend to not want to give up. When doubt comes to our door with its sympathetic arguments as to why you cannot believe God, we sit and entertain our 'friend' We join in with their arguments and utterly beleive that we are a perculiar case,and that we cannot trust in God in this matter for reasons that are quite understandable. And so we come to walk in the council of the wicked friend doubt and sit around until our doubt has become nothing but scofffing at Gods ability. Of course we dont MEAN to blame God for having doubts, we just wish He would give us more to go on.

We are like little lambs who say'' the shephard only cares about the little sheep that do not wander''

To deliver yourself from your friend called doubt, you have to make the obvious choice. You have to let him go, you have to use your will and say 'I WILL BELIEVE'. Why? Because God is utterly trustworthy and faitful to perform whatever pleases Him, and it pleases Him if you dont doubt Him.

Then BECOME like a child again. A child feels no need to worry about whether they will be fed, looked after, comforted, protected and loved. (No wonder satan attacks families the way He does, if a child has a head start on what it means to trust their father, it would be easier to trust God)

A child comes in and out of his fathers house without a care in the world. Knowing that the Father will be there always. The father always loves Him. The father provides the child with whatever it is that they need. The child does not gather provision in a secret room in the event that the father might forget about him. Even in the time of war and great danger, the child instinctively knows to draw closer to the father, who WILL fight for them!

You get into a train or a bus and you dont think twice about whehter the driver is competent to get you to your destination. You go to a restaurant and eat food laid before you without thinking its going to be poisoned. If we can place this kind of trust in people, we have ample reason to trust our Heavenly Father with SO much more!

Give up on doubt. Its not your friend. Trust God, you know how to do it, you trust various people instinctively everyday. TRUST HIM all the more.

Heneni

[Soulheart3]

I agree, for faith is what pleases God and Doubt is the opposite of it. I think we all doubt at times, but we should definately not be guided by it or controlled by it. I do believe the bible teaches that some have the "spiritual gift" of a greater faith than what is common to man(1 cor 12:9), but we should ALL desire and work toward the faith (as you say) of a child. Does anyone here know of someone they believe have this spiritual gift and why they believe it to be so. Just curious.

Originally Posted by Heneni

A child comes in and out of his fathers house without a care in the world. Knowing that the Father will be there always. The father always loves Him. The father provides the child with whatever it is that they need.

Good word, Heneni!

"I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture."

[christkid777]

I don't think many of us have any doubt as to "what" God can do, but we struggle continually with "will" God do. Are we really worth God's attention? Does He really care about my life? It is the same old problem. Thinking we are the issue and not God. But God said what He would do. If we could just get our self doubt out of the picture.

Yes Chirstkid I understand completely. We trust that God can, but will He. If He promised He would do it, there is no need to doubt his word. If we get on a plain we sometimes worry about whether the plane will make it to the destination, but we are confident that we are not decieved about whether its attempting to bring us to the intended destination. The plain might not be able, but the will of the airline is certainly to take you there and not somewhere else. If we can trust the airline that when they say this plane is going to paris, then we can trust god that he wants to take us where He said he would, and not only that, but HE can. So He can and He will. Its written on the ticket.

Heneni,
One I like to use too is how often when you go to sit down in a chair do you pick the chair up examine it to see if all four legs are intact before you sit down; you just don't.
I believe that many times as Christkidd says and you agree too that it is not that God can't, it's the will He... or could it be we come to this way of thinking when answers don't come perhaps in the timing we think they should? I believe there are sometimes things we have more faith for than others and it may depend on the nature of what it is. I had prayed for something for five years before it came to fruition but in God's perfect time it did! Just before the answer came I almost gave up hope for the answer but sensed something nudging me forward; I'm grateful that I paid attention and didn't lose hope. I believe God works many things in us and I believe that even if we do happen to waver from time to time that God in His infinite mercy will give us the grace to go through. Thanks for the post!

[Brad]

I'm sure I read a recent post that discussed this - one that quoted Oscar Wilde:

Skepticism is the beginning of Faith

Doesn't a faith born of doubt and skepticism feel a lot deeper than one lightly come by? Can't you argue that you've done the hard yards and fought the good fight and that you're a lot stronger for that?

Aren't you battle-hardened by the fight, internal and external? Who would you rather have next to you fighting for God? Someone who had been through the mill and had still made the right decision or someone who 'simply' believed.

If you've got what it takes, then you can still indulge in a little luxury. As Nietzsche said:

If a man have a strong faith he can indulge in the luxury of skepticism.