A couple of weeks ago, a friend told me about her anger towards God. A family member of hers went through an unexpected and dangerous—with a possible permanent disability—medical issue.

My friend was mad at God. She found extremely unfair what her loved one was going through. I sympathized with her. 

Every Christian has experienced anger, unbelief, or doubt about God’s reliability, power, and care during tough times.

How do we navigate doubt during moments like these as Christians? How do we trust God when experiencing doubt?

What’s Doubt?

Doubt appears when our ideas, expectations, or beliefs are challenged by new information or unexpected situations. Doubt leads us to lose confidence in something or someone.

For example, think about a restaurant you went to because it had great reviews. Once at the restaurant, you order one of the guests’ favorites. Your entree arrives and you’re excited to have the first bite.

After chewing a couple of times, the excitement diminishes. Disappointment comes right away. What you expected to be the most tasteful meal of the restaurant, is bland and overcooked. 

You question the reliability of the reviews you read. You doubt the honesty—and the taste buds—of the people who wrote the reviews.

At this point, you conclude that you just can’t trust internet reviews. You might even decide against eating out altogether, doubtful that you'll get a good meal even at a five-star restaurant.

A similar shift happens when doubt challenges our faith. We’re told that a life with God is incredible—the single best decision a person can make. But shortly after choosing to follow Him, reality hits hard: a loved one passes away in a sudden accident, you lose your job, or close friends drift away because of your new faith.

How do we remain strong when our faith has been shaken by doubt?

3 Ways to Navigate Doubt as a Christian

1. Be Honest with God

I attend a weekly Bible study of Psalms. In one meeting, the teacher highlighted that the writers of Psalms were incredibly honest with God about how they felt. 

There were moments when the psalmists doubted God’s capacity of acting in their favor. They asked God where He was when illness, sadness, death, and injustice were creeping in their lives.

The first step to navigate doubt is to tell God how we feel. God can bear anything we say—or think—to Him. He won’t get mad at us. Actually, He’ll comfort us—like the great father He is—through the Holy Spirit.

2.    Turn to the Bible

When we’re having doubts about God or our faith, it’s understandable to not want to pray and read the Bible. But to counteract doubt, we need certainty.

In the Christian faith, we find certainty through the Bible. Psalm 119:105 (NIV) says, “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” God’s Word is the map to recover our trust in Him when doubt confronts our faith in Him.

3.    Reach Out to Your Support Circle

The writers of the New Testament were dedicated to leading believers to live out their faith. They guided the early Christians—and us—on how to be faithful to God in both good and bad times.

God gave us the gift of community to rely on each other when our faith is shaken by doubt and life’s challenges. Our support circle won’t have all the answers. But it can be an oasis to our troubled mind.

Final Words

There is room for doubt in the Christian life. But the goal is to not get stuck in it. The danger of staying trapped in doubt is that it turns into resentment and anger. These emotions will negatively impact our relationship with God and others.

What I love about God the most is that He is always willing to help us in understanding life. I believe that, in the right time, we’ll receive an honest response from Him to our doubts.

Take a Leap of Faith

Start a journal of doubts. Write down any doubts you've about God or your faith. Next, choose one of the three ways listed above to start overcoming them.

Today’s leap of faith was featured on the Faith Driven Journey Instagram! If you're on Instagram and want to grow your faith through practical weekly steps, follow us @_faithdrivenjourney. 😊

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