Is It Okay to Doubt?

By Matt Sasso, Pastor of Student Ministries

Everyone has moments of doubt. We doubt if we are heading in the right direction when going some place new. We doubt if that low-fat snack is really as healthy as it claims to be. We doubt if the people in our lives really care about us – even in spite of the evidence that they do. And sometimes our doubts are about God. Can we trust God? Does God really have our best in mind? What does a particular Bible verse actually mean?

When questions arise, they can be a little unsettling, especially questions about faith. But what if God is big enough to handle the questions? He is. What if God is secure enough to handle our uncertainty? He is. And what if doubt actually paves the way to a deeper belief, a stronger relationship with Christ? It can.

Last month we talked about those nagging questions that seem to linger in the back of our minds – the ones we hesitate to ever speak out loud, admit we have, or let anyone else know we think. Questions like: “Does God hear me when I pray?” “Does He have a plan for my life?” “Does God really have everything under control?”

Questions and doubts can be unsettling if they are left unsaid. We begin to think we are alone in our doubt, and often our doubts only grow until they paralyze our faith. But when we learn to admit our doubts openly, we learn that we are not the only ones. Everyone deals with questions. And when we learn to live with doubt, doubt can be a tool that strengthens our faith.