3 Ways to Break Free from the Prison of Doubt

Doubt. You're ashamed of it. You’re not alone. You feel stuck in the prison of doubt. Maybe you don’t think you can break free. If you’re like I was, you have probably been fighting doubt for years. Believe me, I understand.

It seemed to take a very long time for me to overcome doubt. It wasn’t an easy process since I didn’t know anyone who might show me ways to overcome it. I was steeped in doubt about God’s love. I wondered if I really was saved and if God really was there. Those questions seemed to loom in my mind day after day. I never really asked God for an answer because I wasn’t even sure there was a God at one point. Maybe now you’re right there.

Great News!

The first thing I must say is this: It’s OK to doubt! Really, it’s OK. Take a deep breath, let it out slowly, and get your brain in gear to receive the truth. Start by realizing this – the truth isn’t always sugar-coated. Sometimes you need vegetables along with dessert. Today’s topic may be like peas or broccoli to you, but you’ll grow a strong, healthy faith as you gain understanding. So, don’t worry, peas and broccoli never hurt anyone. It’s that darn asparagus that is the troublemaker.

Understanding the Reasons for Doubt

Faith is often described as a journey, one filled with both moments of clarity and periods of doubt. It's natural to question and seek understanding, especially when faced with life's challenges. You might have several factors that can lead to doubt in your faith. But facing them one at a time can ultimately strengthen our relationship with God.

~ Personal Experiences and Circumstances

Life can be incredibly challenging, and during these times, it's easy to question God's care and love. When you face discouragement and hardship, the lack of immediate answers to your prayers can lead to feelings of doubt. Suffering and pain, whether from personal loss or demanding relationships, can make it hard to maintain faith and trust in God. These personal experiences and circumstances are significant contributors to the doubts you experience.

~ Intellectual and Philosophical Questions

Beyond personal experiences, intellectual and philosophical questions can also lead to doubt. The problem of evil, for instance, raises questions about God's power and nature. How can a loving and all-powerful God allow suffering and injustice in the world? Additionally, exposure to different belief systems and cultures can make it challenging to reconcile your faith with other perspectives. If you fall into this category, the lack of tangible proof of God's existence further complicates your belief, making it hard to have faith in what you cannot see or scientifically prove.

~ Personal and Spiritual Struggles

Your personal and spiritual struggles contribute to the doubts you face. Difficult experiences, such as betrayal or loss, erode your trust in others, including God. During challenging times, you question whether his promises are genuine, even doubting He is near you. Sometimes, you use doubt as a way to justify actions that contradict your faith. Additionally, you intensely believe that doubts might be a result of the devil's influence over your sinful tendencies.

Let me dispel any belief in the sinfulness of doubt. Doubt is not a sin. Here’s some proof:

•    James 1:6-8: This passage describes the doubter as one who is "like a wave of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind." This verse implies instability, not sin.

•    Hebrews 11:6 emphasizes the importance of faith, but it also acknowledges that even those with doubts can still come to God. Doubt tends to move us closer to God as we seek answers from Him.

~ The Nature of Faith

Flipping the coin of doubt reveals a rather beautiful opposing side of it. Rather than seeing doubt as a weakness, you can view it as an opportunity for a more profound avenue for growth. Addressing your doubts strengthens your faith and leads to a more personal relationship with your heavenly Father. The Bible serves as a source of truth, and seeking answers in Scripture and engaging in prayer can help you overcome your doubts.

You may have had a few, or many, or all of the reasons listed there. Believe me, I don’t know them all, but I’ve got a good handle on understanding some since I had doubted for decades. Even if you find that your doubt is not listed, the truth in this teaching leads to freedom from it.

Freedom starts with submitting your doubts, followed by listening to the Spirit and obeying Him, and lastly, walking daily with God. Working through the fog of doubt is not going to be easy. Make sure to take a lot of deep, slow breaths along the way to help you think and understand clearly.

First: Submit Your Doubts

The first question most people ask is, “God, why do you always start with submitting?” There is a very logical explanation why submitting your doubt (LINK on how to submit) to God is the essential first step. As you submit your doubts to God, He can begin to unveil the truth. He will replace the lie with the truth. Is it this easy? Not always. The pathway to freedom from doubt only begins with submitting your doubts to God (even if you aren’t sure He is there). He starts to open your eyes to hidden facts you believed. Doubt clouded those truths. But by surrendering, the clouds blow away, and the truth comes to light.

Listen to the reason given in Psalm 94:18-19 for submission:

            I cried out, “I am slipping!”

    but your unfailing love, O Lord, supported me.

            When doubts filled my mind,

    your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer.

Comfort is right around the corner. God is near, ready, and waiting for you to set doubt aside so he can comfort you with fresh hope in your relationship. You may be doubting what I am saying, but as you make choices to move past your feelings and trust, you will find God is faithful to reveal himself to you personally.

If you don’t want to submit your doubt, there’s nothing anyone can say or do to force you. Your Free will is a gift from God. That makes the act of submission a choice. It’s small bits of letting go as often as possible, where God blesses you with peace.

Second: Obey Him

One of the main reasons why I had a hard time submitting to God was that I believed He didn’t have my best interests in mind. Honestly, I was afraid that by submitting, He might ask me to do things I wouldn’t want to do – like fully obeying Him. At that point in my life, trust and I had no relationship. Submitting your doubt opens avenues for obeying because your spiritual ears have opened up to the Voice whose guidance is never wrong. But obeying means having a level of trust in God.

Third: Walk Daily with God

Walking daily with God enhances your trust because He reveals Himself to you. I couldn’t begin walking with God every day until I had worked through the process of submitting my doubt to Him and began to take small steps toward obeying Him. Some days, surrendering and obeying won't work together, but that’s alright. There’s no right way or wrong way – just taking steps forward moves you in God’s direction.

Waffling between trust, belief, and doubt is natural. Your journey will take twists and turns along the way, and you won’t be perfect (sorry perfectionists!) You wonder how to walk with God while doubts cloud your belief. It begins with Bible reading and prayer, but you will eventually see growth. Doubt turns into belief as you form your spiritual walk (SPIRITUAL FORMATION LINK) with God.

~ Read the Bible

Begin by reading the Bible. Here’s the most significant sentence in this entire blog:

(Link to twitter) Even if you’re still doubting,

just going through the motions helps you move from doubt to belief!

When I returned to regular Bible reading, it started to influence my heart and mind. Even though I still had plenty of doubts, I was thrilled to read that I would be transformed (from doubter to believer) by the renewing of my mind (Romans 12:2).

How do you renew your mind? You read the Bible, that’s how. It takes work, but you can do it – even if you’re doubting. After many years of reading, and now studying the Bible, my mind renewed and I no longer doubt – but I had to trudge through the feeling that it was a big waste of time. I did it, and so can you!

~ Pray. No Really, I’m Serious

I know, I know, this sounds ridiculous. I saw you roll your eyes! I rolled mine too, a lot, when I first took this journey. I would sit down to talk to God and roll my eyes. But, even if I didn’t say a word in my heart or out of my mouth, God still heard me. Psalm 139:4 says, “Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.” Whew! What a relief! You don’t have to think of words to say. God already knows your heart.

You will have to push past the “Oh, this is worthless! Who am I talking to anyway?” feelings. (Yes, those thoughts crossed my mind.) Pushing past that block of doubt can be very hard. However, it is the most rewarding decision you can make on the other side of breaking free from it. Praying doesn’t mean having to speak all the right words to get God’s attention.

I started my prayer life like this:

“Hey God. Yeah, um, I’m working on the submission thing so, yeah, ok. I hope you heard me. Amen.”

Seriously? Who talks to God like that? Well, I did! I had to start somehow. With a prayer like that, you consent to giving God access to your heart. I was sick of wondering, but I didn’t know how to know He was even there to hear me. Because I didn’t “feel” Him, I never would have won the prize had I given up.

Don’t worry about your prayers not sounding “religious and spiritual.” Sometimes, just sitting quietly gets your engine started. Get real with God. He already knows your heart. Don’t worry, let Him come and comfort you as He did for the Psalmist in chapter 94.

Conclusion

Now that you’ve had your dose of vegetables, you are strong enough to get to work with the help of Holy Spirit. He is the tour guide along your new freedom journey. You are not alone. You are not an island. Thousands of Christians like you and me doubt every day. The good news is that our Creator never leaves – His attention is always upon us.

Remember, doubting forces us to ask questions. Asking questions forces us to seek answers. Seeking answers helps us to find the truth. Didn’t Jesus say something like that? He said, “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Luke 11:9-10)