I don’t think that there has ever been a human being that hasn’t dealt with doubt.
You may have yet to discipline your mind so you fail to ever believe that something good is going to happen. Or you may be one of those people whose been constantly disappointed that you don’t believe anything until you see it.
You can be the person on the other side of the spectrum who has faith but perhaps you’re not consistent in your faith. You allow your circumstances, what you see or past disappointments to fuel doubtful thoughts in your mind.
I will never understand why it’s so much easier to doubt or live in fear than it is to believe and walk by faith. But I do understand that believing for what you want to happen is not a one time gig; it’s something that must be practiced daily.
It’s kind of like brushing your teeth, just because you’ve done it perhaps 10,000 times doesn’t mean that you stop doing it. You continue to do it because you know the benefits of brushing your teeth. The consequences for deciding to stop brushing your teeth will result in decay…and some serious bad breath too!
Do you know that doubt causes the decay of your dreams? Decay is a process of deterioration meaning that it happens over time, little by little. This is how doubt eats away at your destiny; just one day at a time.
What is it that you want to see happen in your life but you’ve allow doubt to chew it away?
Do you want to get married but you doubt ever meeting the right guy? Do you want your current marriage to change for the better but you doubt things will change? Do you want to get out of student loan and credit card debt but you look at those numbers and doubt it ever happening? Do you want to become an entrepreneur but you believe that’s impossible right now? Do you want to see your family relationships restored but you think it’s never going to happen? Do you want to start making an income of $100,000 per year but you believe it’s only wishful thinking? Do you want to make a career shift but you doubt being able to succeed?
While I was spending quiet time with God last night, I felt this impressed upon my spirit, “Make up your mind to believe.” It’s not a coincidence that earlier that day, I attended church where one of our pastor’s shared a powerful message on doubt. Then a few days ago, again while spending quiet time with God, I felt this rise up in my spirit “Settle it in your heart.”
I knew God was trying to tell me something, and I knew exactly what He was referring too.
Doubt rises in your mind, heart and emotions. When you doubt, you’re easily tossed to and fro. You are never settled which is exactly why I knew God wanted me to simply believe with my heart and mind. God doesn’t want you to live unsettled because He wants you to trust Him.
Here’s the thing…I don’t think we understand Who we’re believing in so this ignites doubt.
In the message that was shared by my pastor yesterday, he defined doubt as – “Doubt is to question something or someone’s quality or goodness.” Then he went on to share, “If the nature of something is weak then you’ll doubt it. But if the nature of something is strong then you’ll trust it.”
Are you doubting God’s goodness? Are you doubting His strength?
I had begun to doubt and was unsettled in my mind because I didn’t fully embrace God’s nature. I started to doubt His strength and goodness because I had allowed my past disappointments to influence my ability to wholeheartedly believe and keep believing.
That’s when doubt rises the most, when you have to keep believing even though you don’t see any changes happening. Then fear comes is in to intimidate you with the lies that it’s never going to happen so you might as well quit and stop believing.
Wherever fear or doubt is knocking at your door, then it’s time to send faith to answer. God loves you and He’s not holding out on you. Be still and know that whatever it is that you’re believing for that you must make up your mind to believe.
A made up mind isn’t easily deterred by any little thing that comes up to threaten what you’re believing for. A made up mind chooses to believe in spite of what the present circumstances are. A made up mind will see her victory!
But every time you doubt, you are frustrating God’s power. Faith connects you to God while fear connects you to your adversary. Fear and doubt want to attack your mind as well as your heart so that then fear and doubt can control your will and emotions.
We live in a world where the view of God is that you have to do something first in order to get God to do something. Oh contraire!
The way to please God is with childlike faith. He wants to be trusted and depended on. You were not created to carry those burdens so let God do what only He can do.
God can make the impossible possible in your life. As a matter of fact, that’s His specialty. I know that God wants to you make up your mind to believe Him. Settle it in your heart. Reject the doubt and do not accept the reports of fear in your mind.
Wherever you are, I want to you know that things are going to turn around in your favor. Do you still believe that 2017 is going to be the best year of your life? I do!
Will you choose to make up your mind to believe?