#Can Faith and Doubt Co-exist?
“Let the Word of God show you that God is equal to your challenge” ~Dr. Paul Enenche
Can faith and doubt co-exist?
We are taught to have faith but what happens if you have doubts?
I know that there is power in what I confess with my tongue but how do I express my doubt while having faith?
Can faith and doubt co-exist?
Doesn’t one contradict the other?
Or is one a response to the other?
I recently studied the components of faith;
believe, trust, and action
Believe counteracts doubt or perhaps, exists despite doubt.
Can doubt and belief co-exist?
Trust is built over time.
And action is the result of trust.
Yet I still wonder, how does this all work?
I’ve been fascinated with the process of growth.
Collecting knowledge is the easiest step in growth.
Integrating what you have acquired where they are most applicable requires intentionality.
I’ve heard about faith and in my limited understanding, practiced my faith.
Yet, I’ve come to realize that the confession of my faith holds no weight without action because there was no trust or belief.
It was easy to exercise trust when the collateral is manageable.
When I can manage my disappointment because I already made room for it prior to the outcome.
It was petrifying when there are no other options.
When I am confronted with my inadequacies and the limitations of my humanity.
I ask myself, “what is different this time?”
I sequentially combine the disappointments of my past, with the uncertainties of my present, to inform my future.
Void of options, I participate anyway.
Flirting with peace but running when it wants to take a seat.
Perhaps out of curiosity I get closer to faith.
For a moment, I relinquish my control, which was an illusion.
I embrace the unfamiliar.
Skeptical but driven by my curiosity.
Unknowingly, Hope tags along.
Faith then becomes the anchor by which my hope connects the unseen to the real world.
As my faith was tested, my trust was strengthened.
Doubt still exists, but it is no longer the Director of my thoughts.
In retrospect, the process made perfect sense.
Yet the gift gained from the process is not the victory, but the skills developed in the shed.
I am tempted to brush past the experience.
To just soak up the applause, the stage, and the opportunities.
But my curiosity still lies in studying the process and the One who orchestrated it.
Right now, I am still a healthy skeptic.
Existing in the space between faith and doubt.
Until next time,
