A Great Solution!!
Doubt is a huge thing in our lives and it messes with our hope reality. Doubt can take a very hopeful, good situation, and turn it into a mess. The Psalmist dealt with this apparently and in Psalm 94:19 he wrote 19 When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer. Of course, in the above scripture he had an immediate solution to the problem. To be very honest, that is usually what I need is "A Great Solution." A Great Solution, of course, solves the problem, if I will listen. Solution (def) -a means of solving a problem or dealing with a difficult situation.
James give us some guidance with this thing called doubt, where in James 1:6 he writes 6 But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. These are not just flowery words that have no meaning and the example of believers who have faith are written throughout God's Word, so believe it, and know that on the strong side of faith we see God's power moving in extraordinary ways. Jesus in Matthew 21:21 says this 21 Then Jesus told them, “I tell you the truth, if you have faith and don’t doubt, you can do things like this and much more. You can even say to this mountain, ‘May you be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and it will happen. It means something for Jesus to emphasize the point by saying "I tell you the truth." It further undergirds what God's Word says about faith and the way God rewards our faith with His power.
So A Great Solution for doubt is faith!!! I always get a little miffed when I hear learned men and women talk about faith in conditional terms. Basically what is happening when they try to put conditions on faith is they are looking for an "out" for this faith thing. They will even read a scripture like the one above in Matthew 21:21 and say "Yeah but." According to James 1:6 there is no "yeah but!" Do not discount the part where James says "faith in God alone!" This brings up a very important part of our Christian faith. What is your faith based on? What people tell you or what you "know" yourself by your study of God's Word? God has given His Word to show us how to live our lives and part of that "living" is based on faith. In our looking for answers be sure and consult God's Word because it is "perfect" in EVERY way. Don't live your "faith" based on man's impressions, but on God's truth alone. Early in my walk with the Lord I would consult men who were supposedly well versed in the Bible about certain scriptures I would read and take their impressions about those scriptures as firm and accurate. Only to find out later that many of their explanations were based on the filters they had put in their minds when reasoning what God was saying. I finally grew in my faith beyond listening to anyone but the Lord in what I believe or have faith in.
My Great Solution to doubt was to totally believe God's Word and learn the truths from it to guide me in my life, I am still learning more and more every day about doing this but that is part of the "growth" in my faith walk with God. Tozer wrote this about faith “Faith is the gaze of a soul upon a saving God.” A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God.
Where is your gaze? I believe if you look to God for faith He will supply. What conclusion have you about this? Look at God's word and He will speak truth to you. He will give you A Great Solution to the whole matter.
The Pilgrimage continues.....
David Warren