Doubts, anyone??

kaykay · 09-26-2005, 11:21 PM

I am a Christian, even if this post might not make me sound like a very good one!
It's just my faith seems to waver and wane all the time: sometimes my faith can be so strong, but at other times I find myself even doubting the existance of God.

Don't get me wrong: time and time again, God has proven his existance to me by answering prayers. But sometimes I just think things like 'how do i know this is true answer to prayer and not just coincidence?', 'how do i know the bible is true', 'how i do i know that there is a god if there is no scientific evidence?'

I really am a Christian, but sometimes these doubts creep up on me, and I'm just wondering if any of you experience these, and, if you do, how you deal with them.

Any replies would be greatly appreciated! Thanks

Bandit · 09-27-2005, 12:04 AM

prayer & reading the bible works for me. the bible is the only thing that is going to sustain us.

hi kaykay & welcome to CR.

stevemb88 · 09-27-2005, 03:05 AM

The same things happen to me, like ill go to a retreat and get all fired up for Jesus then just come backdown after about a week.

lunamoth · 09-27-2005, 03:28 AM

I think that sometimes God does seem to become more remote from our lives, but that does not mean that He is not with us. Sometimes a "desert experience" is part of our spiritual growth. I agree with Bandit, pray throughout.

best wishes,
lunamoth

Quahom1 · 09-27-2005, 04:19 AM

Hello Kay, and welcome to CR.

I think the following might help answer your deepest questions on this issue:

One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.

Many scenes from my life flashed across the sky.
In each scene I noticed footprints in the sand.
Sometimes there were two sets of footprints,
other times there were one set of footprints.

This bothered me because I noticed
that during the low periods of my life,
when I was suffering from
anguish, sorrow or defeat,
I could see only one set of footprints.

So I said to the Lord,
“You promised me Lord,
that if I followed you,
you would walk with me always.
But I have noticed that during the most trying periods of my life
there have only been one set of footprints in the sand.
Why, when I needed you most, you have not been there for me?”

The Lord replied,
“The times when you have seen only one set of footprints in the sand,
is when I carried you.”

by Mary Stevenson

v/r

Q

mee · 09-27-2005, 08:45 AM

for me i find that the more i study Gods word, the more i can see that all of the things foretold by God always come true . so the fact that the prophecies always come true is proof for me that God has a purpose for mankind and the earth, and this gives me hope .

Quahom1 · 09-27-2005, 04:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mee

for me i find that the more i study Gods word, the more i can see that all of the things foretold by God always come true . so the fact that the prophecies always come true is proof for me that God has a purpose for mankind and the earth, and this gives me hope .

Mee, Kay was not expressing doubt in faith. Kay is expressing a loss of feeling, and trying to justify or rectify personal fears. That is not something words in a book will fix. Kay asked if anyone ever felt this way before, not how to overcome it. This is one area where quoting scripture fails...

You are obviously a man, because you want to fix the situation. I don't think men have the solution that the author is looking for...re-inforcement is the order of the day (emotional).

Hard to study the word when the heart and mind are not in tune with the spirit.

Chill a little eh?

v/r

Q

mee · 09-27-2005, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quahom1

Mee, Kay was not expressing doubt in faith. Kay is expressing a loss of feeling, and trying to justify or rectify personal fears. That is not something words in a book will fix. Kay asked if anyone ever felt this way before, not how to overcome it. This is one area where quoting scripture fails...

You are obviously a man, because you want to fix the situation. I don't think men have the solution that the author is looking for...re-inforcement is the order of the day (emotional).

Hard to study the word when the heart and mind are not in tune with the spirit.

Chill a little eh?

v/r

Q

oh dear i am in trouble again LOL . well i suppose we are all different , i was just saying what works for me, because when i first became interested in the bible the fact that the bible is a book of prophecy that is in the prosess of fulfillment right now, really did thrill me ,and made me want to look into the bible even more, but that is only how i felt maybe others do not

Quahom1 · 09-27-2005, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mee

oh dear i am in trouble again LOL . well i suppose we are all different , i was just saying what works for me, because when i first became interested in the bible the fact that the bible is a book of prophecy that is in the prosess of fulfillment right now, really did thrill me ,and made me want to look into the bible even more, but that is only how i felt maybe others do not

Has the Lord ever "carried you"? I am curious.

Faithfulservant · 09-27-2005, 07:44 PM

From personal experience I have also had those doubts.. it happens most when things dont go like I thought they should. Later on in retrospect I see that God was testing me.. I lost a job that I know God gave me because they way it all fell together I held that job for over 3 years and I was very good at it. When I lost it I was doubting whether God ever gave me that job because why would he take it from me and I would lose the ability to care for my children.. well a year and half later Im out of an intolerable situation and in a much better one and I just got a job doing the exact same thing but making 6 dollars more an hour.. I learned a lesson that I should always expect change when Im starting to get comfortable.. God likes to shake things up so we can grow.

He will deal with your doubts in His way.. it doesnt make you a bad child to doubt and if He wants you to know if something is His work He certainly has the ability to make sure you know. I just give Him credit for everything now.. good and bad because I see so much good come from the bad. I do ask for wisdom and I ask Him to be patient with me and talk to me.

mee · 09-28-2005, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quahom1

Has the Lord ever "carried you"? I am curious.

For this is what the High and Lofty One, who is residing forever and whose name is holy, has said: "In the height and in the holy place is where I reside, also with the one crushed and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly ones and to revive the heart of the ones being crushed........... Isaiah 57;15 well as we are all human with human feelings my answer to that would be that i have faith that the things that the bible tells us are true and yes i have many times.as have others.

kaykay · 09-28-2005, 10:02 AM

Hey, thanks to all you guys to take the time to share with me. I've found everything you have said a great help, and it is a good feeling to know I'm not the only one who has had these feelings!

So thanks again for all your wisdom; already I can feel much stronger in my faith. I will keep praying like you all suggested, as I know first hand that God really does answer my prayers.

So thank you!

Awesome Possum · 10-01-2005, 09:53 AM

Yeah, never think that you shouldn't pray. God loves us so much and wants to hear from us no matter what situation we're in. If we don't feel like praying, that's probably Satan's influence, either feeding our fears or something of the sort. I have times all the time where I'm tempted not to pray, but I was once told that we should pray until we feel like praying. It works every time. Afterwards, I feel 100% better because I know I made the right decision. If you don't pray when you know you should, then later on your feeling of guilt increases. Everyone knows how guilt feels...it's not a pleasant feeling.

Just do your best...it's hard, but it's worth it. Christ expects perfection of us, so we should strive to ever become more perfect like Him. The reward is greater than any of us can conceive of at this point in time.

Faithfulservant · 10-01-2005, 04:30 PM

The feeling of guilt is not from God.. its a spiritual attack. Im wondering is praying when we dont want to is like praising God when we dont want to.. Like a sacrifice. Rather than a sacrifice of praise.. its a sacrifice of prayer. Thanks.. I never thought of it like that.

Awesome Possum · 10-04-2005, 07:27 AM

Just remember that the one thing that's really hard to do when you don't feel like praying is making your prayer meaningful. If you're not really meaning what you're praying for and not truly seeking answers to your prayer, that's when the prayer is a waste...your heart is just not in the right place. I try hard to be mindful of this because I'm guilty of it many times over. My mind wanders during prayer and I'll focus on impure thoughts, not focused on the Savior instead.

What I found to help out a lot is to simply pray out loud. The prophets of the Old Testament did so all the time. And I mean to pray out loud by yourself, not just when you're in a group. I understand that many of you see personal prayer as something private and something to be done in the privacy of your closet with the door shut, and then you pray in your head, silently. Well, then at least whisper. Your thoughts will focus so quickly and your mind will certainly not wander.