Doubts

[okiemom79]

I'm not going to go into an exhaustive post here I just have a little question that I have been thinking about tonight. First of all I am suffering from doubts and I am a huge 'Doubting Thomas' I do not like that I am this way and I am working so hard on it. I feel as though I am over my struggle when something hits me so hard and I am left with this strong feeling on being alone and that I know absolutely nothing in regards to God, or if there is a God. Anyway, I was wondering tonight why God would create such harmful elements such as Radon which is naturally occurring and asbestos, for example? Are these toxins really needed for much good? Why even put them here if God knew they could kill us?

 

[paul1149]

When God created the various elements of the world, at each step He pronounced them "good". When man was created, it was "very good". But when sin entered the world, which was not God's doing, all of creation fell with man. So at this point even nature reflects the fallen state of man. Paul tells us in Romans 8 that all creation "groans" in anticipation of the revealing of the sons of God - that is, us. At that time, God will make all things new, including remaking the earth into a paradise, because He never abandoned the work of His hands. Until then, though, there will be poisons and dangers that we need to cope with. But even then, we have been given authority over them (Mk 16).

 

[joey_downunder]

Time to take your eyes off yourself and your doubts and back onto JESUS and all the evidence for Him. If Jesus is who He said He is, then there is a God if Jesus is God.

It sounds like you need confidence that Christianity needs evidence for you to have a secure faith. That is a healthy attitude to have in fact.
bethinking.org - Bible + Jesus
bethinking.org - Suffering

http://www.tektonics.org/mainhub.html

http://joshmcdowellmedia.org/FreeBooks/He Walked Among Us.pdf

 

[okiemom79]

Time to take your eyes off yourself and your doubts and back onto JESUS and all the evidence for Him. If Jesus is who He said He is, then there is a God if Jesus is God.

It sounds like you need confidence that Christianity needs evidence for you to have a secure faith. That is a healthy attitude to have in fact.
bethinking.org - Bible + Jesus
bethinking.org - Suffering

http://www.tektonics.org/mainhub.html

http://joshmcdowellmedia.org/FreeBooks/He Walked Among Us.pdf

Thanks

 

[thesunisout]

I'm not going to go into an exhaustive post here I just have a little question that I have been thinking about tonight. First of all I am suffering from doubts and I am a huge 'Doubting Thomas' I do not like that I am this way and I am working so hard on it. I feel as though I am over my struggle when something hits me so hard and I am left with this strong feeling on being alone and that I know absolutely nothing in regards to God, or if there is a God. Anyway, I was wondering tonight why God would create such harmful elements such as Radon which is naturally occurring and asbestos, for example? Are these toxins really needed for much good? Why even put them here if God knew they could kill us?

To get over your doubts, you must follow this scripture:

Proverbs 3:5

Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding

The problem you are having is that you have not made God the Lord of your reasoning. You are leaning on your own understanding, thinking that you can "figure God out". You are relying on the foolish wisdom of the world, which in itself knows absolutely nothing about God or His ways. The only reason we know anything about God is because He has revealed it to us. The simple fact is, you are the Lord of your own reasoning and thus are in rebellion against Him.

You cannot figure God out, and Satan, who is a lot smarter than any human being, has an endless series of "evidences" for you that God is not who He says He is. Satan works to create a "credibility gap" between what Gods word says and your own experiences. As long as you trust in your own reasoning instead of the Lords, you will fall for this trap again and again. You need to learn that there is only one way to interpret your experiences, and this world, and that is through Gods words.

You must surrender your control, your logic, your reasoning, every part of your being, to the Lord. Until you do that, you will be plagued with doubts and constantly beguiled by Satan. Look at the greatest commandment:

Mark 12:30

And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.

You are obviously not loving God with your whole mind. Pray to God and tell Him you want to surrender your reasoning to Him, and make Him the Lord of it. Tell Him you want to love Him with your whole mind. Ask Him to help you make that change. And then actively work to trust Him in all your ways.

Hebrews 11:6

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him

To doubt that God is there is to say to God "You know..even though you have helped me in more ways than I can count, and loved me with a love beyond my comprehension, I can write you off in a moments notice." Imagine, if you have kids, that one day your kid refused to recognize you as his mother because you didn't feed him his favorite meal that day. How would that make you feel? Remember that God is your Father and not some man in the sky. He loves you more than you know. Keep a journal of all the things God does for you, so that when you feel separate from God, you can look at that and remember His providence.

Sin is ultimately what makes us feel separated from God. Are there other areas of your life you need to surrender to God? If so, then I think you have a big clue about what is fueling all of this. We must repent from sin and live holy and sanctified lives if we desire a meaningful relationship with the Lord. We must love the Lord more than we love the worldly things, or anything else.

 

[okiemom79]

You must surrender your control, your logic, your reasoning, every part of your being, to the Lord. Until you do that, you will be plagued with doubts and constantly beguiled by Satan. Look at the greatest commandment:


You are obviously not loving God with your whole mind.

Look, I have been trying. I keep having this urge to go back to the 'beginning.' I know The Bible was not the first of religious texts, that the ancient Egyptians were the first and they believed in Gods and by what I have read it does not seem to go along with the Christian Bible. My head is swimming with all this information and I can't seem to make heads or tails of some of it.
I know many scholars believe there was a literal Jesus but reject his being God. I have been trying to find out why they even believe he was real, what proof did they find that gave them that much? Trust me when I say I WANT there to be a God, I want HIM to be the one that will judge us at the end and that their may be an afterlife would be great. I do not like that I am like this, I get very angry with myself. I try not to be a selfish person.....but being new to all this...it's so overwhelming and hard to swallow.

 

[thesunisout]

Look, I have been trying. I keep having this urge to go back to the 'beginning.' I know The Bible was not the first of religious texts, that the ancient Egyptians were the first and they believed in Gods and by what I have read it does not seem to go along with the Christian Bible. My head is swimming with all this information and I can't seem to make heads or tails of some of it.
I know many scholars believe there was a literal Jesus but reject his being God. I have been trying to find out why they even believe he was real, what proof did they find that gave them that much? Trust me when I say I WANT there to be a God, I want HIM to be the one that will judge us at the end and that their may be an afterlife would be great. I do not like that I am like this, I get very angry with myself. I try not to be a selfish person.....but being new to all this...it's so overwhelming and hard to swallow.

Do you consider yourself born again? Do you have the Spirit of God living within you?

 

[suzybeezy]

I think if we're honest, all of us have had times of doubt. I think of it like lessons in school, your teacher may go over a lesson with you, but you may not understand or believe what you've been taught. Often time its not until after you've practiced it (through homework) and testing that you believe and understand what you've been taught. And you build on it over time til you're educated and confident. The same can be said about our walk with the Lord - the more you learn about God and the more you build your relationship with him, the more those doubts will slowly fade away.

 

[okiemom79]

Do you consider yourself born again? Do you have the Spirit of God living within you?

I thought at one point I could say that. When I decided to stop being so skeptical and accept the Bible once and for all I had an experience that I loved! (I actually have a post on here about that.) Then not long after that I was consumed once again with these doubts expect this time it feels as though it is so much stronger than before. I use to look for ways to help strengthen myself like searching for all the stuff that coincides with the Bible now I go looking for stuff like 'Why believe in God?' I know I need to just stop searching the internet...I will not find it here. I just thought I could get some help or support (reason I am here) I also feel compelled to research all the evidence regarding evolution (probably because of my college Science class at the moment) When I study evo it does not bother me, it is the ppl backing evo that bother me....but then after awhile I start to ponder on their remarks....

 

[Peripatetic]

Some people have more analytic minds, and it is natural for us to constantly ponder and question things. Having doubts does not call your salvation into question, and can sometimes even signal a growing faith (even though that seems backwards).

The best way to handle doubts is to take on your questions boldly. Try to find scripture passages and commentaries that address the issues. Engage in dialogue here, or better yet, with Christians that you know. Finally, pray about your questions. Don't be afraid to ask without fear. God knows your heart anyway, so no need to hide your doubts from Him. The more time you read and seek to understand the Bible, the more the themes and subjects will come together to form a stronger foundation.

 

[thesunisout]

I thought at one point I could say that. When I decided to stop being so skeptical and accept the Bible once and for all I had an experience that I loved! (I actually have a post on here about that.) Then not long after that I was consumed once again with these doubts expect this time it feels as though it is so much stronger than before. I use to look for ways to help strengthen myself like searching for all the stuff that coincides with the Bible now I go looking for stuff like 'Why believe in God?' I know I need to just stop searching the internet...I will not find it here. I just thought I could get some help or support (reason I am here) I also feel compelled to research all the evidence regarding evolution (probably because of my college Science class at the moment) When I study evo it does not bother me, it is the ppl backing evo that bother me....but then after awhile I start to ponder on their remarks....

Do you see then that your experience affirms what I have been telling you? When you decided to surrender your reasoning to God and trust Him, God rewarded your faith. When doubt crept in again and you rescinded that trust you gave to Him, you again feel completely separated from Him. Do you not see the connection? It's mainly about trust.

The reason you're not finding any answers that help you is because you do not trust God and you are trying to figure Him out so that you can be intellectually satisfied that you've made the right decision. God says that the wisdom of this world is foolishness and you'll never figure Him out:

Isaiah 55:9

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

God demands your trust, FIRST, and then you get answers. Read this again:

Hebrews 11:6

But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

You can't get anywhere near God or know anything about Him unless you believe that He is. So everything you're doing to pin God down is futile. He says you won't be satisfied, intellectually or otherwise, until you cast away your doubts and believe in Him.

We've all had doubts. I too used to be consumed with finding out every little detail. However, what God taught me is that when I trust Him I find the answers. When I don't trust Him I find more doubts. The reason why is simple. When you trust God and make Him the Lord of your reasoning, He will guide your understanding and give you the wisdom so that you can know the truth. When you don't trust God your only guide is your own ignorant understanding, which can get nowhere near God, and it also opens you to the influence of the devil. You simply will not find the answers unless you trust God first. You will only find deception. Again, you will not find the answers unless you trust God first!

You need to take your reasoning back to the beginning and receive the instruction of God like a little child. You need to completely surrender yourself to God, and admit to Him that you can't figure Him out and you never will. You need to put your full trust in Him, stop looking for reasons to doubt, and pick up your cross and follow Him. When you do that, God will lead you to the answers that you're looking for.

 

[tturt]

Agree - start with your foundation based on Him and His word and He'll help you build from that point - then we "see" the structure as it all comes together more and more and more (Matt 7:24, Luk 6:48, I Peter 2:5).

 

[KhaosTheory]

You shouldn't feel bad for doubting or being curious.

Isn't it wonderfully convenient that religious dogma has woven this sinister little concept into the narrative?

...that questioning is WRONG? It's brilliant... It quells any opposition by making it a SIN to even think about trying to think for yourself.

But don't be afraid. I think God will understand that you just want answers and that you are genuinely seeking the truth.

Don't let religion chain you into believing that using your brain is a BAD thing. That's just ridiculous and straight up evil.

 

[thesunisout]

You shouldn't feel bad for doubting or being curious.

Isn't it wonderfully convenient that religious dogma has woven this sinister little concept into the narrative?

...that questioning is WRONG? It's brilliant... It quells any opposition by making it a SIN to even think about trying to think for yourself.

But don't be afraid. I think God will understand that you just want answers and that you are genuinely seeking the truth.

Don't let religion chain you into believing that using your brain is a BAD thing. That's just ridiculous and straight up evil.

Doubt, when it is pathological like in this case, sets itself up in opposition to God. It is in fact rebellion against God. We are to trust God first, and have faith in His promises. It is fine to take something we don't understand and investigate it, but ultimately we are to lay it at His feet and seek His wisdom.. He is the Lord of our understanding, and we are to submit ourselves to God, in heart mind and spirit, with all of our strength.

 

[Harry3142]

okiemom-

I suspect that you've fallen victim to these socalled scholars who claim that the gospels weren't written until decades after the apostles lived, and so were the compiling of myths which had come to embellish the original events. However, most of the New Testament was already completed prior to St. Paul's execution circa 64 AD. He himself wrote the vast majority of the books to be found in the New Testament, and stated in those books his having met and spoken with those who had walked with Jesus during his sojourn among us. Had he been lying he would have been found out quickly, as the men who actually knew Jesus were almost all still alive.

Even the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke), which some supposedly enlightened scholars in the 19th and 20th centuries tried to date at 70 AD for the first of them ( which they claimed was Mark), and many years later for Matthew and Luke, have written evidence, as well as the evidence of other scholars, which date them as having all been completed years earlier than 62 AD. In fact, written evidence dates Acts of the Apostles as having been written by this time, and it originally was the second part of The Gospel of St. Luke.

Here is the written evidence for the synoptic gospels having been written at an early date:

www.bible-researcher.com/muratorian.html

And here are the results of studies concerning the dating of the Scripture found in the New Testament:

www.christiancadre.org/topics/dating_nt.html

 

[EchoRain]

That's a good question that I never thought of but I like some of the answers here.

One thing I have learned about God for instance in my life. I cried out to Him for months and months being stuck in a situation and I kept asking Him for his will in my life and... I would say that has occured in many ways.

Ask God when you are feeling strong for Him to keep showing you more and more of Him. When ever you feel that doubt in your mind just push it out and raise your voice to God instead.

I recently had to deal with a very hard situation of my mom having cancer for the 3rd time and every time bad thoughts entered my mind I would instantly dismiss them and then turn my thoughts to prayer to God saying "God take this from me" until I felt that peace within me... try doing something similar.

 

[Bible2]

EchoRain said in post #16:

When ever you feel that doubt in your mind just push it out and raise your voice to God instead.

Amen.

If we ever feel our faith is weakening into unbelief, we can pray to Jesus to help us (Mk. 9:24). If we want more faith to come in our hearts, we can read the Bible, or listen to someone reading the Bible out loud (Rom. 10:17), whether in person or on a CD. And we can pray to Jesus to increase our faith (Lk. 17:5).

If we want to keep our hearts from being hardened by the deceitfulness of sin, we can fellowship with other Christians every day, at least in some fashion (Mt. 18:20), such as on this forum, being exhorted by them & exhorting them in turn (Heb. 3:13). One way we can lose our faith is by having unrepentant sin in our lives which sears our conscience like with a hot iron, to where we begin to reject the faith, & begin to start listening to & embracing the lies of demons instead (1 Tim. 4:1-2). In a desire to continue in lusts without repentance, we can reach the point where we become no longer able to endure the sound doctrine of the Bible, & instead seek out & latch onto any man-made teachings which will support us in our lusts (2 Tim. 4:3-4).

Ultimately, the only rock-solid base for our faith is doing God's will (Mt. 7:24-25, Jn. 7:17, Jas. 1:22). For if we as believers remain in disobedience to God without repentance, our faith will, as it were, come to have a foundation of sand, so that our faith will collapse when trouble comes (Mt. 7:26-27, 13:21, Lk. 8:13), such as during the future tribulation of Rev. chs. 6-18/Mt. 24 (Mt. 24:9-13). It's our obedience to Jesus' commands that causes him to continue to manifest himself to us (Jn. 14:21,23, 12:26).

 

[EchoRain]

It is amazing to me the depth of the bible on topics such as that. It does tell us all we need to know concerning our walk with God. Thanks for sharing your knowledge of it with us also cause most of that I didn't know.