Faith Amid Doubt: The Journey to Deliverance
Luke 12:29 And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.
It is one thing to believe; yet it is another to not doubt. One might assume that if he believes, then there should be no doubt. However, there is the reality of believing and yet doubting at the same time. Consider what the father said to Christ in Mark 9, whose son was in need of a miracle. He said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.”
Where does our doubtful mind come from? May I suggest that in many cases it comes from nothing more than past and present realities which seem to never improve? This man’s boy had this problem since he was a child, and no matter what his father did, it never seemed to help. He even took him to Christ’s disciples, who also could not help. The problem had escalated to massive proportions. After having exasperated himself with every effort to help his son, he heard that if there was anyone in town that could make a difference, it would be Jesus.
However, his mind, soul, and spirit had been let down and disappointed so many times, that most all hope was lost of ever seeing any significant and real change in his boy’s life. He had to muster up enough faith against all odds to take the risk of bringing him to Jesus. What risk might you ask? The risk of another let-down; the risk of another seemingly unanswered prayer; the risk that God might not really care, and that He might not even pay attention. Thank God all it takes is a little bit of faith! Just enough faith to be equal to the size of a grain of mustard seed can remove mountains.
That’s exactly where this man was. He had just enough faith, but he was willing to admit to our Lord that there was still doubt present when he asked the Master to help him with his unbelief! When this happened, his faith was blessed by Jesus to grow and overtake his doubt, and at that point his son was delivered of his demons.
What will it take for us to get to a place where we too are no longer of doubtful mind? It will take us addressing the doubt head-on like this man did. Pray even as he did, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” When we get honest with Him, He is then able to work a miracle in our lives! Whatever your need is today, rest assured that your aged realities do not have to shape your tomorrows. Jesus still delivers!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill
It is one thing to believe; yet it is another to not doubt. One might assume that if he believes, then there should be no doubt. However, there is the reality of believing and yet doubting at the same time. Consider what the father said to Christ in Mark 9, whose son was in need of a miracle. He said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.”
Where does our doubtful mind come from? May I suggest that in many cases it comes from nothing more than past and present realities which seem to never improve? This man’s boy had this problem since he was a child, and no matter what his father did, it never seemed to help. He even took him to Christ’s disciples, who also could not help. The problem had escalated to massive proportions. After having exasperated himself with every effort to help his son, he heard that if there was anyone in town that could make a difference, it would be Jesus.
However, his mind, soul, and spirit had been let down and disappointed so many times, that most all hope was lost of ever seeing any significant and real change in his boy’s life. He had to muster up enough faith against all odds to take the risk of bringing him to Jesus. What risk might you ask? The risk of another let-down; the risk of another seemingly unanswered prayer; the risk that God might not really care, and that He might not even pay attention. Thank God all it takes is a little bit of faith! Just enough faith to be equal to the size of a grain of mustard seed can remove mountains.
That’s exactly where this man was. He had just enough faith, but he was willing to admit to our Lord that there was still doubt present when he asked the Master to help him with his unbelief! When this happened, his faith was blessed by Jesus to grow and overtake his doubt, and at that point his son was delivered of his demons.
What will it take for us to get to a place where we too are no longer of doubtful mind? It will take us addressing the doubt head-on like this man did. Pray even as he did, “Lord, I believe; help thou mine unbelief.” When we get honest with Him, He is then able to work a miracle in our lives! Whatever your need is today, rest assured that your aged realities do not have to shape your tomorrows. Jesus still delivers!
~ Pastor Gary Caudill