February 11, 2025 • 11 mins
Have you ever found yourself thinking, I believe in God, but why do I still have doubts? If so, you’re not alone! In this episode, we tackle a powerful listener question about navigating faith when uncertainty creeps in. We’ll explore why doubt is a normal part of the faith journey, what the Bible actually says about questioning God, and how even some of the strongest believers—like John the Baptist and Thomas—had their moments of uncertainty.
But here’s the good news: Doubt doesn’t mean you’re failing in your faith. It’s an opportunity to grow deeper. We’ll also break down the neuroscience behind why our brains crave certainty and how we can rewire our thought patterns to align with God’s truth. If you’ve ever felt like you’re wrestling with faith and doubt at the same time, this episode will remind you that God isn’t afraid of your questions—and He’s not going anywhere.
HOST: Leanne Ellington // StresslessEating.com // @leanneellington
To learn more about Leanne, head over to www.LeanneEllington.com, and to share your thoughts, questions, feedback, or guest suggestions instantly, head on over to www.WhatsGodGotToDoWithIt.com.
Follow Leanne on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/leanneellington/
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:08):
If you want to go on a journey. If you're skeptical,
don't worry. Not here to preach.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
I'm gonna keep it clean and talk to me and
recall where faith meet stars of nature and get in
touch with your creator with a baking love and jew.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
She even speaks Hebrew. What's that gotza? What's that little sadbosation?
You should talking transformation? What's that gotzato?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Well, hello there and welcome back to what's God got
to do with it? And today we are tackling a
question that came in from one of our listeners. And
I know this is something that so many of us
had wrestled with. And here's what they asked. So they said,
I believe in God, but I still struggle with is
that normal? And does this mean that my faith isn't strong?
(01:04):
And so, first of all, such a great question, And
if you've ever felt this way, I want you to
know you are so not alone, because let's be real.
You know, having faith doesn't automatically erase every question or
fear or moment of uncertainty. And yet so many of
us feel ashamed when doubt creeps in, like it somehow
means that we're failing at our faith. And so here's
(01:24):
what I want you to hear right out of the gate.
Doubt does not mean the absence of faith. Okay, in
my opinion, doubt is actually part of the journey. And
so today we're going to talk about why doubt shows
up even for believers, what scripture actually says about doubt,
and spoiler, God isn't scared of doubt. We're going to
talk about how neuroscience and faith work together to help
(01:48):
us process doubt in a healthy way. And so we're
going to just tackle this head on. And I'm not
here saying that I have all the answers. I'm just
sharing my experiences as I've walked through this. So if
you've ever felt like you're the only one who wonders
is God really there? Does He even really care about me?
Am I actually saved? Then this episode is for you.
(02:10):
So let's start with the big question, why do we
doubt at all? And if we believe in God, and
if we've experienced his presence and if we've seen him
move in our lives, why do we still have moments
where we question it all? Well, doubt can come from
different places. First off, our humanity like, our brains are
wired for logic and reasoning, and it's natural to ask
(02:32):
questions about things that we can't see or touch or
fully understand.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
And God is infinite and.
Speaker 2 (02:38):
We are finite, and so of course there will be
gaps in our understanding. Pain and unanswered prayers is where
doubt can come from. So sometimes doubt creeps in when
life doesn't go the way that we expected, or when
we pray for healing and don't see it, or when
we ask for clarity and feel like we're getting silence,
or when suffering just feels unfair. Comparison and culture is
(03:01):
another place that doubt can come from. So the world
is constantly bombarding us with different beliefs and philosophies and
arguments against Christianity, and so social media and science and
different worldviews, it's so easy to start questioning, like do
I actually believe this? Spiritual warfare is another one. So
let's not forget that the enemy wants us to doubt,
(03:22):
right like he knows that if he can plant seeds
of uncertainty, he can weaken our faith and keep us
from walking in confidence. But here's the truth. Doubt doesn't
disqualify your faith. It actually strengthens it if you handle
it the right way. So let's look to what the
Bible says about doubt. And so one of the biggest
(03:43):
lies that we believe is that doubt makes us a
bad Christian.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
But Scripture is full of people.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
Who struggled with doo and and God didn't cast them aside.
He met them in their uncertainty. So let's look at
a few examples. So the first is Thomas the Doubter
or Thomas the secret and most of us know Thomas
as doubting Thomas the disciple who said he wouldn't believe
in the resurrection until he saw Jesus with his own eyes.
(04:11):
But here's what I love. Jesus didn't shame him for questioning.
He met him exactly where he was and gave him
the evidence that he needed.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
And this is.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Described in John twenty twenty four through twenty nine. So
what's the lesson here, Well, to me, it just shows
us that Jesus isn't afraid of our doubts, like he
invites us to seek him, and he's faithful to reveal
himself in ways that strengthen our belief. John the Baptist
is another one. He even questioned Jesus. So John the
(04:40):
Baptist literally prepared the way for Jesus, like he baptized Jesus,
he saw the Holy Spirit descend on him like a dove.
And yet when John was in prison, he sent his
disciples to ask Jesus like, are you really the Messiah?
Or should we look for someone else? And that was
in Luke seven eighteen through twenty three. And so if
On the Baptist had moments of doubt, why do we
(05:02):
think that we won't right? And again Jesus didn't condemn him.
He simply reminded John of the miracles that he was doing,
like you know, the blind suddenly seeing, and people that
hadn't ever been able to walk suddenly walking, and the
good news being preached. And so the lesson here is
that when when we doubt, we need to look at
what God has done in our lives and in the
(05:25):
world around us. Now, let's get geeky for a second,
because you know, we always got to bring neuroscience into this,
because you know, doll is not only addressed in scripture,
but it also has a neuroscientific explanation, and so our
brains crave certainty, like we are wired to look for
patterns and to predict outcomes and to feel safe in
(05:45):
what we know. So when we encounter things that we
can't fully explain, you know, like faith, it's natural for
the brain to send out alarms saying like wait a minute,
is this real? Like can I really trust this? And
so the problem is if we never address those thoughts,
they grow into belief systems, and doubt can become a
(06:07):
mental habit, you know, just like fear or negativity.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
But here's the good news. You can rewire your brain
for faith.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
And so when you pray, you strengthen neural pathways that
reinforce trust in God. And when you meditate on scripture,
you reshape the way that your brain processes doubt. And
when you recall past experiences of God's faithfulness, you create
a mental record that makes faith more automatic. And so
faith isn't just an abstract idea. It's something that gets
(06:37):
built into your brain through repeated action. And so what
do we do when doubt creeps in?
Speaker 1 (06:45):
And how do we.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Handle it in a way that grows our faith instead
of tearing it down? And then how do we handle
that in a healthy way? And this is where I
believe It's about bringing your doubts to God because you know,
faith isn't pretending that you never have questions.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
It's bringing those questions to the.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
One who has the answers right, and instead of running
from doubt, bring it to God in prayer.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
And it's also about going.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
Back to scripture because the enemy wants you to forget
what God says and he wants you to believe your
doubts instead of doubting your doubts. And when uncertainty hits,
that's when we need to ground ourselves in God's word. Okay,
And you can also remember what God has done for
you by just keeping a journal of answered prayers or
(07:33):
you know I do this. I'll borrow answer prayers from
other people to look as evidence of like God is
answering prayers.
Speaker 1 (07:39):
Or I'll write down moments.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Of clarity your times when I felt God's presence and
when doubt creeps in, you get to go back and
read those reminders.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Right.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
But it's also about surrounding yourself with strong faith. And
so if you only listen to skeptical voices, it makes
sense your doubt is going to grow, right, But if
you surround yourself with peopleeople who are walking in faith,
and you know they're walking with the Lord. Their confidence
will strengthen yours. And it's really contagious, is what I've discovered.
(08:09):
But you can also be that thermostat to other people.
And then, of course this is about giving yourself grace,
right like, struggling with doubt doesn't mean that you're failing
in faith. It means that you're growing. And God can
use your questions to deepen your relationship with him if
you let him. That's where you can invite him in right.
(08:29):
And so here's what I just want to leave you with.
You know, doubt doesn't make you less of a believer.
It makes you human. And God isn't sitting in heaven
disappointed in you for wrestling with questions. He's inviting you
to bring them to him. And so if you're struggling
with doubt right now, I just want you to know,
like you are so not alone. And some of the
(08:50):
strongest believers in Scripture had moments of uncertainty and as
you're seeing now, God met them in it right, and
He will definitely meet you in yours too. Okay, So
instead of letting doubt be the thing that pulls you
away from God. Let it be the thing that pushes
you closer, and let it be the thing that strengthens
your faith rather than weakening it. Because when you press
(09:14):
through the questions and when you seek God in the
middle of uncertainty, you'll find that He has been there
all along, and that is faith. Okay, So thank you
so much for joining me today for our Ask the
God Pod series, and we will be back with another
listener question next week. And if this question or this
(09:34):
episode spoke to you, just share it with a friend
who might need the reminder that faith and doubt really
can coexist.
Speaker 1 (09:41):
Okay, And if you have a.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Question that you want me to tackle on a future episode,
send it my way by going to What's God Got
to Do with It?
Speaker 1 (09:48):
Dot com?
Speaker 2 (09:49):
And until next time.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
Bye.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
For now, we'll be back with more What's God Got
to Do with It? But in the meantime, I would
definitely love to hear from you, so just tell me
where you are in your story or maybe what questions
you have, like where do you feel you need clarity
or support or wisdom in your own journey. I definitely
(10:11):
want to hear from you, so head on over to
What's God Got to Do with It? Dot com and
scroll down to the form to share your thoughts, your questions,
your feedback, and you can do that instantly.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
So What's God Got to Do with It? Dot Com?
You'll find all the ways to do that.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
And if you like this podcast and want to hear more,
go ahead and follow, like, and subscribe wherever you listen
to podcasts to get your weekly dose of What's God
Got to Do With It?
Speaker 1 (10:37):
New episodes drop.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Every single Tuesday, and while you're there, be sure to
rate and review to show your support.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
It really means so much.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
What's God Got to Do With It is an iHeartRadio
podcast on the Amy Brown Podcast Network.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
It's written and hosted by.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Me Leanne Ellington, executive produced by Elizabeth Fozio, post production
and editing by Huston Antilly, and original music written by
Cheryl Stark and produced by Adam Stark
If you want to go on a journey. If you're skeptical,
don't worry. Not here to preach.
Speaker 2 (00:14):
I'm gonna keep it clean and talk to me and
recall where faith meet stars of nature and get in
touch with your creator with a baking love and jew.
Speaker 1 (00:25):
She even speaks Hebrew. What's that gotza? What's that little sadbosation?
You should talking transformation? What's that gotzato?
Speaker 2 (00:44):
Well, hello there and welcome back to what's God got
to do with it? And today we are tackling a
question that came in from one of our listeners. And
I know this is something that so many of us
had wrestled with. And here's what they asked. So they said,
I believe in God, but I still struggle with is
that normal? And does this mean that my faith isn't strong?
(01:04):
And so, first of all, such a great question, And
if you've ever felt this way, I want you to
know you are so not alone, because let's be real.
You know, having faith doesn't automatically erase every question or
fear or moment of uncertainty. And yet so many of
us feel ashamed when doubt creeps in, like it somehow
means that we're failing at our faith. And so here's
(01:24):
what I want you to hear right out of the gate.
Doubt does not mean the absence of faith. Okay, in
my opinion, doubt is actually part of the journey. And
so today we're going to talk about why doubt shows
up even for believers, what scripture actually says about doubt,
and spoiler, God isn't scared of doubt. We're going to
talk about how neuroscience and faith work together to help
(01:48):
us process doubt in a healthy way. And so we're
going to just tackle this head on. And I'm not
here saying that I have all the answers. I'm just
sharing my experiences as I've walked through this. So if
you've ever felt like you're the only one who wonders
is God really there? Does He even really care about me?
Am I actually saved? Then this episode is for you.
(02:10):
So let's start with the big question, why do we
doubt at all? And if we believe in God, and
if we've experienced his presence and if we've seen him
move in our lives, why do we still have moments
where we question it all? Well, doubt can come from
different places. First off, our humanity like, our brains are
wired for logic and reasoning, and it's natural to ask
(02:32):
questions about things that we can't see or touch or
fully understand.
Speaker 1 (02:36):
And God is infinite and.
Speaker 2 (02:38):
We are finite, and so of course there will be
gaps in our understanding. Pain and unanswered prayers is where
doubt can come from. So sometimes doubt creeps in when
life doesn't go the way that we expected, or when
we pray for healing and don't see it, or when
we ask for clarity and feel like we're getting silence,
or when suffering just feels unfair. Comparison and culture is
(03:01):
another place that doubt can come from. So the world
is constantly bombarding us with different beliefs and philosophies and
arguments against Christianity, and so social media and science and
different worldviews, it's so easy to start questioning, like do
I actually believe this? Spiritual warfare is another one. So
let's not forget that the enemy wants us to doubt,
(03:22):
right like he knows that if he can plant seeds
of uncertainty, he can weaken our faith and keep us
from walking in confidence. But here's the truth. Doubt doesn't
disqualify your faith. It actually strengthens it if you handle
it the right way. So let's look to what the
Bible says about doubt. And so one of the biggest
(03:43):
lies that we believe is that doubt makes us a
bad Christian.
Speaker 1 (03:48):
But Scripture is full of people.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
Who struggled with doo and and God didn't cast them aside.
He met them in their uncertainty. So let's look at
a few examples. So the first is Thomas the Doubter
or Thomas the secret and most of us know Thomas
as doubting Thomas the disciple who said he wouldn't believe
in the resurrection until he saw Jesus with his own eyes.
(04:11):
But here's what I love. Jesus didn't shame him for questioning.
He met him exactly where he was and gave him
the evidence that he needed.
Speaker 1 (04:19):
And this is.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Described in John twenty twenty four through twenty nine. So
what's the lesson here, Well, to me, it just shows
us that Jesus isn't afraid of our doubts, like he
invites us to seek him, and he's faithful to reveal
himself in ways that strengthen our belief. John the Baptist
is another one. He even questioned Jesus. So John the
(04:40):
Baptist literally prepared the way for Jesus, like he baptized Jesus,
he saw the Holy Spirit descend on him like a dove.
And yet when John was in prison, he sent his
disciples to ask Jesus like, are you really the Messiah?
Or should we look for someone else? And that was
in Luke seven eighteen through twenty three. And so if
On the Baptist had moments of doubt, why do we
(05:02):
think that we won't right? And again Jesus didn't condemn him.
He simply reminded John of the miracles that he was doing,
like you know, the blind suddenly seeing, and people that
hadn't ever been able to walk suddenly walking, and the
good news being preached. And so the lesson here is
that when when we doubt, we need to look at
what God has done in our lives and in the
(05:25):
world around us. Now, let's get geeky for a second,
because you know, we always got to bring neuroscience into this,
because you know, doll is not only addressed in scripture,
but it also has a neuroscientific explanation, and so our
brains crave certainty, like we are wired to look for
patterns and to predict outcomes and to feel safe in
(05:45):
what we know. So when we encounter things that we
can't fully explain, you know, like faith, it's natural for
the brain to send out alarms saying like wait a minute,
is this real? Like can I really trust this? And
so the problem is if we never address those thoughts,
they grow into belief systems, and doubt can become a
(06:07):
mental habit, you know, just like fear or negativity.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
But here's the good news. You can rewire your brain
for faith.
Speaker 2 (06:14):
And so when you pray, you strengthen neural pathways that
reinforce trust in God. And when you meditate on scripture,
you reshape the way that your brain processes doubt. And
when you recall past experiences of God's faithfulness, you create
a mental record that makes faith more automatic. And so
faith isn't just an abstract idea. It's something that gets
(06:37):
built into your brain through repeated action. And so what
do we do when doubt creeps in?
Speaker 1 (06:45):
And how do we.
Speaker 2 (06:46):
Handle it in a way that grows our faith instead
of tearing it down? And then how do we handle
that in a healthy way? And this is where I
believe It's about bringing your doubts to God because you know,
faith isn't pretending that you never have questions.
Speaker 1 (07:01):
It's bringing those questions to the.
Speaker 2 (07:03):
One who has the answers right, and instead of running
from doubt, bring it to God in prayer.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
And it's also about going.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
Back to scripture because the enemy wants you to forget
what God says and he wants you to believe your
doubts instead of doubting your doubts. And when uncertainty hits,
that's when we need to ground ourselves in God's word. Okay,
And you can also remember what God has done for
you by just keeping a journal of answered prayers or
(07:33):
you know I do this. I'll borrow answer prayers from
other people to look as evidence of like God is
answering prayers.
Speaker 1 (07:39):
Or I'll write down moments.
Speaker 2 (07:40):
Of clarity your times when I felt God's presence and
when doubt creeps in, you get to go back and
read those reminders.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
Right.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
But it's also about surrounding yourself with strong faith. And
so if you only listen to skeptical voices, it makes
sense your doubt is going to grow, right, But if
you surround yourself with peopleeople who are walking in faith,
and you know they're walking with the Lord. Their confidence
will strengthen yours. And it's really contagious, is what I've discovered.
(08:09):
But you can also be that thermostat to other people.
And then, of course this is about giving yourself grace,
right like, struggling with doubt doesn't mean that you're failing
in faith. It means that you're growing. And God can
use your questions to deepen your relationship with him if
you let him. That's where you can invite him in right.
(08:29):
And so here's what I just want to leave you with.
You know, doubt doesn't make you less of a believer.
It makes you human. And God isn't sitting in heaven
disappointed in you for wrestling with questions. He's inviting you
to bring them to him. And so if you're struggling
with doubt right now, I just want you to know,
like you are so not alone. And some of the
(08:50):
strongest believers in Scripture had moments of uncertainty and as
you're seeing now, God met them in it right, and
He will definitely meet you in yours too. Okay, So
instead of letting doubt be the thing that pulls you
away from God. Let it be the thing that pushes
you closer, and let it be the thing that strengthens
your faith rather than weakening it. Because when you press
(09:14):
through the questions and when you seek God in the
middle of uncertainty, you'll find that He has been there
all along, and that is faith. Okay, So thank you
so much for joining me today for our Ask the
God Pod series, and we will be back with another
listener question next week. And if this question or this
(09:34):
episode spoke to you, just share it with a friend
who might need the reminder that faith and doubt really
can coexist.
Speaker 1 (09:41):
Okay, And if you have a.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
Question that you want me to tackle on a future episode,
send it my way by going to What's God Got
to Do with It?
Speaker 1 (09:48):
Dot com?
Speaker 2 (09:49):
And until next time.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
Bye.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
For now, we'll be back with more What's God Got
to Do with It? But in the meantime, I would
definitely love to hear from you, so just tell me
where you are in your story or maybe what questions
you have, like where do you feel you need clarity
or support or wisdom in your own journey. I definitely
(10:11):
want to hear from you, so head on over to
What's God Got to Do with It? Dot com and
scroll down to the form to share your thoughts, your questions,
your feedback, and you can do that instantly.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
So What's God Got to Do with It? Dot Com?
You'll find all the ways to do that.
Speaker 2 (10:26):
And if you like this podcast and want to hear more,
go ahead and follow, like, and subscribe wherever you listen
to podcasts to get your weekly dose of What's God
Got to Do With It?
Speaker 1 (10:37):
New episodes drop.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
Every single Tuesday, and while you're there, be sure to
rate and review to show your support.
Speaker 1 (10:43):
It really means so much.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
What's God Got to Do With It is an iHeartRadio
podcast on the Amy Brown Podcast Network.
Speaker 1 (10:52):
It's written and hosted by.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
Me Leanne Ellington, executive produced by Elizabeth Fozio, post production
and editing by Huston Antilly, and original music written by
Cheryl Stark and produced by Adam Stark
Host
Leanne Ellington
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