Written by: CampUs4
2/24/2010 3:40 PM

Redeeming the D-Word: How to Handle Doubt (part 2 of 2)

by Wilson McCoy

In my previous article, I affirmed that we should see doubt primarily as honest questioning within the walk of faith. Scripture abounds in examples from Job to the Psalmist to the resurrection accounts wherein doubts are essential in the development of faith. Doubts are normal and can be avenues of transformation for the people of God. Such a perspective is the beginning point for those ministering to people experiencing doubt.

For Christians currently involved in ministry, I pose three questions that hopefully can spark the imagination as we seek to help people experiencing doubt.

First, what if the church were the place where people could ask their hard questions? My fear is that ministers are too often seen simply as sources for answers, as defenders of faith. Such affirmation is necessary and good, but the “answer person syndrome” constrains ministers, and subsequently churches, from developing their members’ faith. We live in a world asking hard questions, and the church must be willing to engage them. 

Our churches and ministries must create safe environments where people can voice their doubts. A wonderful example of this cultivation is “Doubt Night” held at the Mars Hills Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan. People there are encouraged to write their doubts and questions, which are proclaimed publicly. When people find themselves in environments that are safe enough to handle their doubts, they are more likely to believe in God, who also can handle doubts.  Ministers should lead the way in these efforts by being willing to voice their own questions and to teach texts that show the hard walk that is the journey of faith. 

A second question: What if ministers could learn the art of saying “I don’t know?” Again, this dilemma is rooted in the pressure Christians often feel to give an answer for every question posed. When we feel obligated to answer a doubt immediately we unfortunately communicate that the given problem is simple and that faith is simple. However, faith is not a tidy thing.

The writer of Hebrews makes clear that faith is fundamentally a choice about something not completely visible (Hebrews 11:1). In a world that often seeks immediacy and instant gratification, choosing a reality by which to live that does not always provide tangible proof will inevitably raise doubts. “I don’t know” both creates solidarity and reframes faith into something rich and complex. Christians need a faith that can handle the grittiness of life. 

A third question: What if people did not feel like they had to defend God? Ministers, more than most, constantly struggle with a Savior complex. Doubts and questions often feel like ripe opportunities to “save the day.” However, to modernize the wise words of our brother James, “Let’s be quick to listen and slow to use clichés.”

Listening is a needed virtue in our culture, and listening creates the silence to hold the doubt. Hearing other people voice their doubts is often hard on those surrounding them because their questions often can induce our own doubts and uncover those pieces of our faith that are underdeveloped, but ministers should be the forerunners in believing and modeling that God can handle our doubts.

Doubt is not an easy thing to experience, nor is it easy for those journeying with doubters. However, doubts are often the sparks that light the fire of faith. Ministers must lead the way in redeeming the place for questions in the walk of faith, both by asking them and by allowing others to ask them. Maybe then our churches and ministries will become places where God is seen as big enough to handle our doubts.

Wilson McCoy plans to graduate this May with a Master of Divinity degree from Abilene Christian University. He was born and raised in Tennessee and received his undergraduate degree from Lipscomb University in Nashville. Wilson has served churches in his home state and Brisbane, Australia, and is currently the preaching minister for a local congregation.

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