Doubt. In my mind, the word depicts erosion: erosion of what I once stood on, walked on, ran on. It seems to come most often when I’m walking the very road to which God has called me.

When this assault hits, I can sometimes step back and picture Satan slithering beside me, tempting with the same words he used with Eve. “Did God really say…?”

So begins the battle for faith. When I look at the apple the world puts before me, my eyes lose their spiritual (and unseen) focus. I need the clarity His Word brings. My calling has everything to do with Who called me and Who is the author of my story. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith…” By first fixing my eyes on His sovereignty, my view lengthens and sees the rest of His (and therefore my) story.

I then need to ask God to somehow help me mix these unseen truths together with the world I live in day by day; “but the word which they heard did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.” Hebrews 4:2 

How does He help me with this mixing? Well, that log that I keep focusing on in my coworker? Faith reminds me that a speck in my own eye may have distorted my view (Matthew 7:3-5). That rock that I just tripped over? As I look up from my stumble, I see by faith that God is asking me to not be discouraged but to trust the process of His discipline and healing (Hebrews 12:3-13). That valley that never seems to end? Eyes of faith help me glimpse Him building my endurance (Hebrews 12:1).

When doubts arise, I can lastly thank God that He can use even my questioning to perfect my faith and force me to see more clearly into the spiritual realm. On this earth, faith will never be sight, and I must remember that “without faith, it is impossible to please God.” (Hebrews 11:6)

“Did God really say...?” he hisses. 

“You bet,” I can reply.