Unbelief is far worse than doubt. Many people including me get doubt and unbelief mixed up. Doubt is questioning what you believe. Where as unbelief is a determined refusal to believe. I have questioned and doubted God’s goodness before, but never have I refused to believe that God was good. Or so I thought.
I have been struggling with doubt for a while now. And the other day I was down in the dumps so I decided to go and sit in my prayer room. I sat there with my bible open, in a daze, when the Holy Spirit spoke to me and said “You must believe.” And then a verse came to my mind and it was Genesis 46:3.
Let me give you a little back story about Genesis 46:3. You see my husband and I don’t have any children. We decided long ago that we didn’t want any. But recently, out of nowhere, we both have had the desire to want kids. (The Lord spoke to me several days ago and told me that it was Him putting that desire for kids in our hearts)
My husband and I are in our mid 40’s and we were talking about it the other day and we said that people our age are becoming empty nesters and here we are thinking about having kids.
Long story short, God gave me Genesis 46:3 back in 2017 when I was praying and asking God about my future. At that time I had read Genesis 46:3 in the NIV translation and it says this
"I am God, the God of your father," he said. "Do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you into a great nation there".
But as I was sitting in my prayer room, the bible I had opened was written in the Amplified translation which says it this way
And he said, "I am God, the God of your father; do not be afraid to go down to Egypt, for I will make you (your descendants) a great nation there."
If you notice the Amplified translation says “your descendants!”
We don’t have any descendants!
We believe that was God telling us that sometime in our future we are going to have kids.
God knew about the recent desires we were having about kids and I was down in the dumps the other day because my thoughts about having kids were negative. Thoughts like…
-I am too old to have kids
-God doesn’t want me to have a family. If he did I would have one by now.
-I am not sure if I even want kids because I don’t want to be raising them in my 60’s
-I can’t have kids because I am on alot of medication for my anxiety. How is that going to effect the pregnancy and me?
I just wasn’t believing it was going to happen. I wasn’t believing in God and that God was a good God and that he would do the impossible for me.
That’s was when the Holy Spirit told me that “I must believe.”
HOW TO OVERCOME UNBELIEF
Satan wants nothing more than for you to doubt and not believe. He says “Did God really say that?” or “This doesn’t really pertain to you.” Doubt is Satan’s way of getting into your mind and influencing you. Those questions allow Satan to establish a stronghold in your mind and then before long you move to a total lack of belief.
When you start to struggle to believe in God’s word. That’s when you need his word the most. You need to take the negative thoughts and replace them with God’s word.
Ask God to give you a verse to cling to so that your faith doesn’t waver. And then repeat that verse over and over until it becomes embedded in your mind.
See, the Holy Spirit was reminding me of Genesis 46:3 to give me hope and to tell me to keep believing what God’s word says.
ABRAHAM AND SARAH
It reminds me of the story of Abraham and Sarah. Sarah was barren and couldn’t have children and both her and Abraham were up there in age. But God promised them a child. Romans 4: 20-21 says that Abrahams faith did not waver in unbelief concerning what God had promised them.
Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years before God eventually allowed Sarah to have a child and it was credited to Abraham’s faith and belief in a God that does the impossible.
SPEAK GODS WORD
You need to not only believe God’s word but you need to speak it as well. Confess it as though it already exists. Saying, “Thank you God for this promise of” instead of saying “If God will give me this promise then…” Changing your thoughts to praising God instead of thinking “if God”, will help you to believe that God’s word is true and will keep you from feeling doubt.
Here is a good verse to remember when you are facing unbelief. Ephesians 3: 20 says this
Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.
CONCLUSION
You need to recognize doubt and unbelief as the enemy’s attack against your mind and you need to resist with the help of God’s word and the Holy Spirit.
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