Originally published Wednesday, 26 March 2014.
Did you know that doubt kills more dreams than failure?
I didn't until know that until I attended Dream Culture Conference in Redding, CA two weeks ago. You can read more about my amazing testimony of when dreams come true here. The first day of the conference was amazing. We were all full of hope. Only the following morning I woke up tired. Very tired. I did not want to get out of bed. You know when you feel overwhelmed by new people and new places and all you want to do is sleep in?
That's how I felt.
As I was flipping through my devotional flippantly (I'm just being honest), I read a sentence that stopped me in my tracks. It said,
"God never comforts you in your doubt."
Experiencing God Day by Day by Henry Blackaby and Richard Blackaby for March 20th was titled Why Do You Doubt? The verse was from Matthew 8:26 that said,
But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith? Then He arose and rebuke dthe winds and the sea, and there was a great calm" (Matthew 8:26).
Here's the full devotional:
"It is by faith that God's mighty power is released into the life of a Christian (Heb. 11:33-35). the fact that you have doubt indicates that you do not know God as you should. If your prayer life is infiltrated with doubts, you have denied yourself the greatest single avenue of power that God has made available to you. Without faith it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6). God never comforts you in your doubt. Jesus consistently rebuked those who would not believe Him. He had revealed enough of Himself for His disciples to have believed Him in their time of need. God wants to build your understanding of Him until your faith is sufficient to trust and obey Him in each situation (Mark 9:23-25). The moment you turn to Him with a genuine commitment to rid yourself of doubt, God will match your doubt with a revelation of Himself that can convince you of His faithfulness. When Thomas doubted, God revealed Himself to him in such a way that every doubt vanished (John 20:27). You can only resolve your lack of faith in God's presence. He must reveal Himself in such a way that any doubt you have is removed. Jesus did this with His disciples. He involved them in a consistent, growing relationship with Himself. Jesus took them through teaching, to small miracles, to large miracles, and to the resurrection. Jesus knew that the redemption of the world rested on His disciples' believing Him. What does God want to do in the lives of those around you that waits upon your trust in him and the removal of your doubts?"
That devotional impacted me so much that I made a #quippy (a picture quote in the Quipio app), but I didn't realize that I had gotten the sentence wrong. Instead of saying "God never comforts you in your doubt," I said "God never comforts us in our doubt."
A lot of people wrote and even texted me asking what Scripture I was getting that quote from, which made me realize I needed to wake up! Stop doubting! God is using me to encourage others. I have a job to do -- even when I'm tired. Yes, even when I'm tired.
Yes, God comforts us when we doubt--however, God had done so much in His time here on earth that we should know better. Does that make sense?
Disappointment from the past is the #1 dream killer. Doubt kills more dreams than failure.
Our success in the Kingdom of God hinges on our connection with Him. Our future is good because He is in it! We need to choose hope. I want to give you three definitions of doubt from Dream Culture Conference from Janine Mason:
1. Disappointment. Definition: Failed expectation. To be removed from office. Remedy: Remember who you really are: significant, valuable, He is with me.
2. Discouragement. Definition: To deprive of the will to persist Remedy: Find new courage
3. Disillusionment. Definition: State of having had naive faith destroyed Remedy: Have your sight re-illuminated with His light. What does He see?
Are you struggling with disappointment, discouragement, disillusionment or doubt?
I want you to know that God wants to resurrect your dead dreams and bring them back to life. A resurrected dream looks different. Maybe it own't look the same. maybe it's about having the courage to go after the dead dreams?
"God always knew the disciples would fail His Son; He wasn't caught by surprise. He had made provision for their shortcomings, knowing He would eventually develop them into apostles who would fearlessly preach the gospel, perform miracles, and teach others. Later, when the risen Christ encountered Peter on the seashore, He did NOT ask Peter for a confession of his sin, but a confession of his love (John 21:15-17). You may fear that your failure has caught God by surprise. Perhaps you promised, like Peter, to stand with the Lord, but you failed. God was just as aware that you would fail Him as He was with the original disciples. He has made provision to respond every time you stumble. Don't think that somehow your failures are bigger or more complex than any God has dealt with" (Experiencing God Day by Day).
Here are some more quotes from the conference: Self sufficiency doesn't allow others to help you or even watch His provision. A lack of joy is an incomplete God encounter. We need to grow up and become child like. Your hope level is the indicator of the truth you're believing. Your lack of hope means you're deceived. Hope has to be attached to a belief. Faith without hope is weird. Faith tends to put all their eggs in one basket. Hope people have multiple options.
Your hopelessness is a bigger problem than any problem. Your hopelessness shows you're believing lies.
Sometimes God calls you backwards to go forward, but not how you think. Like a slingshot being sent back to be launched forward. Don't be afraid of the times God pulls you back.
Refuse to fight fear. Choose to receive love.
If your dreams don't go beyond your life time, they aren't big enough. Because we are created for eternity. What are God's dream for your business? Your marriage? Your future? Did you know in the Bible there is another huge example of what our doubt looks like?
+ Abraham says: I want one kid.
+ God says: I want to give you kids that outnumber the stars.
Wow! Welcome to your new normal, people! Instead of trying to fight your fears, concentrate on trusting Me. Protect what you value. Who I am is enough because "I AM" is in the middle of it. The great thing about being inadequate is knowing your need, and we all have needs.
What you believe will change the world.
If you can achieve my dreams in my lifetime--they're too small. If you can achieve my dreams on your own, they're still too small. Every dream has a price tag, but before you hang up your dream back on the rack because of the price flip it over and look at the price of that dream if you don't pursue it. It's easy to see the cost when you don't bother to look into the eyes of those who will be affected if you don't pursue the dream.
Thanks for letting me share all my favorite quotes from the conference. It was such an amazing time. So now I have a question for you below:
Question: What dream or dreams are doubting that God can fulfill? Ask God to forgive you of your unbelief today! [photo credit: Neal. via photopin cc]
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