A Prayer for Overcoming Doubt with Divine Assurance
By Laura Bailey
Bible Reading
“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:8 NIV
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The glowing neon light taunted me from across the room at 3:35 a.m. For weeks, I’d woken up in a full sweat at the same time in the early morning hours. Knowing I couldn’t get back to sleep, I threw off the covers and shuffled to the den. “You were up early again this morning,” my husband commented over his first and my fourth cup of coffee. Is it still the same issue keeping you awake?” For the last few months, my faith has been plagued with doubt.
- How can I be 100% certain I am saved?
- What if I choose the wrong religion, and I am going to their version of Hell?
- Why can’t I feel God’s presence?
- Why haven’t I experienced a miracle?
- Is God even real?
My mind raced with these thoughts at stoplights as I washed the dishes, especially around bedtime. Wrestling with my faith and experiencing doubt wasn’t new for me, yet this felt different—like a full-on spiritual attack. Since I was no stranger to these bouts of spiritual anxiety, I reached out to my pastor, shared my struggles with my accountability group, read Scripture, and prayed as often as I could. Over time, the anxiety and intrusive thoughts lessened but continued to persist.
One morning, in my study of 1 Thessalonians, I read these words from Paul in 5:1-11, lingering over our key verse, “But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet.” As he often does, Paul reminds believers that they are soldiers in God’s army and must prepare and protect themselves for battle.
A soldier’s breastplate guards their heart; our faith gives us the courage to face the prince of this world and fills us with God’s love. The helmet, which he calls our hope of salvation, reminds us of the importance of protecting our minds against the devil’s schemes. Satan is not unique; he uses the same strategies and spouts the same lies of old. Yet, we often fall prey to his tricks, so protecting our minds with biblical truth is important! The helmet of salvation reminds us that those of us in Christ are a new creation, and nothing can separate us from His love.
This wasn’t the first time I’d read these verses; just a few years ago, we did an in-depth study on the armor of God. Yet, in that moment, I felt like the Lord was speaking these words directly to my heart. A peace that surpasses understanding filled my spirit. I felt an unexplained comfort and sense of relief.
I wish I could report that from that day on, I slept through the night and haven’t experienced any bouts of doubt—that is not the case. But hiding these words in my heart and speaking them out loud when the attacks start helps to shut down the enemy, not allowing him to get a stronghold over my thoughts. Friend, if you’re in a season of doubt or feel the effects of spiritual warfare, know that I pray for you as I pray for myself as you fight the enemy with the sword of truth and protect yourself with the helmet of salvation and the breastplate of faith and love. May we remind ourselves of this encouragement in Romans 8:37,
“No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.”
Let’s Pray:
Heavenly Father, we pray that as we put on the full armor of God every day, we will diligently protect ourselves from our enemy’s evil schemes. Thank you for loving us and remaining faithful even when we doubt. Lord, help us to lean into your Spirit, and may we always look for glimmers of Heaven. Let us be careful to give coincidence credit when we know that it was divinely appointed. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Photo credit: Unsplash/Dewang Gupta
She lives in Upstate South Carolina with her husband and three young girls, where she serves as director of women's ministries at her church. Her passion is teaching the Bible to women, equipping them to live with an eternal perspective. Invite Laura to speak at your next event or learn more: www.LauraRBailey.com
Editor's Note: We're proud to announce we've just launched a new nighttime companion to Your Daily Prayer: the Your Nightly Prayer devotional. You'll soon be able to subscribe to receive Your Nightly Prayer via email, or as a podcast, but for now you can find it on the website at crosswalk.com/devotionals/your-nightly-prayer. We hope it's a relaxing and soothing way to wind down your day with rich meditations on who God is.
Related Resource: Jesus Calling - Stories of Faith
Kerry Washington. Andrea Bocelli. Reba McEntire. Mark Wahlberg. Tony Dungy. Matthew McConaughey, What do all of these people have in common? They are all people of faith who have leaned on God in both the good and challenging times—and they’ve shown up to tell their story of faith on The Jesus Calling Podcast. The Jesus Calling Podcast provides a place for people from all walks of life to share the heartaches, joys, and divine moments that keep them going.
Inspired by Sarah Young's classic devotional book, the Jesus Calling podcast has brought encouragement and peace to millions. New episodes drop every Thursday! Listen today on LifeAudio.com or wherever you find your podcasts.
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Originally published Thursday, 19 September 2024.
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