Overcoming Unbelief

WEEKLY DEVOTIONAL BY PATRICE TSAGUE

What is God softly nudging you to believe Him for today?
Do you truly believe that He is for you, that He is on your side?
Do you truly believe that He longs to use you by sharing His message of love and eternal life with the people around you?

Overcoming Unbelief

When Jesus first commissioned His disciples to go into the world and preach the Gospel, they were slow to believe that Jesus had really been resurrected from the dead. Jesus confronted them about their spirit of unbelief (Mark 16:14).

In order to be equipped with everything we need to minister to the lost through business, we must first deal with the unbelief in our own lives. When we make room for unbelief and doubt in our lives, we fail to receive everything that God has to offer, and the power that we can access through faith in God is diminished. If we choose to believe our personal perception of situations and circumstances, rather than experiencing the truth and freedom that the Holy Spirit offers, it is because our unbelief is working against our faith.

As believers in Jesus, we will all struggle with doubt and unbelief at some point. Many of us, like the father in Mark Chapter 9, have cried out, “Lord, I believe! Help my unbelief.” But as we grow in our knowledge and understanding of Jesus through the development of our personal relationship with Him, we will also grow in our faith, and we will learn how to look at our lives from God’s point of view rather than from ours. 

Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding;
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths. – Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV)

In order to overcome unbelief and doubt, remember the following:

1. “Facts” Are Not Truth
   It may be a “fact” that you are struggling financially. It may be a “fact” that your spouse has cancer. It may be a “fact” that you just made a huge mistake in your business. But truth sees things differently. The truth is, God already has provided for your daily needs today, tomorrow, and for the rest of your life. The truth is, God deeply loves you. He captures and holds all of your tears, and any pain and suffering you experience here is nothing compared to the eternal joy that awaits you, no matter what. The truth is, God is the one who prospers business owners. He is more concerned with the state of your heart than He is with the details of where things went wrong. He wants you to trust Him with both your success and your mistakes.
   
2. Unbelief is a Systemic Problem with a Root
   Doubt can come and go. Waves of doubt can toss us around, and they can lead to confusion and chaos. One day we think God can use us to change the hearts of the people we work with. The next day, we aren’t so sure. Doubt is a common struggle. Over time, though, God leads us to a place of greater faith. However, if doubt is allowed to take root in our hearts, it can turn into unbelief. Unbelief is far more dangerous, as it has the ability to make us completely powerless. When we allow unbelief to control our lives, we are easily swayed and influenced by the enemy.
   
3. Unbelief is Ultimately a Rejection of Who God Says He Is
   When we choose not to believe what God says in His Word, it is not a casual decision. Ultimately, we are, in our hearts, standing before God and telling Him that He isn’t who He says He is, and that His Word is not true. But Jesus declared the opposite when He said to His Heavenly Father, “Your Word is truth” (John 17:17). Unbelief is a dangerous place to be.
   
4. We Can Ask The Holy Spirit to Increase Our Faith and to Remove Our Struggle With Doubt, protecting us From Unbelief
   When I pray, I often hold my hands out, palms facing upward, and ask to receive everything that the Holy Spirit has for me that day. It is a physical act of coming like a small child to my Father, and asking for grace and gifts to continue in His will. When I do this, I can feel God’s pleasure!
   He loves to answer prayers for a stronger faith and more of His Spirit!

My prayer for you today is that you would fully embrace who God is, believing His Word and choosing to walk in belief, while living out the adventure of the Great Commission in your workplace.