Knowing the Presence of God in the PsalmsSýnishorn

Doubts—I’ve Had Them!

“But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”

Psalm 73:2–3 (NIV84)

“When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny.”

Psalm 73:16–17 (NIV84)

Do you remember the last time you slipped and fell or almost fell? It is shocking how quickly you can be totally upright, and then bam, you are horizontal! In one moment, you are moving along, and in a split second, you are down. If you are lucky, you can pop back up, hoping no one saw you! Regardless of the presence or absence of an eyewitness, those moments are very unsettling.

Have you ever felt your faith in God slipping?

That can also be unsettling.

Have you ever confessed to someone you were having doubts about your biblical convictions and confidence in God?

Those are unsettling moments as well.

The Psalmist nearly slipped from a stable place in his faith. He said he nearly lost his foothold. As he looked with envy upon the unbeliever's wealth and prosperity, he began to question himself and his faith. For twelve verses, he articulates the questions and doubts that arose within his faith. His thoughts began to shake his faith and confidence in the ways of God.

Let me acknowledge what many would say not to say: Christians can have doubts. There, I said it! It is true. In all honesty, there was a brief time in my life when I had some doubts about God’s ability, plans, presence, and especially His timing. Some of those moments shook my faith.

This Psalm is an excellent example of what a Christ-follower should do when they feel their faith is slipping.

First, be careful of what you focus on.

Read verse three. His first mistake is what he focused on. There is a lie underneath every temptation and everything unaligned to the Kingdom of God. Sadly, our world is full of lies. You only need a few minutes watching TV (news agencies, commercials, talk shows, movies, TV series, spokespersons, politicians, organizations, etc.) to see how far our society has left what the Bible proclaims as truth. If we focus and pay attention to those who do not honor God and His ways, then our ability to correctly discern between right and wrong is at risk. Our capacity to distinguish between holy and unholy can be compromised. A poor focus opens the front door to doubt in our faith. As such, a poor focus is a dangerous focus.

Secondly, the strategies of Satan and his kingdom are incredibly strategic and troublesome to the followers of God.

Read verse 16. The Psalmist uses the word oppressive. It means troublesome. He was deeply troubled in his thoughts about the society and culture he lived in. The bad guys were winning, and the good guys were losing. The bad guys were getting worse and getting richer, while the good guys suffered more with less. He could not wrap his head around how and why people who seem to be very successful, appear to be healthy with few struggles, have few burdens and human ills, are full of pride, prone to violence, callous in their hearts towards others, evil in their thinking, scoff at others while speaking with malice to oppress—can continue to succeed without a care in the world (verses four through twelve)? Why do God-fearing and devoted Christ-followers suffer so much while evil people succeed so easily? I also struggle to wrap my head around the same. “When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me…”

What do we do if the enemy's oppressive influence has crept into our faith, thoughts, emotions, and understanding? How do we remain anchored in our faith in a world that seems to reward evil and penalize who and what is holy? How do we keep from slipping in our faith and confidence in God?

We must do what the Psalmist did. He entered the sanctuary of God (verse seventeen), and so must we. What did he do in the sanctuary of God? He listened to the Scriptures that were read, prayers that were prayed, and worship songs that were sung. Maybe he sought out someone to talk to and pray with. Perhaps he sat down and journaled some of his thoughts, which eventually became this Psalm.

Entering the sanctuary of God changed his focus and stabilized his faith. When we sense we are about to lose our foothold, we must give God time to speak to our understanding. We must seek Him who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8). When we sense our confidence slipping, we must intentionally place ourselves in the presence of the One who is Truth (John 14:6). Furthermore, He who is Truth is also our Counselor (John 16:7). He “…will guide you into all truth…” (John 16: 13). In His presence, His stability becomes ours. His truth anchors us and stabilizes our foothold.

I will finish with a sentence from the last verse of this Psalm. “But as for me, it is good to be near God…” When we seek the Lord, spend time in His Word, and worship Him in our homes, cars, and anywhere else, we anchor ourselves in His unchanging truth. We must remember the further we wander away from Him, the closer we wander towards doubt and uncertainty. Therefore, it is imperative we spend time in His presence to chase away every doubt and maintain our faith in God. We must enter our personal sanctuary of God. That place can be in your living room, kitchen, patio, or backyard. He is happy to be near you when you elect to be near Him.