Thursday Thoughts: Stop Doubting, Have Some Hope

By JILL JOHNSON

I don’t know about your household, but since it’s summer, swimming and pools are all the talk in my house. Unfortunately, we don’t have a neighborhood pool, which has been VERY disappointing for the four little girls who live with us.

They beg every day for someone in our house to call someone, anyone, we might know who has a pool to invite us to swim. I think this is called imposing, but I’m not sure they even think about it. They have done research and sent Wayne so many pictures and links begging him to buy an above ground or in ground pool. That doesn’t work either because it’s a bit out of our budget. They also factor in which sister has been to the pool the most (isn’t that fun in the summer?).

My son lives in a housing estate with a swimming pool, although it is about a 30 minute drive from my house. The first Friday his children were off school, he and his wife still had to work, so they asked me if I could come and stay with the children. He said I could take them to the pool and I could also bring the girls from my house to swim. Only the two youngest, Liza and Lottie, were home. Unfortunately, Lottie had tonsillitis so couldn’t go, but Liza could

To say it didn’t go well is an understatement. According to Lottie, it wasn’t fair. She insisted she could go and that everything would be fine. It didn’t help that Liza told her that “life isn’t fair.” I hate to admit that Liza may have heard that phrase once or twice, from an adult, in our house. Anyway, we went to the pool and Lottie stayed home.

This reminded me of another incident that happened last summer with Liza. One day, a friend invited me over and said the girls could come swim at her local pool. Liza had a horrible bacterial infection on her leg. We all knew she wouldn’t be able to swim, so we started preparing her the night before. She insisted that it would get better. She was sure she could swim. We kept reminding her of the doctor’s instructions to keep her leg dry and clean. She still said it would be better.

The morning we were supposed to go swimming, the discussion started again. I tried to explain to her why she couldn’t go swimming. Eventually, she got frustrated that we were all trying to talk to her and said, “You can’t stop having doubts! I mean, you have to keep hope.” Of course, we were somewhat amused by her remark, because it was about having hope for swimming from a nine-year-old’s perspective.

But the more I thought about it, the more God convinced me of certain things in my life. One definition of doubt is “to lack confidence, distrust, or regard as improbable.” I felt like God was asking me, “How many times have you doubted me, Jill?”

I would never say that I doubt God, but in reality, my actions sometimes say exactly that. When I take matters into my own hands, it really means that I doubt that God can handle the situation, so I have to do it. As I write this, I think about how ridiculous I am.

If I had been in the lions’ den instead of Daniel, would I trust myself and doubt God? I certainly wouldn’t be the one to trust!

If I had been in Moses’ place at the Red Sea, would I have thought I could part the waters because I doubted God could? Without a doubt, I would have trusted God!

If I were trying to fight Goliath instead of David, would I trust myself and doubt God? I’m sure you know the answer.

If I think about it, there are many people in the Bible who doubted God at times. Adam, Eve, Sarah, Moses, Thomas, and the list goes on. I think we naturally have doubts from time to time, because we are human beings. But I also think that biblical hope is based on faith.

Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith is the substance of what is hoped for.” Hope must involve something that is presently unseen. Think about it, who hopes for something they already have? I think doubt comes from our feelings and hope comes from our faith in God’s promises and knowledge. Feelings can disappoint us, but hope does not disappoint when it is based on the reality of who God is and is anchored in His promises. Romans 5:5 says, “And hope does not disappoint, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit whom he has given us.”

God doesn’t want me to doubt Him in any situation. He wants me to have hope because of my faith in HIM. When I have hope because of my faith, it frees me from my feelings of doubt. My hope is in the Lord and only the Lord.

I’m sure you’re wondering if my granddaughter went to the pool that day. Well, she didn’t. We did what was best for her by not letting her go. Like sometimes things don’t work out the way we think they will, because maybe, just maybe, it’s because God knows what’s best for us.

Did my granddaughter lose hope because she didn’t go to the pool? My goodness, no! She began to look forward to the next time she could go to the pool. She still had hope that she would go to the pool and faith that we would take her there.

Doubt must never negate our hope. We must never be without hope. I don’t know about you, but I would rather have hope than doubt. I’m pretty sure my granddaughter taught me a lesson that day. I can’t help but think of Romans 15:13 which says, “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that you may abound in hope, by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

Our faith will bring us joy and peace if our hope is in the right place. My faith tells me that my hope should only be in God. I pray that my grandchildren will learn to place their hope in God who will fill them with joy and peace if they trust in Him. And by the way, if you would like to invite them to come to your pool this summer, I am sure they will gladly accept!

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Jill Johnson, a staff member of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board, finds spiritual applications in her daily experiences as a wife, mother, grandmother, and Georgian. She is available to speak at women’s gatherings at your church. Contact her at [email protected].