Devotionals for the Heart: What to do when your faith in God wavers

When Faith Wavers: Three steps to returning to belief
A devotional by Wendy Wilson Spooner

“Lord, I believe. Help thou mine unbelief.” 

–Mark 9:24 (KJV)

Life’s journey can be extraordinarily hard at times.

Most of us have experienced a long or short stretch when our faith wavers. This usually happens when a prayer seems to go unanswered, or when a pivotal event rocks our lives, like the death of a loved one, divorce, betrayal, terminal illness, loss of employment, and so much more. And these types of events are part of what we experience during our time here on earth. All of us do.

There are days when life’s journey seems long and tiring, which can lead to wondering if we have enough faith, or any at all. This is where this scripture—one of my favorites—can be the needed lifeline to climb out of the pit of wavering faith.

Allow me to share three steps that will help you return to believing in God …

Step One: Read His Word

God is always there waiting for us to ask for help. Especially when we have a hard time even believing he’s there.

Sometimes we just need a reminder of where to find the answers. Our faith can and will increase when we make the effort to study His Word. There is nothing happening in our lives that hasn’t happened a thousand times before in the history of this earth. God has lovingly given us numerous examples and true stories in the Bible to shed light on how to overcome huge obstacles and keep believing.

When I went through a heart-breaking divorce—which is really the death of a family—and all my hopes and dreams seemed shattered, I felt I had lost myself in a dark and dreary world. But when I turned to His word, I found myself again. It took effort and a lot of study. But I did it. And I became stronger than I was before.

There is power in the Bible that can bring us out of darkness into the light to believe again.

Step Two: Pray

As children of a loving Heavenly Father, we have a desire to connect with Him. Prayer is the direct line to heaven and communion with God.

He knows us, and our concerns and worries. And we can pray anywhere! This is the good news! In our homes, in our cars, or while standing in line somewhere. The Lord hears the prayers of our hearts no matter where we are.

And when we reach out, He in turn desires to bless us as we come unto Him—especially when we possess a humble heart and a yearning for His will in our lives. At any time we can approach him and ask him to increase our faith and our desire to believe.

Step Three: Serve God and others

Our faith will increase as we reach out in service to God’s sons and daughters here on earth. I have experienced this miracle time and time again. Forgetting ourselves for a moment and focusing on lifting someone else’s burdens has an indescribable effect on our spirits and lives. It’s as if God seeks to bestow on us the very thing we give to someone else. Hope, comfort, a listening ear, or the kind reassurance that someone cares. Implementing the habit of service into our lives is one of the strongest and most enduring acts to increase our faith. When we witness miracles in others’ lives, we experience them almost as if they are our own.

My Conclusion: Food for thought

So when you have one of those days, weeks, or even years, when you feel your belief wavering, choose to follow these three steps: (1) searching His word, (2) praying, and (3) serving. These are the elements of the essential formula for renewing our belief and faith in God. A God who cares and has a plan for us. A God who knows us because we are his children. A God who will bless us in His own time and by His own will for what is best for us.

Note from Wendy to the reader: In Mark 9:17-27, read the full story of the man asking the Lord to help his unbelief. And in Hebrews 11, read about why it’s so important for us to believe, and how we can use the power of faith to help ourselves and others.

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Author Bio:

Wendy is a professional Genetic Genealogist by day, a writer by night, and an artist in between. 

Her first book, Once Upon an Irish Summer, is a YA crossover historical fiction novel, the first in a trilogy, traditionally published by Ambassador International, released on April 3, 2020 in five countries.

Wendy’s love of history compels her to write the true stories she unearths during her research, and she’s found that truth is indeed, stranger, and way more exciting than fiction.

Wendy writes about family, faith, grief, art, and overcoming the obstacles in life by coming to know who we really are—a child of God, and, the descendant of incredible people who paved the way for us to have the lives we have now—even if they really struggled. She believes in learning from ancestors, honoring them, and then standing on their shoulders to become someone even better.

Wendy is an award-winning author of professional articles and poems, who turned to novel writing to share what she knows with more people.

To learn more about Wendy, her interests, and writing, visit her website at WendyWilsonSpooner.com.

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