It’s usually very subtle. Sometimes I’ll think about something I want to do or sense God calling me to, and I’ll just get that awful, insecure feeling. Out of the blue, uncertainty will wash over me as doubt whispers to my heart, You can’t do that. You’re not good enough.
Too many times I’ve gone along with my doubts, without realizing what I was doing I agreed with my insecurities.
For years, I didn’t tell anyone about my self-doubt. I figured if they knew all the reasons I doubted myself, they’d notice flaws I had worked hard to hide. And honestly, I thought I was the only one who struggled with doubt.
But I never called it doubt. Maybe you don’t either. Sometimes I called it worry — worry I was going to disappoint someone, worry I might make a mistake and get criticized for it, worry I’d start something but not be able to finish.
Other times I would call it fear — fear of not measuring up, fear of rejection, fear of looking prideful by thinking I could do something special for God.
It makes my stomach turn to think about all countless times my feelings became paralyzed by fear or worry, but the source was often hidden in my own self-doubt.
There has been a pattern in my thinking that led to a pattern of my un-believing.
As a child I doubted I wasn’t worth keeping. Insecurity kept me from riding the carousel at an amusement park because I didn’t believe my dad would wait for me. In school, I thought I wasn’t smart enough and avoided some great opportunities because they came with the risk of failure.
Even as a young bride, I doubted my worth in my husband’s eyes. Although he gave me no reason to fear, our newlywed memories include a lot of arguments about trust.
The apostle Paul challenges us in Romans 12:2 not to let our minds be conformed by the patterns of this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our mind. But how do we know if we’re being conformed or transformed? Our doubts tell us.
The world’s patterns of thought tell us our worth is measured by our productivity and performance, our size and status, how many friends or followers we have on social media.
But Jesus says our worth has been established in Him. It’s not based on what we have or what we can do.
Yet how often do we doubt our worth? How often do our thoughts convince us that we’re not enough or that we don’t have what it takes to do all God is calling us to do?
Just this week, doubt almost convinced me I couldn’t handle my life. I had a migraine, a book deadline, several therapy appointments for my daughter, and a close friend with a very concerning health problem.
I wrestled with a deep sense of inadequacy and doubted my ability to steward my relationships and well-being. But this time, I stopped to consider the pattern of my thoughts and found them tangled up in threads of unbelief.
Instead of just going a long with my natural inclination to feel overwhelmed and inadequate, I went looking for truth to re-pattern my thinking. I found and focused on Philippians 4:13 where God tells me:
I can do all things through Christ, who gives me strength.
As I read those words, I wove God promise into the fabric of my thoughts, reminding myself that I could do it all, if I depended on the strength God promises to give me.
And, as I took one step at a time, leaning into His understanding and not mine, God transformed my perspective by renewing my mind with an unexpected peace and confidence.
It wasn’t a quick fix, but more a process of letting God slowly change the pattern of my thoughts.
The ways of the world — doubt, fear and worry — are powerful forces. But God’s Word trumps them, always. Whatever doubts you’re facing today, you’re not alone. I’m asking God to help us both be bold and intentional today. Let’s invite Him to change our minds by replacing our conformed thoughts with His transforming truths, remembering that “He who began a good work in [us] will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus.” {2 Corinthians 5:17}.
~Renee Swope,
author of A Confident Heart
Bev @ Walking Well With God says
Renee,
I often get tangled up with the thought that “good Christians shouldn’t have any doubts”. Then condemnation steps in and says, “See, you’re not a good Christ follower because you have doubts.” Not that I wish you any ill will, but it helps me to know that other people, who I see as being strong in the faith, are plagued with doubt. I do believe it’s part of the human condition – something we will have to continually deal with until we reach the gates of heaven. When people say they don’t doubt, I kind of look at them with a skeptical eye. I think if you don’t have any doubts, then you simply don’t care. People who are continually seeking after God are going to come up against and have to wrestle through doubts. I also have learned not to underestimate the power of the enemy. If he sees us getting too strong and influential in doing Kingdom work, he will do his darnedest to take us down with doubt. So many times he has whispered the very things you hear in my ears. If we are making a difference for Christ, He is going to come after us with a vengeance. Doubt is one of his favorite flaming arrows, I believe. That’s when I find I have to continually hold my doubts up against the Truth of God’s word. When I think I’m going to come unglued…like you did, I hold Philippians 4:13 up against the lie and claiming, “No, I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me!!” Joining with you sister in squelching the doubt monster and claiming God’s empowering Truth in its place. Transforming our minds, I believe, means stepping into His Truth. Thanks for being so real – especially in an area I struggle with.
Blessings,
Bev xx
Renee Swope says
Gosh, Im so grateful for you Bev. Your words here today make the hard parts of vulnerable writing worth every struggle and strain. Thank you for being a vessel God uses every day to encourage all of us here. Grateful for you!
Sheryl says
Thank you! I hadn’t realized what the root of my problem was and what the antidote is until I’d just read your post! I too often feel like I can’t handle my life and need something to change, thank you for reminding me that the required change starts in my mind renewing it with God’s truths. These few bible verses are going to be added to my “foundational” truths I’m starting to memorize so that scripture and promises of God are the first things to come to mind when I’m stressed rather than the lies of the devil and this world I was unknowingly conforming to.
Renee Swope says
I love the way God gives us the gift of clarity when we see ourselves and our struggles in someone else’s story. It helps me so much to keep writing from my vulnerable places knowing we’re all in this together, with Him.
LaToya Brown says
Renee, thank you for the reminder to allow God to transform our thoughts. Last night I was telling my husband I needed a new perspective on my life. I wasn’t asking God to come and in and change my world, but help me see things in a different light. Reading your post is God’s answer, renew my mind in His truths. Thank you!
Renee Swope says
I love how only HE could know the timing of it all and how He shows His love and tender listening heart on days like this. Praying these truths are sewn into your heart and soul with threads of hope today!
Julie Garmon says
You wrote this just for me, didn’t you? 🙂
xoxoxoxox
Renee Swope says
Yes ma’m. I sure did. For you and for me, too. Writing helps me remember what I know, again and again.
xoxo
Elaine Tomasello says
Thank you Renee! Your words hit home for me. So much of the time I worry and doubt. I worry about things over which I have no control. I doubt in my heart that God will ever hear my plea for help. I doubt that He would bother to help someone like me because who am I that God should love me. My doubts & worry cloud my mind. I try to say the 23rd Psalm to counteract the feelings. It usually works but sometimes as soon as I finish those thoughts move right back into my mind. It is a constant battle. The devil knows me well. Too well. He plays on those doubts, fears, & worries. So each day I say to myself, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (Romans 12:2)
Thank you again.
God bless you always!
Renee Swope says
You are so welcome, Elaine. I love the rest of the promise you shared from Romans 12:2, that WHEN we let God transform our thoughts, THEN we will gain clarity in knowing His good, pleasing and perfect will. So good to remember that part too!
Rae Anne says
Thanks. EXACTLY what I needed to hear today.
Renee Swope says
He knew. He is such a good, good Father.
Pamela says
Thank you for your beautiful words. One’s I need to hear. Philippians 4:13 has gotten me through a lot. I’ve shared it with others. In this season I needed to rehear it with fresh ears.
Renee Swope says
Just prayed for you Pamela. You can do all things through Christ, who gives you strength for all that you are facing.
Nurse Connie says
This could not come at a more meaningful time for me. It is a confirmation of what has been laid on my heart the past couple of weeks. Sometimes I think I need a firm “God smack” in the a face to confirm that “yes, it’s ME telling you do to that!” But the fear, worry, doubt…they all cloud my thinking and make me question EVERYTHING. So, I will CONFIDENTLY move forward with a very big decision that will change my life and that of my family. It is still scary….there are so many unknowns and “what ifs”. But knowing I am not alone in feeling this way helps more than you know. It is a daily battle to renew and keep renewing my mind…moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day. I just need to keep asking God for just enough light to see the next step to take-and then TAKE IT.
An says
Amen, Connie, so much Amen 🙂
Renee Swope says
Yes “the fear, worry, doubt…they all cloud my thinking and make me question EVERYTHING.” That is exactly what they do. And the enemy knows it.
And that is why rest of the promise from Romans 12:2 is also key – WHEN we let God untangle our conformed thoughts and transform them with HIs truths, THEN we gain clarity in knowing His good, pleasing and perfect will. But we have to keep going back to the truth, again and again.
Praying for you as you CONFIDENTLY move forward with that big decision that will change yours and your family’s lives. Be strong and courageous, He is with you!!
Fight the battle to renew and keep renewing your mind…moment by moment, hour by hour, day by day. He will light your path with His lamp and truth. In Jesus’ name, amen!!
Jade Spotz says
Renee, thank you for speaking to my heart today. I have been struggling with stepping out in faith…. for so many reasons. So many lies that are being whispered in my ear. Today I will walk holding Philippians 4:13 in the for front of my thoughts! Like a boxers glove around my right fist I will hold that verse in front of me, letting God fight my battles.
Again thank you!
Gods Love to you,
Jade
Renee Swope says
Amen, amen, amen. Just prayed for you Jade. Your heart is worth fighting for with HIS truth!! Praying for faith that packs a powerful punch!!
Penny says
Renee,
From time to time I tend to doubt myself. (I doubt I’ll get to that, I doubt I’ll have time for that etc.) But as you have reminded us, we can turn that way of thinking around by being reassured that with the Lord on our side all good things are possible.
Thank-you for pointing this out, and for helping us change this way of thinking.
Penny
Renee Swope says
Love knowing this was an encouragement to you Penny!! Thank you for sharing!! 🙂
Rachel says
So busted over here.
Here’s the thing, I literally preach this to my kids ALL the time. But I have just been confronted with the Woman in the mirror who is probably the biggest doubter of all. Well, in my house anyway.
I’m very thankful for the Holy Spirit whispering to my heart this morning, and reminding me of the promises in His Word.
May this truth go deep in my mind & heart today & every day.
Thanks for sharing!!
Renee Swope says
I’m busted too, Rachel. It’s so much easier to believe this for others, and teach these truths with all our hearts to our kids, and then forget we’re not living in their power for ourselves. Praying for these truths to be rooted deep in you today and tomorrow and the next!! xoxo
Beth Coulton says
This was me yesterday. I went to work with many things on my mind and not enough sleep to even begin to think straight – A backed up house sewer (let’s all say “eww” together), a health concern of my own, tragic shocking news from the night before of a loss of a friend and community member due to a motorcycle accident, and an adult child needing wise counsel and advice for his job search…. I thought I would collapse from the lack of mental capacity I had to add in one. more. thing. I was living at the expense of my weariness and by lunchtime collapsed into a mess of tears and frustration. Over the phone, my wise husband reminded me – when I told him my bucket was already near full on a daily basis and now it was overflowing – “God doesn’t say ‘Wait to come to Me until you have excess, when you’re bucket’s spilling out and just can’t hold anymore’. We are to be giving him those items that are filling up our mental buckets all along the way so that they never even reach the top because we’re giving things one by one to God.” So wise. So right. So needed to be heard.
Thank you for this today – it speaks mightily into my circumstances.
LaToya Brown says
Beth, what a wise husband you have! And so true, we often wait until our buckets are sploshing over before we slip and slide our way to our knees begging for help. Thank you for the mental picture to empty my bucket from time to time.
Pearl @ Look Up Sometimes says
Renee, thank you! What you wrote really resonates. I appreciate your transparency so the rest of us know we aren’t alone either!
Melissa Henderson says
I needed this message today. Thank you. 🙂
Jackie says
I sooo needed to hear this today. I just went to my 30th high school reunion this weekend. I was overcome with fear and insecurity that stemmed all the way back to those days. It followed me in the days to come after that. An unshakable anxiety in my heart of who I was, what I had become, the path my life had taken, the acceptance that I felt from some and the lack of from others. It brought up old wound that I thought had been long healed, regrets over past actions, and my own self-judgment. But I had to take a step back and remember who God says I am….and I am none of those things my thought patterns were telling me. I am a child of God, ordained my Jesus Christ, clothed in strength and majesty, commissioned here and now, gifted by the spirit, equipt with words of life….I am not who the world says I am or thinks I am…..I am who Jesus says I am….and I am His daughter!!!
Bethsaida Segu says
Wow!! I’m sure this came directly to me! Thank you for these empowering words! God bless you, Renee! ❤️
Carrie says
This hit me right on today and could not have come at a better time. It’s like it was written for me because it was everything I was thinking to myself. I am so thankful for this encouragement and to be able to receive these emails. I am really struggling with all of this and this is a tremendous help to me.
Lynda says
I too want to put in my piece. I doubt and when this happens it really puts a damper on me. I feel sick, very weak in my body and mind, discourage, passive, paralyze. Doubt because I believe I might say something wrong and look foolish. This morning (It really started Saturday) I felt so paralyzed that I was actually going into a mold set up by the enemy satan. I felt I was dying spiritually. This weekend I had preached about fear and turbulances. I want to tell you sisters I experience what I preach. It was terrible. I got an email from an author I did not know. When I read her free chapter from her book, it was like God talking to me through her. Sisters, I jump up from the couch, break that evil mold that tried to engulf me and I start to declare what God says: “I have not given you a spirit of fear but of love power and sound mind”; I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.; I am more than a conqueror through Jesus Christ; I applied the Blood of Jesus. These were just some of the scriptures I had to declare. Then when I read Sis. Renee’s email later on today about doubt and fear, it just add confidence in my spirit to trust God more. And to know that other people experience these same effects from the enemy and fail just like me, also rise just like me to give God praise for the victory over the enemy and his tricks. Because he always want you to believe that it is only you that is going through these fears and doubts and you now try to hide it behind a smile (a mask). But satan you have just lost another battle big times. And we God’s people (sisters) are rising every time. Jesus, You are great, you do miracles so great. There is no one else like you. We love you Jesus and thank You for loving us first in Jesus Name. Amen.
An says
Renee, I thank the Lord for this beautiful word that you have written. Doubt is thief of peace, but also of trust. There is a saying that one can’t give what one doesn’t have that I have heard referenced in terms of energy, time, and resources. Yet as I looked at the saints, their trust showed that even though they didn’t have those things, the Lord did and worked all things for the good of those who loved Him. We are empowered by the Holy Spirit (how I needed to hear that He strengthens me today) to do what the Lord asks of us; all that is needed is trust. I am so grateful for your sharing of your struggles, this vulnerability that helps me to see that trust leads out of weariness and doubt into His clarity and peace. Thank you dear sister, I am there with you on this being a process of transforming our minds, but such a joy it is 🙂 May we all allow our dear Father in Heaven to show us a better way, a new perspective that reflects his loving heart as we trust in Him 🙂
Susan G says
Such truths! The only way the enemy can get through to us is to lie to us, and try to get us to believe it!
I must constantly go to His Word (daily) and read the real Truth of what God says about me…and it’s all good! 😉
Thanks for this today!
For those that didn’t catch it…”He who began a good work in you”… is Philippians 1:6, but 2 Corinthians 5:17 is awesome too! 🙂
Renee’s book “A Confident Heart” is the best book to combat the lies in our head or the lies of the enemy, that I’ve ever read! I refer back to it time and time again!
Blessings!
Annetta says
Thank you Renee. God sent encouragement, spot on and absolutely timely.
I just launched a project that I’ve been working on for a long (like years) time and doubted an even longer time about making it “live” although I was convinced it is something God put in ny heart to do. It has only been a few days since I launched and yes you guessed it, doubts came knocking…doubts further ignited by a few passing comments which I know I should just disregard but can’t.
So yes, thank you for your comforting “hugs” through words.
Annetta
Kelly says
Thank you for sharing this with us, I have struggled with doubt for a long time. It has gotten a little better recently and can see where God is bringing things into my lifeet that I didn’t think possible. Small steps are being made in my journey but too many times I want to rush the process. It is not an easy journey but I am thankful he is patient with me even when I am not patient with Him.
Melissa says
Goodness, I thought I was the only one who ever felt that way, having a dream or an idea and immediately getting that sinking heaviness in my chest and a voice in my head saying “Who am I kidding? I can’t do that.” I’ve been trying to overcome it for years. Lately though I’ve kind of given up. There is just so much else going on in my life and people who need me – my husband, my kids, my family, my friends – that I put that battle on the back burner. Thank you for reminding me that I’m worth fighting for.
Beth Williams says
Renee,
I have self doubts also! It doesn’t take much for me to feel stupid, dumb and ugly. I didn’t realize where these insecurities came from until I saw the movie War Room. The evil one is tricky and will whisper don’t try, won’t work, etc. He wants us all in despair. I am letting God slowly change the pattern of my thoughts. Using the full armor of God I am able to fight those flaming arrow with It is only then that the confidence of God shines through!!
Blessings 🙂
Jen @ GoingByFaith says
Just today I was telling a friend how I feel I’m doing a lot of things and none of them well. But by this evening, after taking a deep breath and refocusing my heart on Christ, I realized tomorrow’s a new day. Thanks for this post. The Lord does give us all we need in every situation.
Renee Swope says
Oh sweet friends, I’ve been dying to hop on here to be with you all day. Ive been reading your comments and thanking Jesus for the way He loves us. The divine timing He orchestrates. The obstacles He overcomes so He can speak to our hearts. This post almost didn’t happen due to major technical challenges on my end last week, and as I read your words today, I remembered how He made a way and it made me smile on the inside.
Thank you so much for sharing how HE spoke to YOU!! It makes me want to keep writing. I’m so grateful we’re in this together.
PS. He loves you. He loves you. He loves you!
Theresa says
Yes, so often we let that inner voice, or inner voices, determine our worth and abilities instead of the word of God. Let us drown out those voices with the truth of the gospel. And then pass the truth to the person next to us who is also drowning in the same voices.
Sylvia Martinez says
Im so there with you. Thank you for your words of encouragement
Deanna says
Thank you Renee…and all. I am encouraged and blessed to know that I am not alone in this.
Diane Bailey says
The sad thing about our doubt and shame is when we feel we have no one to talk it out. We hide it deep and dress up the outside. Talking it out gets it out. Out of our heads and hearts because there is someone who gets it, and if they are brave too, will say, “I go through this also.” And knowing we are not alone, makes us a little more brave.
Thank you for your brave. Good job!
Joyce says
Thank you so much for this encouraging message. It came at the right time. I am going to meditate on Philippians 4:13; I can do all things through Christ.
Sandy says
Hi Renee,
Praise God for your writing of this profound observation that we women hold onto over and over. I have been a doubter and worrier most of my life and even though I remind myself of Philippians 4:13, soon I’m back to my old habits. I have made progress these past few years, but that nagging voice still creeps in once-in-awhile.
Sometimes we just need to hear something from a fresh perspective to get us back on-track. Beautifully written!
Shalom, Sandy
Pam Dow says
Renee, Bless you for God’s word through you. I just read this chapter from your “A Confident Heart Devotional.” It came exactly when I needed it. I was making a decision about a new job and the enemy was filling my head with lies and doubts. I read this entry and was moved to tears. It was just what was I was thinking and feeling. God used your words to bring clarity to my mind and heart and the confidence to say yes to a new job! Thank you for your faithfulness. Blessings.
Christina says
I’m so thrilled to know another book is on the way!❤️ I no doubts that it will be rich!
Shaloma @ TallTalesAndFancy says
Thank you for being transparent even in the midst of your walk. I often wonder if spiritual leaders feel this way because these type of stories are often told in past tense, leaving us readers wondering if there’s some mountaintop that’s ever unattainable. It encourages me as I unlearn so many lies I didn’t even realize I had.