When Your Faith Feels Weak

Have you ever felt like God was leading you in a certain direction, only to hit roadblock after roadblock, leaving you wondering if you were even on the right path? Maybe you thought you heard God tell you that the person you met a year ago was the one to walk with you through life. Things were going great for a while, but now, everything feels stuck and stale. Or perhaps you felt called to change course and get a new job or take advantage of another opportunity, believing it was perfect for your skills and passions. Things seemed to go well at first, but now you’re miserable, facing obstacles and misunderstandings you never saw coming. These kinds of situations can make us feel as if we misheard what God told us. It’s a very uncomfortable place to be because, in many instances, it makes us feel as though our faith is weak.

Maybe you stepped out in faith, thinking you were doing what God wanted, but as time went on, things just didn’t turn out the way you expected. You began to doubt. Maybe you even wondered if God had forgotten about you. You’re not alone. 1 Peter 5:8-9 (NLT), reminds us, “Stay alert. Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. Remember that your family of believers all over the world is going through the same kind of suffering you are.” It’s a tough place to be in, but trust me, you’re not alone.”

The passage in 1 Peter 5:8-9 is a sobering reality check about what we face as believers. It’s a wake-up call that we’re dealing with an enemy that is relentless and will stop at nothing to undermine our faith. But we can’t cower in fear, because 2 Timothy 1:7 (NLT) tells us, “For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline.” Fear doesn’t come from God. He has given us courage and made us more than conquerors in Christ. 1 John 5:4 (NLT) reminds us, “For every child of God defeats this evil world, and we achieve this victory through our faith.” This should give us all the confidence we need to understand that standing on the foundation of God’s Word assures our victory.

Jesus declared in John 16:33 (NLT), “I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” Walking in faith isn’t always easy, but here’s the truth: we have to be as relentless about obtaining what God has released to us as the enemy is about stealing it. We understand that in a battle, one side has to lose, but because we’re in Christ, losing is impossible for us. Why? Because he has already won the battle against satan.

Obstacles can make us second-guess everything. You might start thinking, Did I hear God wrong? Was that really His plan for me? And in those moments, it’s easy to feel like your faith is weak, maybe even non-existent. But here’s the truth: feeling weak doesn’t mean you’ve failed, and it doesn’t mean that you’ve lost your faith. It means that there are still lessons about faith, patience, and God’s nature and plan that you need to learn. Our spiritual growth is exponentially more important to Him than anything else. He wants us to keep the reward we’ll receive faithfully in our hearts, but He’s also making sure that our foundation is as strong as possible for the next level of blessings that is sure to come our way.

It’s okay to feel weak sometimes; all of us do at some point. Those low times can be a real whammy, and they can last longer than we’d like. But let’s not sink so far that we deny ourselves the light of hope. We must turn to God in our weakness, and not try to push through on our own. God isn’t playing games with us. He’s not against us, He’s for us, and we can be honest with Him about where we’re at, trusting that when we call on Him, He is faithful to answer. Psalm 34:17-18 (NLT) tells us, “The  Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues them from all their troubles. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; he rescues those whose spirits are crushed.”  God is right there with us, offering His love and comfort, helping us to become the person He has destined us to be.

God isn’t disappointed when our faith is weak. He knew we’d have moments of challenge long before they existed. The key to making progress when our motivation is low, and our disappointment is even lower, is to lean on God’s strength. When we’re not sure about the hiccups and missteps, there’s no need to try to get ahead of Him. Taking one step at a time, acknowledging where you’re at, and trusting that His plan for your life is good, this is the way to keep your eyes on the reward, but also keep your heart in check. When you do this, you’ll find that your faith will grow stronger, even in the moments when you feel the weakest. ■

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.

“When Your Faith Feels Weak”, written for Springfield Fellowship © 2025. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.