Deuteronomy 8:3
Question
Faith is a choice, and so is doubt. What inspires you in the verse and quote below to choose to “live by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord?”
Scripture
3 And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live.
Deuteronomy 8:3
Quote
Doubt is an enemy of faith and joy. Just as warm ocean water is the breeding ground for hurricanes, doubt is the breeding ground for spiritual hurricanes. Just as belief is a choice, so is doubt. When we choose to doubt, we choose to be acted upon, yielding power to the adversary, thereby leaving us weak and vulnerable.
Satan seeks to lead us to the breeding ground of doubt. He seeks to harden our hearts so that we will not believe. The breeding ground of doubt can appear inviting because its seemingly peaceful, warm waters do not require us to “live by every word that proceedeth forth from the mouth of God.” In such waters Satan tempts us to relax our spiritual vigilance. That inattention can induce a lack of spiritual conviction, where we are “neither cold nor hot.” If we are not anchored on Christ, doubt and its allures will lead us away to apathy, where we shall find neither miracles, lasting happiness, nor “rest unto [our] souls.”
Just as hurricanes weaken over land, doubt is replaced with faith as we build our foundation on Christ. We are then able to see spiritual hurricanes in their proper perspective, and our capacity to overcome them is enlarged. Then, “when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind, … it shall have no power … to drag [us] down to the gulf of misery and endless wo, because of the rock upon which [we] are built, which is a sure foundation.”
Elder Sean Douglas
Bethene Zetterquist Photography 