Doubt Is the Enemy of Imagination

by Rick Warren — September 8, 2023
From 50 Days of Faith

“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.”

James 1:5-7 (NIV)

Doubt is the enemy of imagination.

When you were a kid, you had a great imagination. But the older you get, the more your imagination grows rusty. You stop imagining the way things could be, and you just start living the way they are. You get stuck in the status quo.

Doubt and fear neutralize what God wants to do in your life. It takes courage to imagine. Do you know why most people don’t imagine? Because they’re afraid of failure.

Courage is doing the thing you fear the most. If you’re not afraid, you don’t need courage. Courage is when you’re scared to death and you say, “I’m going to do it anyway.”

Every great thing that we’ve done at Saddleback Church, I was scared to death to do. But I just said, “We’re going to do it anyway.” Why? Because I’m not about to let fear dominate my life. So I move forward despite my trembling.  

Courage is when you do the right thing while you are afraid. You may wonder, “Should I wait until all my doubts are gone?” But you need to move against your fears. You need to ignore all the insecurity you’re feeling and just go for it.

James 1:5-7 says, “If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord” (NIV).

Your imagination is either going to be governed by fear or it’s going to be governed by faith. That’s your choice. If you let fear govern your imagination, you’ll end up being freaked out,  stressed out, and worried all the time. When you allow fear to control your imagination, you live a miserable life.

Instead, decide that you’re not going to allow fear to dominate. Let your faith dominate. Trust in God. Then you can move forward in faith and allow your imagination to be filled with all kinds of possibilities—because all things are possible with God.

Talk It Over

  • What’s the big thing you believe God wants to do in your life but you’ve let doubt hold you back?
  • Would you be afraid to truly open your mind and life to every possibility of God? Why or why not?
  • When you ask God for something in prayer, why does he want you to believe in faith that he will answer?

What will you do when Jesus returns?

The Bible says you can only get to heaven by trusting in God’s Son, Jesus Christ. You can’t earn your way into heaven: “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV).

If you’re ready to commit your life to Jesus, start by praying this prayer:

“Dear God, you have promised that if I believe in your Son, Jesus Christ, everything I’ve ever done wrong will be forgiven, I will learn the purpose of my life, and you will accept me into your eternal home in heaven one day.

“I confess I have sinned, and I ask for your forgiveness. I believe that Jesus died to take away my sins and that you raised him to life. I want to trust Jesus as my Savior and follow him as Lord from this day forward. Guide my life and help me to do your will. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.”

If you just prayed to accept Jesus, please email me at [email protected] and let me know about it. I’d like to send you some free materials to help you start your journey with Jesus.


Give hope, prayer, and encouragement below. Post a comment & talk about it.