Can you trust God when everything is falling apart? Pastor Steve explores the common struggle of doubt, the honest questions of Abram, and the profound truth that faith is an action that pulls you through uncertainty.
The video is a sermon that begins with a reading from the Gospel of Luke 13:31-35 [00:10], where Jesus laments Jerusalem and acknowledges Herod’s threat.
Pastor Steve then introduces the core question: “Have you ever had doubts about your faith?” [01:52]. He shares a personal anecdote of a crisis of faith during seminary, where he struggled with Greek work and questioned his calling, feeling despair and like he was not “cut out” to be a pastor [02:03].
This personal struggle is then connected to the Old Testament story of Abram and Sarai (Genesis 15).
The Covenant and Waiting: The sermon first explains the one-sided covenant God made with Abram—a promise of land and descendants with no conditions for Abram—signified by the fire pot and torch passing through the cut animals [06:44]. The focus then shifts to the 10 years of uncertainty Abram endured after leaving his homeland at age 75 [08:30]. In that time, he faced famine, conflict, a feud with his nephew Lot, and still had no heir.
The Questioning: At 85, Abram feels old, tired, and that his family is falling apart, leading him to question God’s faithfulness to His promise [09:46]. The pastor highlights the honesty of this scripture, relating it to the despair felt in modern life when marriages fail, families feud, or global tragedies occur [11:41].
Faith as a Gift and Action: God responds to Abram’s fear by leading him outside and asking him to count the stars [16:32]. God affirms His identity as the Creator of the universe, demonstrating that He can certainly fulfill the “simple promise” of a son [17:00]. Abram’s subsequent belief is described as a gift of faith from God. The sermon’s main takeaway is that “faith is not a noun… faith is a verb” [17:52]. Faith is not a feeling or something we possess, but an action and a way of being in the world that enables us to move forward through doubt and fear, trusting that God has not forgotten us.