According to James in the eighth verse of his epistle , “a double-minded man is unstable in all his ways.” I know most of the time we apply this verse to those overtly living a double life, but when you contrast this verse with the ones with which it shares context, it seems apparent to me that the group being targeted here is not exclusively those who go around committing gross and obvious sins; the fact is that even those who pray without a complete faith in God are guilty of a divided heart (v. 6-7).

I know this sounds a bit harsh, but we can’t at all underestimate the danger of combining something as precious as faith with the vileness of doubt. If  somebody you know claimed to take you at your word and yet couldn’t stand on the least of your promises without using words like “if” and “maybe”, wouldn’t you feel offended? In much the same way, Christians do a great disservice to both themselves and the Gospel when they attach strings of doubt and uncertainty to promises which come from the One Who cannot lie (Hebrews 6:18). Not only are they missing out on the incomparable peace available to those who fully trust in Jesus, but they suggest to the world that God is not a reliable foundation on which to place their lives.

“But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.”

               -James 1:6

Simply put, a divided kingdom cannot stand (Mark 3:25). If you make room in your heart for the sin of doubt then you’ll soon discover that, just as “a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump”, so, too, a little doubt renders any accompanying faith of none effect  (Galatians 5:9; Matthew 21:21). Decide this day to do away with double-mindedness and lay hold on the promises of God, remembering the psalm of David as you do: “Happy is that people that is in such a case; yea, happy is that people whose God is the Lord.” (Psalm 144:15)