Faith Is Not Make-Believe
Daily Devotional—Thursday, September 24, 2026
“How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?… But I have trusted in Your mercy; My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.” — Psalm 13:1, 5, NKJV
Heart Change Insight
“There has to be a connection between the spoken word, and part of that is believing.” — David A. Case, Magical Thinking or Spiritual Authority? — HCU Live!
Sometimes we think faith requires us to sound certain when we don’t feel certain.
We tell people we’re fine because admitting that we’re hurting feels too much like unbelief. We repeat what we think a faithful person should say while disappointment, anger, confusion, or fear remains unspoken beneath the surface. We may even worry that acknowledging a problem will give it more power.
Biblical faith, however, is not pretending. God does not ask us to deny what is happening in order to prove that we trust Him.
Faith is Not Make-Believe
Psalm 13 begins with King David asking, “How long, O Lord? Will You forget me forever?” He does not clean up his pain before bringing it to God. He feels forgotten. He is wrestling with sorrow and watching an enemy seem to prevail.
A few verses later, the Psalmist says, “But I have trusted in Your mercy.”
Both statements belong in the same prayer.
David’s trust does not erase his anguish, and his anguish does not cancel his trust. He tells God what the situation feels like while remaining in relationship with Him. That is not faithlessness. It is honest faith.
We can acknowledge that something hurts without declaring that pain will have the final word. We can admit that we are afraid without making fear our authority. We can say that we don't understand what God is doing without concluding that He has abandoned us.
God already knows what is inside us. Pretending does not protect our relationship with Him. It keeps us from bringing our actual hearts into that relationship.
Faith Is Not a Formula for Controlling Outcomes
In Magical Thinking or Spiritual Authority?, I explain that words are meaningful when they are connected to belief, obedience, and the way we live. Words are important, but they are not magic.
We cannot force God to produce our preferred outcome by saying the right sentence enough times. We cannot guarantee another person’s choices, remove every difficulty, or avoid all disappointment through perfectly worded declarations.
That kind of thinking can place a heavy burden on people. If the hoped-for healing, relationship, opportunity, or breakthrough does not happen, they may assume they didn't believe strongly enough, pray the right way, or speak the right words.
Biblical faith does not make us responsible for controlling every outcome.
Jesus showed us something different in the garden of Gethsemane. He prayed, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39).
Jesus did not deny what He wanted. He did not call suffering pleasant or pretend the cup was easy to receive. He expressed His desire honestly and surrendered the outcome completely.
Faith can ask boldly and still say, “Your will be done.”
Faith Trusts God With What We Cannot See
In Fear and Failure, I say, “Fear and faith are both vision for the future.”
Fear looks into uncertainty and treats pain as inevitable. Magical thinking looks into uncertainty and treats our preferred result as guaranteed. Faith looks into uncertainty and remembers the character of God.
Faith does not always know what will happen. It knows where to turn when the future remains unclear.
Sometimes faith sounds confident and joyful. Sometimes it sounds like, “God, I believe; help my unbelief.” Sometimes it means asking for prayer, receiving wise counsel, setting a necessary boundary, going to therapy, taking prescribed medication, or allowing someone trustworthy to help carry what has become too heavy.
Those actions are not admissions that faith has failed. They may be part of responding faithfully to what is actually happening.
The resources in The Anxiety Iceberg Collection can help us explore what may be operating beneath fear, control, physical activation, or repeated anxious patterns. Yet the invitation is broader than anxiety: God wants to meet us where we really are, not where we believe a faithful person ought to be.
We do not have to perform peace in order to receive it. We can bring God the fear, the disappointment, the unanswered question, and the outcome we cannot control.
Faith begins by getting honest in the presence of the One we can trust.
Reflection Question
Where have I been trying to sound faithful instead of honestly bringing God what is happening inside me?
Prayer
Father, You already know what is happening inside me, so help me come to You without pretending. Teach me to speak honestly about what hurts while continuing to trust Your character and mercy. Free me from believing that I must use perfect words or produce enough faith to control an outcome. Show me the wise and obedient response available to me today, and help me place what I cannot control into Your hands. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Today's Step of Obedience
Set aside five quiet minutes and complete these two sentences without trying to make them sound spiritual:
What I am honestly experiencing is:
What I know to be true about God is:
Allow both statements to remain on the page. You do not have to erase the first one to believe the second.
Then pray: “Father, this is what I am carrying, and this is what I believe about You. Show me my next right, indicated step.”
If that step includes asking someone safe for prayer, counsel, practical help, or professional support, reach out today.
WATCH:
Magical Thinking or Spiritual Authority?
Words and spiritual authority matter, but words are not a formula for controlling God or guaranteeing an outcome. This conversation explores the relationship between belief, obedience, spoken words, surrender, and real spiritual authority.
Keep Exploring
The Anxiety Iceberg
The eBook, audiobook, self-paced course, Small Group Kit, and related resources explore the physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual dynamics that may be operating beneath anxious patterns.
The entire collection is available at no cost through September 30, 2026.
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