“God has not given us the spirit of timidity” - 2 Timothy 1:7
FICKLENESS
I’ve often struggled with fickleness. What I write here is what’s challenged and helped me (and I have to exhort myself with!), based on this verse in 2 Timothy 1:7 - that God didn’t give us the spirit of timidity, but His will is that we have a boldness about us, which is based in faith and confidence in His love.
The word “Fickle” means constantly changing, and unpredictable - to constantly doubt and jump back and forth between things. Being paralyzed by questions; “what if, what if....” Many times we seek the Lord and get a clear word, only to allow feelings or trials to make us start questioning everything. The fickle are constantly in a state of changing their mind.
This is not God’s will.
“Don’t dig up in doubt what you planted in faith.” - Elisabeth Elliot
“Don’t doubt in the dark what God showed you in the light.”
Don't doubt in the dark (dark: chaotic feelings or circumstances) what God showed you in the light (light: from His Word, confirmations by His Spirit as you sought Him before).
AN EXAMPLE
Suppose God has shown us so much truth and confirmation in Scripture and guidance as we sought Him in something. It could be how to handle a specific situation, practical guidance on how to respond to someone, the conviction we have on a certain matter, or some conviction we keep for ourselves like how we spend our free time or something we should refrain from, etc. But then later an intense situation or feeling comes and starts to make us doubt or disregard what He previously spoke to us. And the devil starts tempting us, saying, “Yeah, that was probably all wrong, just forget about it. Maybe it wasn't from God anyhow.” To give into that is doubting in the dark what God already showed us in the light. It's being led by feelings rather than being led by the Spirit.
In the parable of the sower Jesus warned us against letting trials or feelings move us: “they have no firm root in themselves, but are only temporary; then, when affliction or persecution arises because of the word, immediately they fall away.” Mark 4:17 NASB1995
Fickleness is to have “no firm root” when affliction (trials) or persecution and pressure from others comes to uproot us. God wants us to have a firm root! To hear from God and be planted there strongly, pressing on and resisting temptation with His help.
When our feelings are stirred, and we’re in the middle of some trial, that is not the time to start questioning all of the things God has spoken to us before that.
“No farmer sows seed in the middle of a storm.” It's unwise to make important decisions when our emotions are out of control.
This happened to the Israelites constantly. God can show us a word from Scripture, or an amazing confirmation to a question we had, some wise counsel we received, or even a miracle - and all of the sudden some trouble or doubting thought comes and we are struggling with our direction as if God never spoke to us! The Israelites were constantly going back and forth, following God at one moment and then doubting the next moment.
Fear has a way of making us overcomplicate things, setting aside what God showed us and then leaning on our reasoning to jump around in our mind and decisions about what the best way forward is. That is fickleness.
But childlike, trusting faith is very simple. It doesn’t try to overcomplicate things by leaning on all our reasoning instead of trusting God, and so it’s very restful: “O Lord, my heart is not proud, nor my eyes haughty; Nor do I involve myself in great matters, Or in things too difficult for me. Surely I have composed and quieted my soul; Like a weaned child rests against his mother, My soul is like a weaned child within me.” Psalms 131:1-2
BUT WHAT IF WE ARE WRONG?
What is it that drives us to doubt? It’s fear. One fear I've seen in myself is: “But what if I am going the wrong direction? I'm trying to hear God but what if I misheard? I’ll destroy myself!”
I do believe we should have a healthy acknowledgement that we are capable of destroying ourselves apart from Him! That's humility, and an even greater danger is to be self-confident and proud. But the Bible says: “Perfect love casts out fear” (1 John 4:18).
What's encouraged me is: I have to just trust God. What's greater - my incapability or His ability? Trust in God's love and complete power to preserve you, despite yourself. That can deliver us from that fear - even if we get things wrong.
“A ship heading in the wrong direction can be turned around faster than one which is sitting stationary.”
There’s an element of faith and humility which glorifies God in, "I think this is the way, I may be wrong, but in that case I'll trust God." Like Paul said, "I think I have the Spirit" (1 Cor 7:40). “I believe this is the right way the Lord led me. I may be wrong. But if I am I will trust the Lord in His LOVE will turn things around."
BE BOLD
So I saw that God wants us to be bold, not tossed back and forth but pressing on without distraction into the direction of His will He showed us. If you are a genuine disciple of the Lord: pray the Lord will make you BOLD! Paul asked for prayer for the same thing for himself (Eph 6:20).
Disciples should have a boldness about them, based on what God's will is: "This is the Lord's will, so I will run this direction full-bore and I won't turn back."
Seek the Lord, hear from Him - and then run that direction with all your might. This is what has been so freeing to myself in the middle of temptation to fickleness and doubt.
God has not given us the spirit of timidity.
BE WISE
But this word is for disciples who are determined to die to self for the sake of Christ, not for those who think they know the way already - to run their own direction. We must not be foolish - we have to be humble and recognize how blind we are to our own situation apart from God, because of our flesh and all its desires and self-will. It's said of Jesus, "He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear" (Isaiah 11:3). Jesus never relied on Himself to decide which way to go. He feared God and always sought the Father's direction.
So seek wisdom (James 1:5), seek counsel, pray, get confirmation from Scripture and the Holy Spirit. A good principle that helped me in my life when I was young: "If you can find it plainly in Scripture and Biblical principles, then you are on solid ground. If not, you may just be going on a good idea."
Another thing is - if your spiritual authority (parents, elders, husband, etc) is resistant and has concerns about your direction or guiding you a certain way, you have to submit by taking that seriously (Eph 6:1, Heb 13:17, Eph 5:22-23). Because our flesh and self-will and human emotions can even twist our view of Scripture and what God’s will is (we see this in Peter rebuking Jesus for going to the cross thinking that was of God, or Uzzah touching the ark, or King Saul offering a burnt offering).
I've heard of multiple instances of Christians convincing themselves (even from Scripture) that they heard from God that it was His will for them to marry an unbeliever! Spiritual authority is so critical, because there's a protection there for us and a guidance that God commanded in His Word that we sit under that authority, rather than being tossed around by our own reasoning and emotions.
RUNNING THE RACE UNDISTRACTED
But if you’ve done all this, and you have your direction of what the Lord's will is - then: trust the Lord and go “all-in”, running boldly in that way which God led. Don’t stop running, constantly looking back when pressure comes. It’s a distraction from running the race after Jesus “all-in”.
A person who is constantly looking back from doubt or fear will never run well, no matter how correct their direction is.
By God's grace, may we overcome fickleness and fear, and be full of faith, running the race with boldness, because of our confidence in Him.
“...the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” James 1:6-8