There is this one part where The Big Advocate of Jesus of Nazareth finds himself doubting whether or not Jesus of Nazareth is actually Immanuel.

The Big Advocate is suffering in prison, and he sends a query to Jesus – a raw, haunting question – “Are you really The One, or should we be looking for someone else?”

God candidly shares these stories with us. He doesn’t sanitize the struggle or airbrush the faith of His followers. I think God gives us these accounts to encourage us to honestly wrestle through our own doubts, uncertainties, distress, and even despair.

And the most staggering reality of all is that: God is personally committed to loving us along every single step of that arduous path. God isn’t waiting for us to “figure it out” before He draws near. Instead, He invites us to:

• Lean on the Holy Spirit: When the words won’t come, we cling to the “deep groanings” and intercessions of the Spirit. And we steward the mystery of believing that when we don’t know how to pray as we ought, the Spirit speaks for us.
• Be Honest in the Ache: We’re invited to sincerely join the man in Mark’s Gospel who said: “I believe; help my unbelief.”