What does Tribe teach about faith doubt?

At Tribe, the teaching on faith and doubt starts with a simple image: a hat rack. Brian Hunter used that image to describe how every belief we hold rests on a hook, some narrative or foundation we have chosen, and the question worth sitting with is whether that hook is strong enough to bear the weight. Brian says, "the most compelling narrative is the most likely to get your belief," and the trouble is that compelling does not mean true. A hook can look solid and still snap.

One of the most honest moments in the teaching came when someone in the room raised a real and personal version of doubt: what if you tried Christianity and felt like it failed you? Brian's answer was careful. The hook of a charismatic personality, a denomination, or a particular theology can sit very close to the hook of genuine faith in Jesus, and when the wrong one snaps, people mistakenly conclude that Jesus himself cannot be trusted. The doubt, in other words, may be a completely understandable response to a real disappointment, but it may also be aimed at the wrong target.

The teaching from Psalm 119 verses one through eight pointed toward where that leaves a person. Those who find their footing are described as people who let God decide which hook each belief belongs on rather than reorganizing the hat rack on their own terms. The posture Brian drew out of those verses was not confidence in having it all figured out but something more like a plea: "Please don't give up on me." That is the honest starting point the teaching offered for anyone whose faith has taken a hit.

Taught from Psalm 119:1-8