Wandering Toward God: Finding Faith amid Doubts and Big Questions

by Travis Dickinson

Outreach Resource of the Year Is it wrong to doubt? Many Christians assume that doubt is faith's opposite and that wandering among the hard questions of faith will lead us further and further away from God. True believers, the assumption goes, never waver in their confidence in the fundamental truths of the Christian faith. Professor and philosopher Travis Dickinson disagrees. Instead, he says, our doubts and hard questions about the faith are actually an important way we can express our commitment and love to God. Doubt isn't our destination but it's an important step on the way. It's possible to wander toward God as we ask our questions honestly, in faith and trust. As we do, we'll discover the truth, goodness, and beauty of God waiting for us.

Genres: Theology, Christian Living, Christian

216 pages, Paperback

Published October 18, 2022

Reviews

[Beran Fisher · Rating 2 out of 5]

…Meh. Admittedly, as a former Christian I was not the intended audience for this book, but I’m a sucker for Evangelicals writing books on deconstruction.

The first few chapters were a pretty decent discussion on confidence versus certainty, and how one doesn’t need to be certain of a truth to be confident of it. While I don’t agree with his conclusion that one can be confident in Christianity, it was an acceptable rundown of the distinction between confidence and certainty.

The biggest burr in my saddle in this section was where he kept saying that this book won’t convince “committed unbelievers.” Sorry, what? The vast majority of unbelievers of any religion aren’t “committed” to their unbelief. They are simply unconvinced of its truth. I am an unbeliever in unicorns, aliens, Bigfoot, Nessie, and many other legends. But I am not committed to these non-beliefs; should any genuine evidence arise for them I would be happy to believe in them. Same with any religion.

The last half of the book I skimmed/skipped large chunks of. It was merely pop Christian apologetics that have been rehashed a billion times by the Christian academic community. No new arguments, just the same old tired ones. The last chapter was a bunch of sorry excuses as to why God doesn’t make himself more obvious to unbelievers, including that there are no unbelievers that would genuinely be open to following him if he did show himself to them. I’m sorry, but if you’re judging every person who ever lived on the basis of whether they accepted Jesus as their Savior, you had better make it clear that those are the standards on which they will be judged. Especially if the punishment for not doing that is everlasting hellfire!

So overall, meh. I will give it credit for not going the typical route of Evangelical books on deconstruction and accusing those with doubts of wanting to deconstruct because it’s popular or that they want to sin. But that’s really all the credit it gets.

[Ryan Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

As Christians, we have all had seasons of doubt. Yet Dickinson writes to remind us that doubt is not the antithesis of faith, rather, unbelief is the opposite of faith. As we wrestle with our doubts, while leaning into the truthfulness and faithfulness of God and His Word, we can come to have a greater clarity, confidence, and conviction in what and Who it is that we have placed our faith in. This is a great book to read alongside another believer who you are discipling in the faith.

[Joseph Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Dickinson has been a voice of reason in addressing the faith/doubt question for many years. His insights and encouragements on the subject are helpful for academics and laymen, and this book will be a welcome resource for ministers, parents, and seekers alike! This is a needed book for a confused age. Excited for more people to hear from his experience!

[Scott Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worthwhile books if not a bit fluffy. I guess when you are dealing with the most important questions that we could possibly ask nothing is fluffy but when you are trying to convince people you have to spoon feed them.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some helpful perspective, but ultimately no new information.

[Hannah Dietrich · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think the first several chapters of this book uniquely respond to doubt and deconstruction in a meaningful and understanding way. In fact, Dickinson explains how doubt can be a useful tool for challenging your beliefs to discover their foundation in truth or lack thereof. In my discussions with others, doubts about the inerrancy of scripture, existence of God, or historicity of the resurrection. This book will be quite helpful for addressing those discussions in a way that is neither aggressive nor dismissive but listens and encourages.

I also really appreciated his presentation of a few classic arguments for the foundation of Christianity.

I also really appreciated his comments in response to “Why doesn’t God make himself more obvious?” He refers to times when people could not bear to witness God’s glory, and explains that his full presence being revealed may not be good for us in that it could harm people. I hadn’t ever looked at that issue from that perspective.