--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: While we want doubts to give way to…" description: "\"While we want doubts to give way to faith, we should be merciful and patient with those who are still in a doubt-troubled place.\" — Timothy Keller" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png" --- # While we want doubts to give way to faith, we should be… ![“While we want doubts to give way to faith, we should be merciful and patient with those who are still in a doubt-troubled place.” quote by Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png) > “While we want doubts to give way to faith, we should be merciful and patient with those who are still in a doubt-troubled place.” [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Faith emerges when doubts are met with compassion and patience, guiding seekers gently forward. **In simple terms:** Compassion helps doubts become faith. Key Takeaway Practice patient listening. Themes faith doubt compassion spiritual growth Mood hopeful empathetic Type spiritual inspirational When to use this quote - counseling - church teaching - personal crisis - interfaith dialogue Key Concepts theology psychology Questions to Reflect On - How can we balance truth and compassion? - What role does patience play in belief formation? A Different Perspective Patience may not resolve deep skepticism quickly. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Doubt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) [Doubts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubts/) [Faith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/faith/) [Giving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/giving/) [Merciful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/merciful/) ## Related quotes > [With faith in the merciful Redeemer and His power, potential despair turns to hope. One's very heart and desires change, and the once-appealing sin…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-todd-christofferson/with-faith-in-the-merciful-redeemer-and-his-power-potential-despair/) [D. Todd Christofferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-todd-christofferson/) > [The gospel shows a God far more holy than the legalist can bear, yet far more merciful than a humanist can conceive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/the-gospel-shows-a-god-far-more-holy-than-the-legalist-can-bear-yet/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [In the end we must be merciful to the fallen, show grace to struggling, and be patient with the doubting. But when God's Word…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/in-the-end-we-must-be-merciful-to-the-fallen-show-grace-to-struggling/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [Believers should acknowledge and wrestle with doubts... It is no longer sufficient to hold beliefs just because you inherited them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/believers-should-acknowledge-and-wrestle-with-doubts-it-is-no-longer/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Relationships don't thrive because the guilty are punished but because the innocent are merciful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-lucado/relationships-don-t-thrive-because-the-guilty-are-punished-but/) [Max Lucado](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-lucado/) > [You are merciful... when you forgive in others the faults you condemn in yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikhil-saluja/you-are-merciful-when-you-forgive-in-others-the-faults-you-condemn-in/) [Nikhil Saluja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikhil-saluja/) > [Sometimes it's good to sit down and reflect. Try remembering your sins and ask God for forgiveness. Indeed, He is the most merciful!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/sometimes-it-s-good-to-sit-down-and-reflect-try-remembering-your-sins/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [“Be merciful to him who is beneath you, and you will have mercy from Him who is above you. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wortabet/be-merciful-to-him-who-is-beneath-you-and-you-will-have-mercy-from/) [John Wortabet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wortabet/) > [Our Heavenly Father is far more merciful, infinitely more charitable, than even the best of his servants, and the Everlasting Gospel is mightier in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-f-whitney/our-heavenly-father-is-far-more-merciful-infinitely-more-charitable/) [Orson F. Whitney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-f-whitney/) > [“Man is merciless but the Maker is merciful.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lailah-gifty-akita/man-is-merciless-but-the-maker-is-merciful/) [Lailah Gifty Akita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lailah-gifty-akita/) > [Memory, with its fugitive adjustments, is the merciful veil to the grim enactments of the first law. It hides the anguish in the human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stacy-aumonier/memory-with-its-fugitive-adjustments-is-the-merciful-veil-to-the-grim/) [Stacy Aumonier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stacy-aumonier/) > [“ceases to be merciful, no matter what sins have been conv mitted.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-pohle/ceases-to-be-merciful-no-matter-what-sins-have-been-conv-mitted/) [Joseph Pohle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-pohle/) > [Precise, graceful, and generous, the poems in SuperLoop, seem to be born out of a deep, careful attention and a profound compassion. Sometimes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ada-limon/precise-graceful-and-generous-the-poems-in-superloop-seem-to-be-born/) [Ada Limon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ada-limon/) > [God wants us to pray, and he wants to hear our prayers-not because we are worthy, but because he is merciful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/god-wants-us-to-pray-and-he-wants-to-hear-our-prayers-not-because-we/) [Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/) > [My child, seek those things which make for peace. Cease to stir up the King against the Church, and urge upon him a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/my-child-seek-those-things-which-make-for-peace-cease-to-stir-up-the/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Timothy Keller > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [The more you rejoice in your own forgiveness, the quicker you will be to forgive others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/the-more-you-rejoice-in-your-own-forgiveness-the-quicker-you-will-be/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Evangelism will come organically in friendship if we don’t let our pride, fears, and pessimism cause us to hide our faith and heart.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/evangelism-will-come-organically-in-friendship-if-we-don-t-let-our/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“The coming of the messianic King occurs in two stages. At his first coming, he saved us from the penalty of sin and gave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/the-coming-of-the-messianic-king-occurs-in-two-stages-at-his-first/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [ “24 A few pages later, Delbanco writes the following: \[Alexis de\] Tocqueville’s detection of a “strange melancholy in the midst of abundance” has a… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/24-a-few-pages-later-delbanco-writes-the-following-alexis-de/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“To stay away from Christianity because part of the Bible's teaching is offensive to you assumes that if there is a God he wouldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/to-stay-away-from-christianity-because-part-of-the-bible-s-teaching/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [If the preaching of our ministers and the practice of our parishioners do not have the same effect on people that Jesus had, then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-the-preaching-of-our-ministers-and-the-practice-of-our/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“of temple, presence, and sacrifice; of covenant and faithfulness; of kingdom and victory. When we seek to communicate the gospel to a particular culture,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/of-temple-presence-and-sacrifice-of-covenant-and-faithfulness-of/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“Finally, you are ready to launch your church. Begin by developing action steps and goals that can be used as benchmarks to track your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/finally-you-are-ready-to-launch-your-church-begin-by-developing/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [If you are a child of God, you don’t lose your status if you have a bad week.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-a-child-of-god-you-don-t-lose-your-status-if-you-have-a/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [God's salvation does not come in response to a changed life. A changed life comes in response to the salvation, offered as a free…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/god-s-salvation-does-not-come-in-response-to-a-changed-life-a-changed/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [“When anything in life is an absolute requirement for your happiness and self-worth, it is essentially an ‘idol,’ something you are actually worshiping. When…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/when-anything-in-life-is-an-absolute-requirement-for-your-happiness/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Suffering is the stripping of our hope in finite things, therefore we do not put our ultimate hope in anything finite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/suffering-is-the-stripping-of-our-hope-in-finite-things-therefore-we/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [Christ will do everything for you or nothing. He's either all of your righteousness or none.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/christ-will-do-everything-for-you-or-nothing-he-s-either-all-of-your/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [If we give God things in hope that they'll earn us blessings, we're really not doing anything for him. It's for ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-we-give-god-things-in-hope-that-they-ll-earn-us-blessings-we-re/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) [Explore all 843 Timothy Keller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) ## More Doubt quotes > [I put myself in the student's place and remember the frustrations, doubts, determination, and desires I felt when I was going through the initial…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-martinez/i-put-myself-in-the-student-s-place-and-remember-the-frustrations/) Ted Martinez > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [I don't doubt that straight white men have identity issues and identity complexes and struggle with defining themselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-simien/i-don-t-doubt-that-straight-white-men-have-identity-issues-and/) [Justin Simien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-simien/) > [“Where there is doubt (shanka), there is misery. The moment one begins to doubt the knowledge that, 'I am Chandubhai,' misery arises. Once one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dada-bhagwan/where-there-is-doubt-shanka-there-is-misery-the-moment-one-begins-to/) [Dada Bhagwan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dada-bhagwan/) > [We know accurately only when we know little, with knowledge doubt increases.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/we-know-accurately-only-when-we-know-little-with-knowledge-doubt/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [There is no doubt in my mind and I know in my time, there will be a Canadian basketball player playing for Toronto Raptors, 100%](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masai-ujiri/there-is-no-doubt-in-my-mind-and-i-know-in-my-time-there-will-be-a/) [Masai Ujiri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masai-ujiri/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [“Let no one hope to find in contemplation an escape from conflict, from anguish or from doubt. On the contrary, the deep, inexpressible certitude…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-merton/let-no-one-hope-to-find-in-contemplation-an-escape-from-conflict-from/) [Thomas Merton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-merton/) > [“Two powerful, little words I've learned to use when facing challenges, fears, and doubts— so what? ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richelle-e-goodrich/two-powerful-little-words-i-ve-learned-to-use-when-facing-challenges/) [Richelle E. Goodrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richelle-e-goodrich/) > [For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible - and no one can now doubt the word of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/for-diplomacy-to-be-effective-words-must-be-credible-and-no-one-can/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [Vision motivates, sustains and dispels doubt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-young/vision-motivates-sustains-and-dispels-doubt/) [Thomas Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-young/) > [One may not doubt that, somehow Good Shall come of Water and of Mud; And sure, the reverent eye must see A purpose in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-brooke/one-may-not-doubt-that-somehow-good-shall-come-of-water-and-of-mud/) [Rupert Brooke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-brooke/) > [Let smiles overshadow sadness. Let faith make you believe. Let confidence wash away doubts. Let love complete your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ritu-ghatourey/let-smiles-overshadow-sadness-let-faith-make-you-believe-let/) [Ritu Ghatourey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ritu-ghatourey/) > [When in doubt, suggest that a subcommittee be appointed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-chapman/when-in-doubt-suggest-that-a-subcommittee-be-appointed/) Harry Chapman > [“Those who contemplate never escape the doubt.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henning-mankell/those-who-contemplate-never-escape-the-doubt/) [Henning Mankell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henning-mankell/) [Browse all 9,582 Doubt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doubt/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "While we want doubts to give way to faith, we should be merciful and patient with those who are still in a doubt-troubled place.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Timothy Keller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-faith-we-should-be-merciful-and/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Doubt" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-faith-we-should-be-merciful-and/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a76/timothy-keller-240_doubt_while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-fait_216487.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“While we want doubts to give way to faith, we should be merciful and patient with those who are still in a…” — Timothy Keller", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Timothy Keller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "While we want doubts to give...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-faith-we-should-be-merciful-and/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/while-we-want-doubts-to-give-way-to-faith-we-should-be-merciful-and/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```